To have this trophy is a blessing and an honor.
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“Of course, next year I want to be back”. Before Saturday, he had won the Maxwell Award as college football’s best player and the Doak Walker award for being the nation’s top running back.
“My heart was about to bust out of my chest”.
“God bless and roll tide”, said Henry in his brief acceptance speech after winning the closest vote since Mark Ingram Jr. edged Stanford’s Toby Gerhart in 2009.
Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey finished second in the balloting, followed by quarterback DeShaun Watson of Clemson. McCaffrey finished runner-up and Watson finished third.
Clemson’s quarterback Deshaun Watson finished third. The absence of Mayfield and Reynolds created howls of protest to the Heisman Trophy Trust.
The final voting totals show it was completely a three-way race between them, which explains why only those three were invited to the ceremony in NYC. Players were available on the side for pictures and Watson jokingly struck the iconic Heisman stiff-arm. The Alabama junior running back rewrote the SEC record books, breaking Herschel Walker’s rushing record with 1,986 yards and tying another record with 23 touchdowns. Gladys Henry, 81, couldn’t make it to NY so the party came to her.
Alabama coach Nick Saban’s smile beamed from the crowd like a proud parent. “We all enjoyed it. Just congrats to (Henry), he earned it and that’s where the voters went”. “I really appreciate his hard work at becoming a complete player”.
“These guys are like family to us”, Saban said. He had 46 attempts in the Iron Bowl and 44 in the SEC Championship Game, which also speaks volumes of his importance in big games. The number who could gain 271 yards under such circumstances is smaller still.
Henry became the first Alabama player and running back to win the Heisman since Mark Ingram won the trophy in 2009. It was at that time that he replaced with Fournette as the Heisman front-runner. His mother, Lisa McCaffrey, played soccer at Stanford from 1987 to 1990, and his father, Ed McCaffrey, played football at Stanford from 1986-1991, and then spent a majority of his 13-season professional career with the Broncos as a teammate of Cardinal legend, John Elway. Someone asked Shaw if he thought McCaffrey deserved the award. He even jumped in as a cornerback on the scout team during one practice and “looked like a natural”, Shaw said. “She told me she had tongue cancer. You deserve it bro!” Watson has been unflappable leader of the 13-0 Tigers, who are ranked No. 1 entering the field, combining pure passing ability with risky playmaking as a runner. You can put it up against any year anybody has had at any position. Sanders set that record back in 1988.
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From accolades and adjectives to records and respect, Henry garnered as much as any college player could hope to receive during his time in Tuscaloosa.
