The Detmer Award Pre-Season Favorites

No surprises in the pre-season vote for the First Annual SaturdayBlitz.com Detmer Award. Heisman Trophy hopeful and Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore scored 44 points in the straw poll.

1. Kellen Moore, QB, Boise State (8): 44 points
2. Case Keenum, QB, Houston (1): 26 points
3. Ronnie Hillman, RB, San Diego State: 15 points
4. Bryant Moniz, QB, Hawaii: 13 points
5. Ed Wesley, RB, TCU: 8 points
6t. Chandler Harnish, QB, Northern Illinois (1): 6 points
6t. Bernard Pierce, RB, Temple: 6 points
6t. Damaris Johnson, WR, Tulsa*: 6 points
6t. Bobby Rainey, RB, Western Kentucky: 6 points
10. Trent Steelman, QB, Army: 4 points
11t. Lance Dunbar, RB, North Texas: 3 points
11t. Jordan White, WR, Western Michigan: 3 points
11t. Doug Martin, RB, Boise State: 3 points
14t. Ryan Lindley, QB, San Diego State: 2 points
14t. Jonathan Massaquoi, DE, Troy: 2 points
14t. Lance Dunbar, RB, North Texas: 2 points
14t. Austin Davis, QB, Southern Miss: 2 points
18t. T.Y. Hilton, WR/R, FIU: 1 point
18t. Vinny Curry, DE, Marshall: 1 point
18t. George Iloka, S, Boise State: 1 point

* denotes votes received prior to Johnson’s suspension
() denotes first place votes

Today’s vote does not count toward the season total, and not all of the panel participated. The complete panel is:

#1 Chandler Harnish, QB, NIU
#2 Trent Steelman, QB, Army
#3 Ronnie Hillman, RB, SDSU
#4 Jonathan Massaquoi, DE, Troy
#5 George Iloka, S, Boise State

1. Kellen Moore
2. Case Keenum
3. Ronnie Hillman
4. Ed Wesley
5. Ryan Lindley

1. K. Moore
2. D. Johnson
3. R. Hillman
4. C. Keenum
5. E. Wesley

1. Kellen Moore, QB, Boise State. Quietly one of the most efficient passers in CFB history.
2. Ronnie Hillman, RB, San Diego State. 1,500+ rushing yards as a freshman last season.
3. Case Keenum, QB, Houston. Fifth-year senior returns with sights on all-time passing yardage record.
4. Damaris Johnson, WR, Tulsa. Talented receiver and all-purpose all-star.
5. Ed Wesley, RB, TCU. Head of TCU’s three-headed rushing monster.

1. Case Keenum
2. Kellen Moore
3. Bernard Pierce
4. Bryant Moniz
5. T.Y. Hilton

1. Kellen Moore, QB Boise State: Is there any doubt that he should be the top player on this list? His capabilities give Boise a chance at a BCS game again this season.

2. Case Keenum, QB Houston: Although his season was cut short by injury last year, he still has the highest ceiling in the C-USA. His healthy seasons indicate that he should, and will be one of the most electric offensive forces in the nation.

3. Bobby Rainey, RB Western Kentucky: The third leading rusher in the nation may not have been on a good team, but he produced like few others on the field.

4. Lance Dunbar, RB North Texas: He will be the high point of the North Texas offense this season. He an only build off of his 1553 yards from last year-look for numbers north of 1,700 yards.

5. Ryan Lindley, QB San Diego State: While he may not have his top two receivers this year, he still has tremendous talent. Don’t be surprised if he falls off this list though.

2. Bryant Moniz, QB, Hawaii

3. Bobby Rainey, RB, Western Kentucky

4. Jordan White, WR, Western Michigan

5. Vinny Curry, DE, Marshall University

Navy Bird Dog

There is an annoying commercial that comes on the radio in the Atlanta market and it references the “biggest no brainer in the history of earth”. This IS the biggest no-brainer in the history of earth. If Kellen Moore is not your pre-season pick for the Detmer Award then I have to questions your non-AQ IQ.

#2 Ed Wesley, RB, TCU

Wesley ran for over 1,000 yards last year and did so at almost 6.5 yards per carry. Look for the running game to be used more by Gary Patterson at the start of the year and look for Wesley to be a bigger part of the offense.

#3 Doug Martin, RB, Boise State

At it’s heart Boise State is a running football team. We remember them for their trick plays but they will just run the ball down your throat for four quarters if you let them. Martin had over 1,200 yards last year but look for him to be a biggest part of the offense (if that’s possible) with the loss of Titus Young and Austin Pettis.

#4 Austin Davis, QB, Southern Miss

I bet you thought I was going Case Keenum here, didn’t you. Just admit it you don’t have to be ashamed. While Keenum would be the sexy pick, Davis is the smart one. The Golden Eagles were in the Top 20 last year in terms of Total Offense and they were in the Top 15 of Points Scored. Davis had a great TD to INT ratio as last year it was 20:6 and for his career it is 53:16. Another thing that impresses me is that his statistics don’t drop off on the road, so you can take him in any opponents stadium and he will perform at his highest level.

#5 Bryant Moniz, QB, Hawaii

You want stats? I’ll give you stats. Over 5,000 yards passing, 39 TDs, If you aren’t keeping track those stats put him #1 in the FBS in passing yardage and passing TDs. And guess what? With the departure of Boise State from the MWC, Hawaii is now one of the big dogs in the WAC and did I mention that Moniz two worst games last year were against USC and Boise. Guess what? They aren’t on the schedule this year.

1. Kellen Moore, Boise State QB
2. Case Keenum, Houston QB
3. Bernard Pierce, Temple RB
4. Bryant Moniz, Hawaii QB
5. Jordan White, Western Michigan WR

1. Kellen Moore, Boise State

Coming off another 30-plus touchdown season, having completed over 70 percent of his passes and surpassing 3500 yards he sets the benchmark. Still, have to question how losing his top two receivers will affect his production.

2. Case Keenum, Houston

It will be interesting to see how he rebounds from missing most of last year. He gets a shot at revenge in Week 1 facing a pretty talented UCLA defense. That game will set the tone.

3. Bryant Moniz, Hawaii

He’s guaranteed to put up tremendous figures in Hawaii’s spread offense. Lingering question from last year’s bowl game debacle though: is the multiple turnover outing indicative of things to come?

4. Ronnie Hillman, San Diego State

Tremendous breakout freshman campaign and the cornerstone of San Diego State’s explosive offense. Could easily compete for this honor.

5. Chandler Harnish, Northern Illinois

The prototype quarterback for Jerry Kill’s system, will his production dip with a coaching change? Remains the MAC’s top returner regardless.