Friday, Dec. 5, 2003 | 10:09 a.m.
Steve Guiremand covers college football for the Sun. He can be reached at [email protected] or (702) 259-2324.
It's almost time to turn in my 2003 Heisman Trophy ballot, and I'm having a problem.
Do I vote for Oklahoma quarterback Jason White, who has thrown for 40 touchdowns while throwing just six interceptions on the No. 1 team in the country? Or should I vote for Pitt wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, who has 22 touchdown receptions for an 8-4 Panthers squad that probably wouldn't even be bowl eligible without him. He also set an NCAA record with a touchdown catch in 18 consecutive games?
You could also make pretty fair arguments for Michigan running back Chris Perry, USC's dynamic duo of quarterback Matt Leinart and wide receiver Mike Williams, or Mississippi quarterback Eli Manning. But most would agree it's a two-horse race between White and Fitzgerald for the No. 1 spot on the ballot.
I decided to seek the advice of UNLV forward Andy Hannan at Rebels basketball practice on Thursday afternoon.
"Fitzgerald," Hannan said without hesitation.
Of course Andy Hannan might be a tad biased when it comes to this issue.
"We grew up in the same neighborhood (in south Minneapolis)," Hannan said. "I got to know him right before he came to the same high school we went to (Holy Angels in Minneapolis). We just had a good relationship from there. We'd play basketball in the summer at the parks. I thought he could have been a Division I basketball player if he wanted to. ... He was just an incredible basketball player to watch, too."
Hannan still stays in touch with his old teammate even though they go to school on different sides of the country.
"I talked to him about three weeks ago," he said.
Hannan said he isn't surprised that Fitzgerald is one of the frontrunners for the Heisman Trophy this year.
"His dad was a football player and he grew up as a ballboy for the Minnesota Vikings," Hannan recalled. "He just was around it. Cris Carter and Randy Moss were mentoring him. You just knew that this kid was born to play football."
Still, Hannan said he does have to pinch himself every once in a while when he sees highlights of his old buddy on ESPN.
"It still shocks you to turn on the TV and see him everywhere," he said. "I can't believe this happened so fast and so quick like this. I knew he'd be there eventually and that he'd make it, but I didn't know that he'd blow up so quick like that."
Will the Pack be back?
I have to admit that I thought someone was pulling my leg when I was told that Nevada-Reno AD Chris Ault had decided to bring himself out of retirement to become head football coach of the Wolf Pack again.
For one thing, Ault had spent several days contacting a number of top-notch offensive coordinators in the college football world to tell them that they were on his short list.
Ault has developed a reputation among college coaches as a micro-manager of the football program, so it seems only natural that he come back front-and-center to take over a Nevada program that has struggled since a 1996 Las Vegas Bowl appearance.
Like John Robinson returning to USC in the 1990's following the Larry Smith debacle, the Wolf Pack needed something to get the community fired up for the 2004 football season, especially after UNR seemed to implode after an impressive 5-2 start this season that featured a stunning upset of Washington in Seattle. The Wolf Pack lost its finale to Boise State, 56-3, which doesn't exactly get one too excited about buying season tickets for next year.
Ault's coaching record is a glossy 163-63-1 and includes seven conference titles in 19 years. But he's going to find that it's a whole lot tougher to coach in the WAC than the Big West.
Boise State is a well-oiled machine now that just seems to steamroll its opponents into the blue Smurf Turf at Bronco Stadium. June Jones has brought Hawaii up to Top 25 status. Fresno State is poised to make another strong run in the polls next year with a healthy Paul Pinegar and talented young offensive line. Even bottom dwellers like Louisiana Tech (hello Michigan State) and Rice are not easy pushovers by any means.
And although Ault is still a big name in the Reno area, just how many recruits in California, the primary recruiting area for the Pack, will even know who he is or what he's done in the past? Most prep recruits were 8 or 9 years old when Ault last coached.
Still, you've got to admire the pride and passion Ault has for the program he built and the fact he's willing to put his neck back on the chopping block to help revive it.
One person who believes Ault is walking into a gold mine is the fellow he fired ... Chris Tormey.
"If I would have known four years ago what I know now, I never would have taken this job," Tormey told the Reno Gazette-Journal. "(Wednesday's) announcement says it all. I think this is a great time to take over the program. The foundation has been laid. There are great players in the program and a new facility coming on line.
"The future of the program is very bright."
Time will tell if Ault, who may have been feeling the heat himself for hiring and firing Tormey and Jeff Tisdel, made the right hire this time around.
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