Defense denied Heisman again, despite Suh's super season

NEW YORK -- Every finalist had a wonderful story. Toby Gerhart, the two-sport star from Stanford who took a more difficult class load than many of his fellow students. Tim Tebow, handling every moment with uncommon class. Colt McCoy, the Texas-born star with a name to match. Mark Ingram, the winner whose father sits in a nearby jail.

And defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh (pronounced En-dom-ah-ken Soo), the best player in the country who had no chance to win the Heisman Trophy -- and that had nothing to do with his talent.

Ndamukong Suh did win the Lombardi Award, as well as the Bednarik, Nagurski and Outland. (AP)

"They ought to change the name of the award to the Offensive Heisman Trophy," said Johnny Rodgers, the Nebraska legend who himself won the Heisman in 1972. "Ndamukong was the most dominant player in college football."

From the beginning of the season, the quarterbacks got all the confetti. The Heisman was supposed to have gone to Tebow or McCoy or Oklahoma's Sam Bradford, whose season was cut short by a shoulder injury. So the race opened up. It became a tailback of two cities -- Gerhart of Palo Alto, Calif., and Ingram of Tuscaloosa, Ala. Gerhart led the nation in carries, rushing yards and touchdowns, and Ingram's powerful year made him the first Alabama player in history to win the coveted prize.

No one was talking about a boy named Suh.

"It's absurd that a strictly defensive player can't win the Heisman," said Rodgers, noting that cornerback Charles Woodson, who won the Heisman in 1977, "was also a return man -- he put points on the board."

In the balloting, Suh finished ahead of Tebow and behind Ingram, Gerhart and McCoy, becoming one of only 15 defensive players in history to finish in the top four. The great Alex Karras, long before his work in Blazing Saddles, finished second in 1957.

There have been other defensive players who made you shake your head and say, "Wow, he never won the Heisman?"

How about Dick Butkus (1963-64), Hugh Green (1980) or Julius Peppers (2001)? Or Ted Hendricks (1968) or Randy Gradishar (1973)? All finished high in the voting, but no one, except for Woodson, ever got the nod.

Even the pose is offensive. Quarterbacks and running backs in consideration almost always, at some point in the season, strike the pose with one arm outstretched and knee held high.

Suh made his case for the Heisman as the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, but his Broadway debut came against Texas in the Big 12 title game, when he threw McCoy around like a ragdoll. One of Suh's 4½ sacks came near the end of the game when, double-teamed, he fought off the two blockers, ran around the end and wrapped McCoy in his massive arms. Suh tossed the quarterback to the ground and McCoy landed about five feet away.

"He's exceptional," said Rodgers, who was at the Heisman ceremony wearing his trademark red tie. "Ndamukong has size and speed and great athleticism, which comes from his father's soccer background."

On this night, Ingram's father drew most of the attention. Mark Ingram Sr., the former New York Giant standout from Super Bowl XXV, is serving a 92-month sentence for money laundering and bank fraud. While his son won the closest Heisman in history, the father was being held in the Queens Private Correctional Facility, not far from the ceremony in Times Square.

Suh's father, Michael, was at the award ceremony, along with his wife, Bernadette, and daughter Ngum. Michael named his son Ndamukong, which means "house of spears," in honor of his great-great grandfather, a 7-foot soldier in the Ngemba West African tribe.

"My father was a professional soccer player and my mother ran track," Suh said, "so I had a lot of footwork early on. I think it helped in my development."

Suh credited coach Bo Pelini, who came to Nebraska after coaching LSU's defense in the Tigers' national championship season of 2007, with helping him to understand the game. Suh's opponents could have done without the extra homework. Baylor coach Art Briles said Suh might be the best player he'd ever seen on the defensive side of the ball and Texas Tech coach Mike Leach called him "grizzly-bear strong."

Suh enjoyed his time in New York, including a trip to the top of the Empire State Building and a signature Italian meal. He'll be back in April, where his name will undoubtedly be called in the first five selections of the NFL Draft, possibly even No. 1. But on this night, Suh had no chance to compete for college football's highest honor.

Only Charles Woodson in 75 years of the Heisman Trophy? Indefensible.