Heisman voters disdain for Dabo Swinney cost Trevor Lawrence the Heisman Trophy

Trevor Lawrence did not win the Heisman Trophy.

As most Clemson football fans expected, quarterback Trevor Lawrence did not win the 2020 Heisman Trophy. Once again Heisman voters prove they have no idea what they are watching when it comes to the best player in the country.

You can call me a sore loser, I don’t care but this is twice in the last six years that a Clemson football player has been the best player in the country, and the award that is supposed to represent such a player has gone to someone else.

While many fans will continue to say that they don’t care about this award since Deshaun Watson was robbed a few years ago, fact remains that players do care about it, and like Watson, Trevor Lawrence was robbed.

How good was Trevor Lawrence in 2020? Well unlike Mac Jones, Kyle Trask, and winner DeVonta Smith, Lawrence wasn’t surrounded by first-round NFL talent. Instead, Lawrence was throwing to players who were backups coming into the summer and he helped them achieve career seasons as seniors.

Take nothing away from Smith, Jones, or Trask as they were all fantastic in 2020, but none of them were Trevor Lawrence.

You saw in the Cotton Bowl how bad Trask was without his starting pass catchers, thankfully for Mac Jones, you won’t have to see him without his. Smith was not WR1 on his own team until Jaylen Waddle went out with an injury and then Smith did what any great players do and seized his opportunity.

If Trevor Lawrence and Deshaun Watson weren’t worthy, will any Clemson player ever win a Heisman?

There is no doubt that Dabo Swinney played a large part in Trevor not winning the award and by that I mean, there were many voters out there who took their dislike of Swinney out on Trevor for this award.

We have seen voters like Dan Wolken and David Hale, write hit piece after hit piece on Swinney and there is no doubt that their votes were swayed. There were a lot more around the country than just these two, they just happened to be the most high-profile.

The early 2021 Heisman odds have projected starter, sophomore D.J. Uiagalelei, listed as the second favorite behind Oklahoma quarterback Spencer Rattler. He will also have to contend with UNC quarterback Sam Howell, Miami’s D’eriq King, and USC quarterback Kedon Slovis.

If a quarterback who went 34-2 as a starter in college, threw for 10,098 yards with 90 touchdowns and just 17 interceptions never had a legitimate chance at the award, how does anyone in orange and purple do it?

While Trevor Lawrence was not the Heisman winner, he still has an opportunity at bringing home the Maxwell Award for the national player of the year and the Davey O’Brien Award for the nation’s best quarterback.

Hopefully, those voters will do a much better job at recognizing the best player in college football than the Heisman did.