Some fans believe a Clemson Football player will never win the Heisman Trophy. Many believe it is because the Tigers spread the plays around so well that their best players never have a chance statistically to stand out in the crowd.
I don’t buy that hypothesis. Deshaun Watson was twice a finalist and twice happened to run into legit Heisman caliber players like himself, first Derrick Henry and then Lamar Jackson.
Trevor Lawrence was a finalist despite not having the gaudy statistics of some other candidates. Lawrence happened to play with Travis Etienne in the backfield, who was also a Heisman-caliber player. Part of the success of the Clemson offense was that it wasn’t overly reliant on one guy. Lawrence could have thrown the ball all game, or Etienne could have run the ball a ton, but they might have sacrificed team success for individual glory.
The truth about the Heisman has been out there for years. It’s more of a beauty/political contest than an actual assessment of the best player in college football. What goes around will come around. Clemson players ended up on the short end of the stick a few times, but if this golden age can continue a while longer, karma will come for Clemson.
Here are the most logical Clemson candidates for the Heisman in 2023.