Heisman Trophy Reality

You’ve got to give Charlie Weis credit. The Notre Dame coach knows the truth when he sees it. And after seeing Troy Smith’s performance in Ohio State’s win over Michigan, he came close to conceding the Heisman Trophy race.

No, he didn’t say he’d pick Smith over Brady Quinn. But he acknowledged the difficulty Quinn faces no matter how well he plays Saturday against USC.

“Watching that guy (Smith) play, look, I’m prejudiced,” Weis said. “My view is tainted because I don’t know what the description of the Heisman Trophy is. To me, who is the most valuable player of their team? Who has done more for their team to be in the position we’re in than anyone else in the country? I think my guy qualifies under that criteria.

“If the criteria is who is the best player on the best team, we can’t match that. But there can’t be anyone in the country who means more to his team than Brady Quinn means to Notre Dame.”

If it doesn’t make a difference in the Heisman voting, it just might during next April’s NFL draft.

“Because it looks as though it’s going in Troy’s direction (winning the Heisman), people look at that like that’s being a failure,” Weis said. “My answer to that is, let’s wait till draft day and see where (Quinn) ends up.”