News / People
Auburn’s Cam Newton Wins Heisman
Auburn quarterback Cam Newton became the 76th winner of college football’s top individual award on Saturday night.
He beat out the three other finalists: quarterback Andrew Luck of Stanford, running back LaMichael James of Oregon and Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore. Luck finished second followed by James and Moore.
The race was not close as Newton won in a landslide. He received a first-place vote on 93% of the ballots that came in and amassed 2, 263 total points.
However, the Heisman race wasn’t without some controversy. Cam Newton, along with his father Cecil Newton, has been under investigation by the NCAA for having tried to set up a play-for-pay situation with Mississippi State. While the NCAA ruled that Cecil Newton had violated rules, they said the star quarterback as well as Auburn had no knowledge of the father’s actions and were subsequently not punished. And in an attempt to not ruin Cam’s experience, Cecil Newton did not attend the Heisman Trophy ceremony.
The 6-foot-6 junior from College Park, Ga. is the third winner from Auburn after Bo Jackson and Pat Sullivan. The last three out of four winners have now come from the SEC.
"Honestly, it's a dream come true for me, something every child has a dream that plays the sport of football, and I'm living testimony that anything is possible," Newton said.
Newton has carried the Tigers to a perfect 13-0 record as well as an SEC championship and will play for the BCS national title on January 10th.
