There are some things that just don’t happen very often. One of them would happen to be a defensive player getting consideration for the highest individual honor that college football has to offer: the Heisman trophy. However, with defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh getting the attention and votes that he got last year it may be time for the other side of the ball to get the respect that it deserves.
It is not entirely unprecedented for defensive players to get considered for the Heisman; few have actually been serious contenders for the honor though. Even fewer have actually won it.
Only once has a defensive starter ever won the award, Michigan cornerback Charles Woodson back in 1997. Woodson was more of an all-purpose threat; not only did he make eight interceptions but he also lined up at wide receiver and returned punts.
Going into 2010 one of the best players in the nation will be lining up for Boston College, just not on the offensive side of the ball like there last candidate, quarterback Matt Ryan. This time it is a linebacker named Mark Herzlich.
High School
Conestoga High School had one of the best players in Pennsylvania high school football in linebacker Mark Herzlich. Three times he was voted the team’s MVP, a first in school history. When you consider the kind of statistics he piled up over the years it comes as no real surprise.
His senior year was his best. On the way to leading his team to its second Central League title in a row, he made 153 tackles, 48 of them solo efforts, four sacks and returned a blocked field goal 86 yards for a touchdown. As a junior his numbers were almost as good with 142 tackles to his name to go with four interceptions. The versatile athlete would even line up at fullback on occasion—scoring three touchdowns.
The talented football player was just as good at lacrosse and was offered a scholarship from Johns Hopkins University. For football he got interest from a number of marque programs including Duke University, the University of North Carolina, Vanderbilt University, and Virginia Tech as well as Boston College.
College
As a freshman he would play in every game during the 2006 season making 42 tackles including 32 solo tackles, five for a loss, a sack, an interception, and forced two fumbles. In his sophomore season he would go from seeing time in reserve to starting all 14 games the team played. Herzlich would finish second on the team in tackles with 97 including 55 solo efforts. He would lead the team in tackles for a loss (12), would get credit for one and a half sacks, would force two fumbles and recover two more.
Going into 2008 he would be slated to be a star on the rise. He would be named as a player to watch for the Lott Trophy and the Butkus Award—for the top linebacker in college. In the end he would be a finalist for the Butkus Award and quarterfinalist for the Lott Trophy.
Herzlich would also be named a First-team All-American and the ACC Defensive Player of the Year in 2008 after making 110 tackles, 81 solo efforts, six interceptions, two forced fumbles and two more recovered. He could have gone into the 2009 NFL Draft, but opted to return to college instead.
His 2009 season would not be spent on the football field however. In May he announced that he had been diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer called Ewing’s sarcoma. By late September he would be able to make another announcement, this time that he was cancer free.
After sitting out the 2009 season he is rearing to go in 2010. If not for the stats alone, he should garner some consideration for the Heisman for the inspiration that he is to athletes everywhere.
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