Spencer Tillman on importance of Manziel winning Heisman

Notes from Spencer Tillman interview

* He thinks the Heisman race is exciting and very interesting this year. There hasn’t been a freshman that has had as prolific of a year as Johnny Manziel has since Adrian Peterson. Manziel has been a breath of fresh air to the college football world this season and he is excited to see how the race plays out.

* He has always believed that the further away a player is from the football, the less chance they have of winning the Heisman. Because of that, Marquise Lee didn’t make it to New York, while two quarterbacks did. Relying on other players never really helps your Heisman chances.

* He is not allowed to reveal his vote for the Heisman to the public.

* The quarterback is able to win the Heisman easier than others simply because of the nature of the game. Ironically, the quarterback is also the player who is quickest to lose the Heisman race if he has a bad game of some sort. He believes Manziel is in a great position to change history as long as certain voters have a wakeup call and allow change from the usual voting for an upperclassman.

* One of the reasons the SEC is hated by others is because of the power the conference holds. There are a ton of voters concentrated in the southeast, and historically, those voters have prevented people like Hershel Walker and Peterson from winning the award as a freshman. His gut tells him that Manziel has as good of a chance as any freshman to win the trophy, and he would not be shocked if he pulled it off.

* Kevin Sumlin took the SEC by storm this year after being told that A&M would never have success in the toughest division of the toughest conference out there. Sumlin has changed the culture at A&M in such a short window, and that alone is remarkable.

* Combining the facts of a system that is proven to have success and the addition of a higher caliber athlete should give A&M great success in years to come. You can only do so much with someone like Case Keenum alone, but combining that with a talented offensive line, great running backs and skilled wide receivers makes the potential for greatness through the roof.

* The only team that has beaten Alabama is Texas A&M, and he believes the Tide will crush Notre Dame in the national championship.