Four Heisman finalists to New York: Newton, James, Luck, Moore
Auburn quarterback Cam Newton and Oregon running back LaMichael James, two of the nation's most dynamic players, will meet in the national championship game next month.
First, a stop in New York.
Newton and James were named finalists for the Heisman Trophy on Monday, and will be joined by Stanford's Andrew Luck and Kellen Moore of Boise State for Saturday's announcement in Times Square.
Newton overcame a pay-to-play scandal with a superb season on the field, piling up nearly 4,000 combined yards and 49 touchdowns in leading the top-ranked Tigers into the Jan. 10 national championship game.
James and the Ducks will be there waiting for them in the desert after he piled up more yards and touchdowns than anyone else in FBS, helping the second-ranked Ducks into their first national title game.
"Since I was a young boy, playing the game of football has been a pure joy and this season has been a very special one for my teammates and for me," Newton said in a statement. "I know as a team we're excited to get back on the field on January 10 against a great Oregon team."
Newton is the front-runner, but the big question is whether voters will look past the scandal involving his father.
Newton was unparalleled on the field.
He threw for 2,589 yards and 28 touchdowns while running for 1,409 yards and 20 more scores - adding another on a reception - to join Florida quarterback and 2007 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow and Nevada's Colin Kaepernick (this season) as the only FBS players to have 20 touchdowns rushing and passing in a season.
In his final regular-season game, he threw four TD passes and scored two more on the ground in Auburn's 56-17 rout of 18th-ranked South Carolina that earned Auburn the SEC championship and a shot at its first national title since 1957.
The knock against Newton is the shenanigans by his father, Cecil.
The elder Newton was accused of working with the owner of a scouting service to get up to $180,000 for his son to play for at Mississippi State while the quarterback was being recruited out of junior college last year.
The NCAA cleared Cam, saying neither he nor Auburn knew anything about it, but Heisman voters might be leery of another Reggie Bush-type situation. The 2005 Heisman winner from USC gave back his trophy earlier this year and his school was hit with heavy sanctions after a four-year NCAA investigation determined he was ineligible that season for receiving improper benefits.
If Newton does win it, he'll join Bo Jackson (1985) and Pat Sullivan (1971) as Heisman Trophy winners at Auburn.
"I'm very honored and blessed to be named a finalist for the Heisman Trophy with some other outstanding players," said Newton, who was playing at a Texas junior college just a year ago. "Like I've said, this is not an individual honor, but a team honor. I wouldn't be in this position without my great teammates, coaches and the Auburn family."
If voters steer away from Newton, James could swoop in and become the first Oregon player to win college football's most prestigious individual award.
James was the main cog in Oregon's nearly point-a-minute offense, forcing teams to key on him while the rest of his talented teammates ran all over the field. Oregon led the nation in scoring at nearly 50 points per game and was second in total yards, just a few tenths behind Oklahoma State at 537 yards per game.
Even with the extra attention, James led the nation with 1,682 yards and 21 touchdowns, and his 152 yards per game was nearly 10 more than Connecticut's Jordan Todman in second. He closed out the regular season by gaining 134 yards in Oregon's 37-20 win over rival Oregon State on Saturday that clinched the school's first trip to the national title game.
Luck was second fiddle to Washington's Heisman hopeful Jake Locker to open the season, but quickly established himself as the Pac-10's best quarterback.
The 6-foot-4 junior won a lopsided battle over Locker and his Huskies early in the season and guided the fifth-ranked Cardinal to one of the best seasons in school history. A projected top NFL pick, Luck threw for over 3,000 yards and a school-record 28 touchdowns with just seven interceptions while completing 70 percent of his passes for an 11-1 team that earned an Orange Bowl berth.
"He's the best player I have ever been around," Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh said. "He's the best player, the most valuable player on one of the best teams in the country. He's done everything a guy can do in one season."
Moore wasn't much of a Heisman hopeful early in the season, but quickly played his way into the picture while leading the Broncos to the cusp of a BCS bowl berth.
The junior was second in the nation in passer efficiency, throwing for over 3,500 yards with 33 TDs and five interceptions, but his chances took a hit with a loss to Nevada that knocked Boise State out of BCS contention.
"I think it's been a tremendous year," Moore said. "We had the disappointment of the Nevada game, but the things we accomplished, the way we played, we're still one of the best teams in the country I think."
Alabama's Mark Ingram, the 2009 Heisman Trophy winner, wasn't much of a factor in his bid to repeat.
The bruising running back missed the first two games after offseason knee surgery and wasn't nearly as dynamic as a year ago, rushing for 816 yards, half his total from a year ago. His team also had its repeat national title hopes fizzle with an early season loss to South Carolina and later losses to LSU and Newton's Tigers.
