Is Preseason Heisman Hype Overdone?

Dec 8, 2012; New York, NY, USA; Texas A

The college football season begins this week and it can’t get here fast enough for fans. Each year, the media hype leading into the season fills our minds with preseason polls, rankings and premature speculation about post season awards. Do a quick Google search for the term “Heisman” and you will see that most major news sources have released projections for the prestigious post season award before even one down has been played. It’s obligatory, of course, but it is a story line that exists only to create a new story line a few weeks from now.

Today, USA Today posted a story proclaiming Johnny Manziel as the favorite to repeat for the trophy.  On the other hand, Sports Illustrated posted a story where he is not listed in the top 5.  Even the NFL has chimed in with a list of favorites. ESPN’s version, with a completely different front runner, is also ready for consumption by college fans looking for any news about the pending season. Four polls, all posted today, show three different projected winners. Perspective is important and it is important to remember that the story is sure to change.

The media giveth and the media taketh away. The same pundits who are projecting a clear front-runner will be the first to abandon their predictions when a new media sensation gains momentum in late September or October. At this point last year, for example, Johnny Manziel was not on any Heisman Trophy list. He had never played a down of college football in a game setting, so it made sense that he wasn’t part of the hype. Who would have guessed? He had a great season even if the rest of the year left fans everywhere scratching our heads.

Earlier this week, I posted a question on Twitter asking if anyone even cared about the Heisman? I got mixed responses, as you might guess, largely because of the way I phrased the question. I suggested that the image of the award has been tainted in recent years and no one really cared about it anymore. That’s hyperbole, of course, but I wanted to get a reaction. Even though I think some public relations work needs to be done, the Heisman is still the biggest individual award in college sports — and rightfully so.

The truth is, very few people care about Heisman projections at this point in the season. It’s a media generated story of little more importance than a Kardashian baby name or a Snookie sighting. A relatively small number of college football fans tune into the televised ceremony even when it is a relevant discussion. In recent years, the ceremony has been carried live on ESPN. On average, about 3.5 million people tune in to see the associated pageantry and story lines despite a 100 million household reach for the network. That’s not bad. It’s much better than Honey Boo Boo, but it doesn’t signify much in relation to college football’s massive audience. It’s still a great honor for the players involved and that’s all it is. The Heisman is an award for the moment, not an indicator of future success.

Preseason discussions are nothing more than fodder for smack talk. Maybe that’s why we all read the polls, even though we don’t really believe them. Fans love to jaw at one another. Preseason rankings, polls and predictions are all obligatory media chatter designed to feed an audience hungry for football. In a few weeks, I may even make some predictions of my own. Even though preseason polls of all sorts don’t carry much weight, they remind us that the season is on the horizon and Americans are ready for some college football.

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