By: Jeff Arnold

Before this past weekend many around the country had not heard of Andre Williams. He was an afterthought, a nice sidenote about a good, but not great player putting up ridiculous numbers on a bad team. But now, he is one of the front runners for the Heisman Trophy, the most prestigious individual award in college football. Why? Because he is the only reason that his team doesn’t get blown out week-in-week-out.

As a senior for Boston College he has averaged 299 rushing yards over his last three games, leads the country in rushing yards by 462 yards, and is only the sixteenth player in the history of college football to break the 2,000 rushing yards in a single season mark.. With 2,063 with one game in the regular season (and a bowl game) remaining he could easily climb up the ranks and finish with one of the top five seasons of all time. Among the names who have broken that magic 2,000 yard mark: Marcus Allen, Ricky Williams, and Barry Sanders. What do those three names have in common? They are all Heisman Trophy recipients.

Of course it’s not like the only reason those three won the award was because of their numbers; it helped that all three of their teams were big-time programs, but still it can’t be ignored. Also consider this, Boston College was chosen to finish last in the ACC^[1] and now, after four straight wins, are 7-4 and looking at a decent bowl game appearance. BC’s defense is pretty good especially considering new defensive coordinator Don Brown put in an entirely new system for a veteran team; however, even with the recent resurgence, it still isn’t good enough to be the reason that the Eagles keep winning ball games. So, one might ask, why do they? Because their offense finds ways to score and 95% of that offense is based off of Williams. This is mainly because Chase Rettig, the senior quarterback, struggles in any and all pressure packed performances^[2] which then forces the ball in Williams hands whenever a big play is needed. Even when he doesn’t get the ball, his presence gets to the defense which can create easier opportunities for the rest of the team. This is a second reason he should win the Heisman. Outside of the records and the huge numbers, he is the only option for the team. Different than the other Heisman front-runner, Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston, who has a team of highly-sought after recruits around him, Williams has next to no offensive weaponry. Now yes, the offensive line is doing a spectacular job in letting him bounce around and find holes, but at the end of the day, if the Eagles need a first down, the ball has to go to Williams, while for Winston, it could go to any of his very capable backs.

Andre Williams makes his team better more than any other current Heisman front-runner^[3], his team’s success would be nowhere near where it is without him, his numbers match other Heisman trophy winners, and he is the best running back, by the numbers, in college football. He has taken a team from mediocrity to success and for those reasons he should win the Heisman.

Despite all of the upsides to Williams  and his campaign, there are reasons as to why he won’t win the Heisman.

One is that he doesn’t have that defining play or moment that all winners seem to have. He doesn’t have a marquee win over a really great team and most of his work is done by just pounding the ground play after play and going for huge yardage only once or twice a game. His highlight real, in relative terms, is fairly short. For example, Jameis Winston has had multiple “Heisman moments”. Many point to the blowout win over a top five Clemson team as his signature win. Williams doesn’t have one of these big time performances.

Two, his team isn’t ranked. Again, yes Boston College is going above and beyond expectations, but it’s hard to justify giving such a big award to a player on a team that isn’t in the top 25. They have four losses, four more than Winston’s Seminoles, and got blown out by lackluster USC and UNC teams^[4]. In the eyes of many Heisman voters, a team like that can’t have a player that deserves the award.

Lastly, he doesn’t have the “buzz factor” that other candidates, mainly Winston, do. Before this past week many had not heard of him. Winston, however, has been making waves since his outstanding debut against Pittsburgh on the opening night of college football back in September. Before that, all the talk was on the play-making abilities of Johnny Manziel, and after that it was on the efficiency of Oregon quarterback, Marcus Mariota. All in all, his name hasn’t been out there like the other contenders have. He hasn’t been in the spotlight and Boston College’s limited exposure doesn’t help this issue.

This limited exposure and lack of excitement might just be what ends up holding Williams back from winning the Heisman Trophy. However, if voters can look past the surface and see the historical significance of this season and how big his impact truly is he might just have a chance^[5].