Should the Heisman Trophy be moved to January due to the expanded CFP?

Should the Heisman Trophy be moved to January due to the expanded CFP?

The Heisman Trophy announced its four finalists for the 2024 award on Monday: Colorado receiver/defensive back Travis Hunter, Boise State tailback Ashton Jeanty, Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel and Miami’s Cam Ward were selected to participate in Saturday night’s trophy ceremony.

It’s the standard Heisman schedule the week after the conference championship games, with one difference this year: College football begins a month-long, four-round, 12-team tournament six days later.

The expansion of the College Football Playoff has transformed the sport – perhaps to a greater extent than the introduction of the four-team playoffs a decade ago.

The Heisman? It hasn’t changed at all.

Since its inception in 1935, the Heisman has been presented at the end of the regular season (and more recently following conference championship games).

“The Heisman is proud of its tradition,” Tim Henning, deputy director of the Heisman Trust, told Hotline. “It’s always been a regular season award.”

That made a lot of sense when the teams played 11 games and a bowl in the regular season.

And when a 12th game was added in the mid-2000s.

And even when the four-team CFP was born in 2014.

But the expansion of the playoffs has changed the competitive math.

Three times as many teams have a chance to win multiple postseason games.

Three times as many players have the chance to write a script that will be remembered for decades.

Each team numbered 5 through 12 that reaches the championship plays a quarter of their season after the Heisman ceremony.

What if on Saturday night, as the oddsmakers in Las Vegas expect, Jeanty finishes second to Hunter, then rolls over two rounds of the CFP, easily breaks Barry Sanders’ hallowed single-season rushing mark – he needs 132 yards – and the Broncos Championship leads into the season?

Or what if Penn State tight end Tyler Warren, a non-finalist, puts together four brilliant games and leads the Nittany Lions to the title?

Awarding a trophy for regular-season performance when the regular season is shrinking — both in terms of impact on the sport and in percentage of total games played — could lead to less relevance for the Heisman.

The Heisman Trust, which oversees the voting and trophy presentation process, is well aware of the situation.

In fact, Heisman executives discussed the voting schedule during what Henning called a “summit” last spring that included key stakeholders including ESPN.

The bottom line: Present the trophy as usual between the conference championships and the start of the playoffs.

There will be another summit this spring, said Henning, and the timing could well be on the agenda.

Any decision to move the voting window and trophy presentation to the other side of the playoffs would be made by the Heisman Trust.

“We are monitoring the situation,” said Henning.

The ESPN factor

What role could ESPN play in the decision to reject the Heisman presentation?

The network has exclusive broadcast rights to the trophy ceremony during a premium broadcast window: the second Saturday in December at 5 p.m. Pacific time, without competition from the NFL and following the Army-Navy game.

Last year, the awards show drew 2.31 million viewers, according to SportsMediaWatch. For comparison, the Washington-Oregon game played 10 days ago drew 2.57 million viewers, while the Miami-Syracuse game drew 2.11 million viewers.

Henning said ESPN would “add input” to any discussion about changing the Heisman’s schedule, but the trust would have ultimate authority over the date of the ceremony.

For early voting

The Heisman voting window is often a source of concern and criticism.

Ballots will be emailed on Monday of championship week, providing the 928-member electorate an opportunity to vote before the conference title games.

Henning said logistical concerns prevented Heisman from keeping the voting window closed until the conclusion of the championship games.

Too much could go wrong within a narrow 36-hour election window (e.g. ballots accidentally being sent to spam folders).

When asked how many voters cast their votes before the championship games, Henning said: “That’s a very, very small percentage.”


***Editor’s Note: Jon Wilner is a Heisman voter and California Heisman state representative.


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