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It’s no secret what the Heisman Trophy really is. Sure, it may masquerade as the award for the best player in college football, but make no mistake: It’s a quarterback award, through and through.
In this millennium, only three non-quarterbacks have won the award, and all three were running backs (USC‘s Reggie Bush and Alabama‘s Mark Ingram and Derrick Henry).
You have to go back to Charles Woodson in 1997 to find the last defensive winner, and all the way to 1992 for the last receiver, Desmond Howard.
But Kyle Pitts is changing the conversation. Florida’s tight end has solidified himself as the premier player at his position in the nation, and his gaudy 11 receiving touchdowns — a school record for tight ends — is earning the junior some attention.
In its list of non-quarterback Heisman contenders, CBS Sports included Pitts among other star skill-position players like Alabama’s Devonta Smith and Iowa State’s Breece Hall.
Here is their case for Pitts, who could find himself as a top 10 pick in next year’s NFL Draft.
Florida TE Kyle Pitts
Season stats: 36 catches, 641 yards, 11 TDs
Like Smith, Pitts’ name comes up frequently among the non-QB Heisman contenders, and with good reason. He has been TE1 with a bullet in 2020 as such a rare athlete for the position. With a massive catch radius, a big body and breakaway speed, he’s almost impossible to cover. Now for the numbers. Pitts has 11 touchdowns in just 26 quarters of play. That scoring frequency is matched by few others. In fact, he scores or converts for a first down on 91.7% of his receptions, which is second nationally and about 10% more frequently than the next leading comparable receiver. When Pitts is on the field, he’s going to make plays.
Now for the downsides. The case for Pitts isn’t as clear-cut as Smith for a few reasons. He doesn’t have the raw numbers Smith does, though for what it’s worth, he missed two games with injury. Florida’s offense also spreads the ball around more in its passing game. The sheer number of options is a luxury for Trask, but it doesn’t help Pitts’ Heisman case. In fact, Pitts isn’t even the leading wideout on his own team (Kadarius Toney is). But if the consideration is game impact, Pitts is an obvious choice.
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