Auburn Quarterback Cam Newton Wins Heisman Memorial Trophy, Despite Critics

A speechless Cameron Newton stood behind a podium next to the Heisman Memorial Trophy Saturday night at New York's Best Buy Theater.

His Heisman Memorial Trophy.

Newton thanked his "supporting cast" of his parents, coaches, teammates, fans, and even the troops fighting overseas in an emotional acceptance speech that featured several pauses and a continuous ear-to-ear smile the nation has grown to expect from the happy-go-lucky player this season.

"Oh my God," said Newton. "It's amazing what God can do in a person's life. Who would have ever thought a guy from College Park, Ga. would win an award this prestigious?" he added, cheesing.

In a year that saw the highest of the ups and the lowest of the downs for the Auburn junior, the 6'6", 250-pound quarterback ignored the controversy swirling around his name and ran away from the competition on the field to win the school's third Heisman Trophy over candidates Andrew Luck from Stanford, LaMichael James from Oregon, and Kellen Moore from Boise State.

Newton's untouchable year was filled with "Oh no he didn't" moments—as one ESPN analyst dubbed them Saturday—that featured the college football phenom dipping, dunking, and often running over opponents en route to 1,409 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns.

But his talents didn't stop there.

 

Does Cameron Newton deserve the Heisman Trophy?

Yes

82.1%

No

17.9%

Total votes: 28

He also led the nation in passing efficiency, completing 165 of his 246 passes for 2,589 yards and 28 touchdowns to lead his team to an SEC Western Divisional Title and ultimately a 56-17 win over South Carolina last week in the SEC Championship Game.

The NCAA ruled Newton eligible during the week leading up to the SEC Championship Game after finding no proof that the quarterback knew of father Cecil Newton's attempts to shop him around to other schools.
The elder Newton was given "limited access" to the university's athletic programs and opted out on attending the Heisman Trophy presentation in New York.

"For all of my fifty years of life, coupled with 25 years of marriage, I have made an exhausting attempt to be a good husband, father and generally a good person of integrity," said Newton's father in a statement released earlier this week.  "The past 60 days have caused all that my family worked to accomplish to come into question. So that my son can receive all the honors and congratulations that he has worked so hard to accomplish and without distraction, I have decided not to be in attendance at the Heisman ceremony, as it will perhaps rob Cam and the event of a sacred moment."

Newton maintains that he did nothing wrong and says he loves his father and looks up to him now just as he has his whole life. He also said he was disappointed his father decided not to attend the ceremony.

"I'd be lying to you if I didn't say I'm somewhat hurt," he said. "But that’s a decision that he made."

Newton will lead his undefeated Auburn Tigers into the BCS National Championship Game in Glendale, Ariz. on January 10th to face the Oregon Ducks.

One more victory, coupled with his Davey O'Brien, Maxwell, Walter Camp and Heisman Memorial Trophies resting beneath his Christmas tree in College Park, Ga., would give the Auburn quarterback a very Merry Christmas.

Heisman Hopeful Cameron Newton Looks To Keep Auburn Rolling At Mississippi State

Auburn's Cameron Newton (2) eludes Arkansas State's
Jeremy Gibson (96) in Auburn Saturday night.

Auburn quarterback Cameron Newton is a humble player.

After his debut eye-opening performance in Auburn's season opening 52-26 win over Arkansas State Saturday, in which he broke an all-time Auburn record for rushing yards in a single game by a quarterback with 171 and two touchdowns, a reporter asked the junior if he had heard the news.

"No, sir, I didn't," Newton said, smiling. "It's really big, but it's on to the next one. Of course I'm happy with the accolade, but I feel that I didn't play the best game I could have played. I've just got to watch film tomorrow and make due to my mistakes."

Equally impressive to Newton's ground attack were his stats through the air.

The 6-foot-6, 250-pounder completed 9 of 14 passes for 186 yards and 3 touchdowns, bringing his total TD count in the game to five.

Perhaps his most impressive play came midway through the second quarter.

