Why did I put UCF quarterback McKenzie Milton at the top of my Heisman Trophy ballot instead of Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield?
Let me count the ways:
1. A quarterback's No. 1 priority is to win games, and Milton is the only QB in the country who led his team to an undefeated record.
2. A quarterback's No. 2 priority is put points on the board, and Milton directed the highest-scoring offense in the country.
3. Unlike Mayfield, Milton has not grabbed his crotch to taunt opponents, not been arrested, nor has he done anything to publicly embarrass his team throughout the season or the course of his career.
4. Somebody needs acknowledge what UCF has done this year since it's blatantly obvious the College Football Playoff Committee has a bias against non-Power 5 teams.
5. Milton excelled despite the season-long distractions of his coach, Scott Frost, being courted and hired by Nebraska.
Don't get me wrong, I have no problem with Mayfield winning the Heisman, but Milton certainly deserved more than the four first-place votes he received and should have finished much higher than eighth in the balloting. Milton finished with a scant 54 points. including 11 second-place votes and 20 third-place votes.
Mayfield was the runaway winner with 2,398 points, followed by Stanford tailback Bryce Love with 1,300 points and Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson with 793 points.
Penn State tailback Saquon Barkley finished fourth with 304 points, San Diego State tailback Rashaad Penny finished fifth with 175 points, Wisconsin tailback Jonathan Taylor finished sixth with 58 points and Oklahoma State quarterback Mason Rudolph finished seventh with 56 points.
Milton, in my opinion, deserved to be at least a finalist for the award.
The good news, though, is that he has put himself on the radar.
Next year _ if somehow UCF can run the table again _ maybe McKenzie Milton will get legitimate consideration for college football's most prestigious award.
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