by Jerry Feitelberg

PALO ALTO–The Stanford Cardinal, coach David Shaw, running back Christian McCaffrey, and all the Cardinal football fans across the country are celebrating the news that McCaffrey was named the Player of the Year by the Associated Press. McCaffrey, who finished second in the voting for the Heisman Trophy, have to be elated by the news. Many people, especially those on the West Coast felt McCaffrey should have won the Heisman. The reason is  quite simple. He was the best player in college football this year. Yes, Derrick Henry, the Heisman winner, did rush for more yardage than McCaffrey, but no one did more on a football field this season than McCaffrey.

Keep in mind, this is the first time in six years that the Heisman winner did not win the AP award.  McCaffrey did it all for Stanford. He rushed for 1847 yards just slightly behind Henry’s total. McCaffrey rushed for eight touchdowns and caught 41 passes for 540 yards and four more TDs. He averaged 28.9 yards per kickoff return and returned one for another touchdown. Also, he threw two passes for touchdowns.

McCaffrey broke the NCAA record for all-purpose yards set by Barry Sanders in 1988. Coach Shaw said, “you can say that he had the best year in the history of college football.” Somehow, he did not win the Heisman Trophy. Was it due to East Coast bias? Didn’t the voters stay up late to see the Stanford games? Didn’t they hear about DVRs so that they could record the game and see what McCaffrey was doing? McCaffrey is only a sophomore. Maybe that’s the reason they didn’t vote for him. No one knows why he didn’t win the Heisman, but the AP award is a testament to his ability. Stanford fans and college football fans all over the country can now say “justice is done.”

Jerry covers Stanford football and basketball does Cardinal podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com