2010-11 College Football Bowl ScheduleBowl Location Date/Time Network
New Mexico
BYU vs. UTEP Albuquerque, N.M.
University Stadium Dec. 18
2 p.m. ESPN
uDrove Humanitarian
Northern Illinois vs. Fresno State Boise, Idaho
Bronco Stadium Dec. 18
5:30 p.m. ESPN
R+L Carriers New Orleans
Ohio vs. Troy New Orleans
Louisiana Superdome Dec. 18
9 p.m. ESPN
Beef 'O' Brady's St. Petersburg
Southern Mississippi vs. Louisville St. Petersburg, Fla.
Tropicana Field Dec. 21
8 p.m. ESPN
MAACO Las Vegas
Utah vs. Boise State Las Vegas
Sam Boyd Stadium Dec. 22
8 p.m. ESPN
S.D. County Credit Union Poinsettia
Navy vs. San Diego State San Diego
Qualcomm Stadium Dec. 23
8 p.m. ESPN
Sheraton Hawaii
Hawaii vs. Tulsa Honolulu
Aloha Stadium Dec. 24
8 p.m. ESPN
Little Caesars
Florida International vs. Toledo Detroit
Ford Field Dec. 26
8:30 p.m. ESPN
AdvoCare V100 Independence
Air Force vs. Georgia Tech Shreveport, La.
Independence Stadium Dec. 27
5 p.m. ESPN2
Champs Sports
West Virginia vs. NC State Orlando, Fla.
Florida Citrus Bowl Dec. 28
6:30 p.m. ESPN
Insight
Missouri vs. Iowa Tempe, Ariz.
Sun Devil Stadium Dec. 28
10 p.m. ESPN
Military Bowl Presented By Northrop Grumman
East Carolina vs. Maryland Washington, D.C.
RFK Stadium Dec. 29
2:30 p.m. ESPN
Texas
Illinois vs. Baylor Houston
Reliant Stadium Dec. 29
6 p.m. ESPN
Valero Alamo
Oklahoma State vs. Arizona San Antonio
Alamodome Dec. 29
9:15 p.m. ESPN
Bell Helicopter Armed Forces
Army vs. SMU Dallas
Gerald J. Ford Stadium Dec. 30
Noon ESPN
New Era Pinstripe
Kansas St. vs. Syracuse Bronx, N.Y.
Yankee Stadium Dec. 30
3:20 p.m. ESPN
Franklin American Mortgage Music City
North Carolina vs. Tennessee Nashville, Tenn.
LP Field Dec. 30
6:40 p.m. ESPN
Bridgepoint Education Holiday
Nebraska vs. Washington San Diego
Qualcomm Stadium Dec. 30
10 p.m. ESPN
Meineke Car Care
South Florida vs. Clemson Charlotte, N.C.
Bank of America Stadium Dec. 31
Noon ESPN
Hyundai Sun
Notre Dame vs. Miami El Paso, Texas
Sun Bowl Dec. 31
2 p.m. CBS
AutoZone Liberty
Georgia vs. UCF Memphis, Tenn.
Liberty Bowl Dec. 31
3:30 p.m. ESPN
Chick-fil-A
South Carolina vs. Florida State Atlanta
Georgia Dome Dec. 31
7:30 p.m. ESPN
TicketCity
Northwestern vs. Texas Tech Dallas
Cotton Bowl Jan. 1
Noon ESPNU
Outback
Florida vs. Penn State Tampa, Fla.
Raymond James Stadium Jan. 1
1 p.m. ABC
Capital One
Alabama vs. Michigan State Orlando, Fla.
Florida Citrus Bowl Jan. 1
1 p.m. ESPN
Gator Bowl
Mississippi State vs. Michigan Jacksonville, Fla.
EverBank Field Jan. 1
1:30 p.m. ESPN2
Rose Bowl Game presented by VIZIO
Wisconsin vs. TCU Pasadena, Calif.
Rose Bowl Jan. 1
5 p.m. ESPN
Tostitos Fiesta
Connecticut vs. Oklahoma Glendale, Ariz.
U. of Phoenix Stadium Jan. 1
8:30 p.m. ESPN/ESPN3D
Discover Orange
Stanford vs. Virginia Tech Miami
Sun Life Stadium Jan. 3
8:30 p.m. ESPN
Allstate Sugar
Ohio State vs. Arkansas New Orleans
Louisiana Superdome Jan. 4
8:30 p.m. ESPN
GoDaddy.com
Middle Tennessee vs. Miami (Ohio) Mobile, Ala.