Dropping back to pass on a 2nd-and-5, Newton sidestepped Arkansas State's Najel Byrd's blitz attempt. He then stepped forward and slipped from Jeremy Gibson's grasp before spinning to the left and finding open field.

But he wasn't done yet.

Byrd again tried to stop him but was instead left standing in his shoes. Newton then juked Gregory McCall and cut back across the field to the right en route to a 16-yard gain.


Arkansas State head coach Steve Roberts was more than impressed by the Tiger quarterback's athletic ability.

"I don't know if I have seen an individual performance better than Cam Newton," said the Red Wolves' coach. "He is the best player I have ever seen live. He made a huge difference in the ball game tonight. He is hard to bring down."

Newton continued to impress on the ground later in the second quarter with a 71-yard touchdown run in which he was untouched.

A Passer, Too
His passes throughout the night were near perfect also, especially on the deep balls.

The JUCO transfer dropped in a perfect pass to receiver Quindarius Carr on a 48-yard touchdown bomb and also connected with tailback Mario Fannin on touchdown passes of 36 and 38 yards, respectively.

In all, the junior accounted for 357 of Auburn's total 608 offensive yards Saturday against the Red Wolves.



SEC Schedule Begins Thursday
With Arkansas State in the past, Newton will be strapping up against an SEC opponent the next time Auburn takes the field.

But he says as long as the team continues buying into what the coaching staff asks of them, only good things will come of the approaching tough schedule.

"Coach (Gus) Malzahn has the bar raised so high for us, and you know, the sky's the limit," beamed Newton. "And that just goes to show you what we're capable of doing."

Auburn travels to Starkville, Miss. Thursday to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs (1-0, 0-0 SEC). Kickoff time is set for 7:30 PM ET at Davis-Wade Stadium and the game will be televised nationally by ESPN.

Original article can be found on Bleacher Report here.

Former Auburn Quarterback Dameyune Craig Lands Job as FSU Quarterbacks Coach

Former Auburn quarterback Dameyune Craig has been hired by Jimbo Fisher to serve as Florida State's next quarterbacks coach.

Craig played quarterback under head coach Terry Bowden at Auburn from 1993-1997.

He started his junior and senior seasons on the Plains, leading the Tigers to an Independence Bowl victory over Army and a Peach Bowl victory over Clemson.

In Craig's final season, Auburn won 10 games and the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference, but fell short to highly favored Tennessee 30-29 in the SEC championship game.

Before his record-breaking career as a quarterback at Auburn, he won two state championships at Mattie T. Blount High School in his hometown of Mobile, Ala.

He sat two years behind starter Patrick Nix at Auburn but eventually won the MVP of the annual A-Day game and then the starting job.

Upon graduation from Auburn, Craig played in mostly a back-up role for the Carolina Panthers from 1998-2001. He then fell off the depth charts and was traded among three other professional teams in 2002 before calling it quits for his playing career.

Craig has since coached in both the college and professional ranks, including stints at LSU, Miami, Tuskegee, and most recently at South Alabama, in various roles.

The 35-year-old father of two will recruit the Mobile area, as a huge portion of Florida State's players come from the southwest Alabama and northwest Florida belt.

In his other coaching jobs, he's quickly made a name for himself as one of the country's most prolific recruiters.

The coach joins new FSU head coach Jimbo Fisher's staff—a hire that's unique.

Fisher was Craig's offensive coordinator during his career at Auburn, a fact Craig commented on during a recent interview with the Mobile Press-Register .

"Coach Fisher has been a major part of my life from the moment I met him," Craig said. "He coached me at Auburn, but he even recruited me when he was at Samford, but they didn't think they could (sign) me. So when he went to Auburn (as an assistant coach), I was the first person he called.

"It's going to be exciting to learn football from him, and being a part of his staff...I'll get a chance to learn from one of the best, if not the best, offensive minds in the country.

"That's exciting. I'll get a chance to work with him and learn from him. I'll be able to get under his wing and become a better coach. It's a great situation for me."

The hire adds to a staff that looks poised and highly capable of bringing FSU back to the top of the college football ranks.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/327008-former-auburn-quarterback-dameyune-craig-lands-fsu-job