Heisman Trophy 2015 Winner: Tim Tebow’s Bet, Derrick Henry, Beats Deshaun

Derrick Henry said his grandmother was with him in spirit as his childhood dream of winning the Heisman came true. Yet I wonder: If Alabama coach Nick Saban were starting a team for next season, would he trade his Heisman candidate for Watson? I think it’s yes on both counts.

He may have been the only one.

Three superlative young student- athletes, running back Derrick Henry of Alabama, running back Christian McCaffrey of Stanford and quarterback Deshaun Watson were invited to travel to New York City for the festivities.

He choked up during his speech, thanking his family, coaches and teammates, and mentioning former Alabama teammate Altee Tenpenny, who was killed in a vehicle crash two months ago.

“He is so humble you wouldn’t believe it”, Reinkensmeyer said. He won the Doak Walker award last week as the nation’s best running back. “I thought I was going to have a heart attack, though”. “It’s just been a blessing”. “I just want to give you all advice”. They wouldn’t be in the final four without him.

A total of 929 votes were cast in the 2015 balloting, according to the Heisman.com website.

McCaffrey, Watson and Mayfield made late pushes, but Henry just kept chugging along. Heisman runner-up, Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey, earned 1,539 points and 290 first-place votes, while Clemson’s Deshaun Watson finished third place in the voting with 1,165 points and 148 first-place votes.

Mayfield, who went to high school in Austin, was named a second-team All-American by the Associated Press on Sunday, but it came after he walked on at Texas Tech, then transferred to Oklahoma, where he also began as a walk on.

The 81st Heisman victor was announced on December 12. The vote totals explained why the candidates weren’t invited. The stat which separates Henry the most for me is in the caliber of defense he and Alabama faced. And Henry’s victory comes after winning a rare trifecta at the ESPN-Home Depot College Football awards. To some voters, that means the players with the best statistics. McCaffrey took down Barry Sanders’ record for all-purpose yards in a single season, while Henry broke Herschel Walker’s SEC rushing record.

This has been such an epic season for the Crimson Tide, it feels special.

“These guys are like family to us”, Saban says. “I really appreciate them”.

Number two on the 2015 Alabama roster is Derrick Henry.

McCaffrey and the rest of Stanford football puts a bow on their season on New Year’s Day in the 102nd Rose Bowl Game against Iowa. The number who could gain 271 yards under such circumstances is smaller still. Conventional wisdom is the voting for the 80th Heisman will be relatively close, but Henry is the odds-makers’ choice to become the second Alabama player to win the Heisman and the first running back to win it since the Tide’s Mark Ingram in 2009. McCaffrey became the fourth Cardinal runner-up in the past seven years, joining Gerhart and two-time No. 2 Andrew Luck (behind Cam Newton in 2010 and Robert Griffin III in 2011).

“Looking at the stats, Christian McCaffrey should win this thing”, said Brian Bonn, who taught McCaffrey at Valor Christian and also shot many of his high school highlights for Valor Sports Network.