Ladd-Peebles Stadium Jan. 6
8 p.m. ESPN
AT&T Cotton
LSU vs. Texas A&M Arlington, Texas
Cowboys Stadium Jan. 7
8 p.m. FOX
BBVA Compass Bowl
Pittsburgh vs. Kentucky Birmingham, Ala.
Legion Field Jan. 8
Noon ESPN
Kraft Fight Hunger
Nevada vs. Boston College San Francisco
AT&T Park Jan. 9
9 p.m. ESPN
Tostitos BCS National Championship Game
Oregon vs. Auburn Glendale, Ariz.
U. of Phoenix Stadium Jan. 10
8:30 p.m. ESPN/ESPN3D
Here's a list of the best bowl games to watch from No. 1 to No. 10
1. Tostitos BCS National Championship Game
No. 2 Oregon vs. No. 1 Auburn
8:30 p.m. ET, Jan. 10
All the ingredients for a classic are there: No. 1 vs. No. 2, East Coast vs. West Coast, and potential Heisman Trophy winner (Cam Newton) vs. potential Heisman runner-up (LaMichael James). It doesn't get any better than the game that will decide the BCS national championship.
2. Rose Bowl Game presented by VIZIO
No. 5 Wisconsin vs. No. 3 TCU
5 p.m. ET, Jan. 1
TCU, the country's other undefeated team, takes on what might be the sport's hottest team. The Horned Frogs' No. 3 run defense (89 yards per game) will try to contain Wisconsin's three-headed monster in the backfield.
3. Allstate Sugar Bowl
No. 6 Ohio State vs. No. 8 Arkansas
8:30 p.m. ET, Jan. 4
It's a great quarterback matchup, with Arkansas' Ryan Mallett taking on Ohio State's Terrelle Pryor. The Buckeyes will try to end a nine-game losing streak against SEC teams in bowl games.
4. Discover Orange Bowl
No. 4 Stanford vs. No. 13 Virginia Tech
8:30 p.m. ET, Jan. 3
The Hokies won their past 11 games after opening the season with consecutive losses against Boise State and FCS foe James Madison. Stanford's only loss came at No. 2 Oregon. Quarterbacks Andrew Luck and Tyrod Taylor both put up Heisman-like performances this season.
5. Capital One Bowl
No. 16 Alabama vs. No. 9 Michigan State
1 p.m. ET, Jan. 1
Michigan State shared the Big Ten championship with Ohio State and Wisconsin, but was left out of a BCS bowl game. Its reward: a date with defending BCS national champion Alabama and former Spartans coach Nick Saban.
6. AT&T Cotton Bowl
No. 10 LSU vs. No. 17 Texas A&M
8 p.m. ET, Jan. 7
Tigers coach Les Miles won't like the taste of the Cotton's Bowl turf if LSU can't slow down Aggies running back Cyrus Gray and quarterback Ryan Tannehill. Texas A&M went 3-3 in its first six games, but won its last six games.
7. MAACO Las Vegas Bowl
No. 19 Utah vs. No. 11 Boise State
8 p.m. ET, Dec. 22
Two of the sport's best teams from non-BCS conferences square off in Las Vegas. Boise State was headed to a BCS bowl game until it was stunned at Nevada 34-31 in overtime Nov. 26. The Utes won their first eight games before losing consecutive games to TCU and Notre Dame in November.
8. Valero Alamo Bowl
No. 14 Oklahoma State vs. Arizona
9:15 p.m. ET, Dec. 29
The Cowboys couldn't beat Oklahoma's Bob Stoops to win the Big 12 South title, but now they get a chance to defeat his brother, Arizona coach Mike Stoops. The Wildcats lost their past four games, but quarterback Nick Foles might be good enough to keep up with the Pokes' high-octane offense.
Fiesta Bowl
Connecticut vs. No. 7 Oklahoma
8:30 p.m. ET, Jan. 1
The Huskies won the Big East with an 8-4 record and finished with a five-game winning streak. Oklahoma has been a heavy favorite in the Fiesta Bowl before, and it didn't turn out well. The Sooners will try to end a five-game losing streak in BCS bowl games, which includes three BCS national championship games and two Fiesta Bowls.
10. Hyundai Sun Bowl
Notre Dame vs. Miami
2 p.m. ET, Dec. 31
It won't quite be Catholics versus Convicts, but the Sun Bowl features one of the sport's greatest rivalries. Notre Dame finished the season with a flurry under first-year coach Brian Kelly, beating Utah, Army and Southern California to become bowl-eligible. The Hurricanes lost their last two games and coach Randy Shannon was fired.
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