What does Peppers need to do to be a legit Heisman contender at season's end?

Submitted by Larry Appleton on

OK, I'll start off by saying that I don't believe that Peppers will win the Heisman.  Lamar Jackson and Christian McCaffrey are going to have video game stats all year as long as they're healthy.

That said, at his current rate of production, I think Peppers is in the top-5 at this point in the season.  Consider his current stats:

Tackles - 28 (19 solo)

TFLs - 9.5(!!!), tops in the country

PRs - 8 for 173, 21.6 average (3rd in the country), 1 TD

KRs - 2 for 81, 40.5 average (would be #2 in the country, but not enough to qualify)

2 rushes for 24 yards

I doubt he'll maintain that TFL pace, but I believe he'll end up with 25+ by year's end, along with about 100 total tackles.  That easily makes him 1st-team AA.

But if he really wants to make a push for the Heisman and perhaps earn a trip to NYC, I think he'll need at least 3 more non-offensive TDs, another 2-3 on the offense, and 2-3 INTs.  Couple that with 10+ wins for the team, and I think he'll be in NYC in December.

Am I wrong?

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Brhino

September 19th, 2016 at 9:57 AM ^

Have to imagine teams are going to start kicking away from him.  I mean, UCF already pretty much did.  Colorado decided to go for it, and everybody saw how that worked out.  Expect a lot more directional punts and kickoffs that are either touchbacks or short.  Going to hurt his return yardage but make for good field position for us more often than not.

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ijohnb

September 19th, 2016 at 10:08 AM ^

can't imagine that teams are going to kick to him much longer.  He returns every punt 20 yards and every kickoff 30 yards, minimum.  The field position generated by Peppers is close to the biggest advantage we have right now.  He is a truly spectacular special teams player.

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The Blue Barracuda

September 19th, 2016 at 2:04 PM ^

I think with the pressure on the punters and number of punt blocks that michigan has generated so far this year, makes it difficult for a kid to get directional kicks off. They are just worred about not getting it blocked and asking much more of a kid is a lot. We saw that in the Colorado game when the punter hit the lineman in the back. That pressure makes it diffiuclt for a punter to worry about placing a punt.

 

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markp

September 19th, 2016 at 10:52 AM ^

In all seriousness, how does one actually kick away from Peppers without kicking out of bounds (losing yardage).  He's blindingly fast and can catch kicks in a dead sprint.

If he stands in the middle of the field I think he can get most punts even if you're aiming away from him.

No better place to post this I suppose:

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timtebro

September 19th, 2016 at 10:00 AM ^

Needs Michigan to go undefeated with a convincing win over OSU and in the B1G championship game. That and all of the stats, advanced analytics, saber metrics, cool tweets.

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1201 S. Main St.

September 19th, 2016 at 10:04 AM ^

It's hard enough for a defensive player to win it, let a lone one who is playing more of a linebacking role.  Te'o had 113 tackles with 7 interceptions.  Obviously Peppers is way more diverse, but it's still a tough road.  Essentially he'd need to have some sort of hybrid Te'o/Woodson season where he has close to 100 tackles, 5ish sacks, force 5ish turnovers with maybe 8 total touchdowns.  If he does that, I don't think there's a question he gets invited, but with Jackson and McCaffrey I doubt he wins.

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Don

September 19th, 2016 at 10:03 AM ^

If we lose to MSU or OSU, he has no chance. He won't accumulate the raw stats a QB or RB will to compensate for a loss in the eyes of the Heisman voters.

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Mr Miggle

September 19th, 2016 at 10:07 AM ^

and have a gaudy defensive stat, like TFL. I think it's irrelevant where his TDs come from, but he needs more highlight quality TDs. Coming up big in a big game would be nice too.

Most of all, in order to win he needs Michigan to go undefeated. To stay in the conversation, we needs us to have a very good season.

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pfholland

September 19th, 2016 at 12:02 PM ^

I agree that with the seasons Jackson and McCaffrey are having Peppers doesn't really have a shot at winning the Heisman this year. So he should just come back and win it next year.

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Perkis-Size Me

September 19th, 2016 at 10:08 AM ^

You can talk about returning punts, more TFLs, sacks and the like, but one of the things he needs most, and it's hard to quantify but you know it when you see it, is a "Heisman moment." Like beating OSU all by himself.

Winning the Heisman is as much about perception (not sure if that's the best word but I'm going with it) as it is about stats. In other words, RGIII likely won the Heisman because of the Oklahoma game. Cam won it doing what he did at Alabama. Manziel won it by doing what he did at Alabama. You don't have to be on an undefeated team. RGIII and Tebow each won it on 9-3 teams. But you have to have those moments that get everyone around the country talking. A "what the hell did I just see" kind of play or game. It's the reason that a guy like Montee Ball, who broke almost every RB record imaginable back in 2011, loses to RGIII.



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