The Right Stuff: Interviews with Icons of the 1970s and 1980s by James M. Clash

Author:James M. Clash [Clash, James M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: HIS037070, BIO006000
ISBN: 9780973449570
Published: 2012-12-16T23:00:00+00:00

Archie Griffin

In 1974 and 1975, Archie Griffin, then a running back for the Ohio State Buckeyes, did something that’s never been duplicated: He won the Heisman Trophy, given annually to the best college football player, not once but twice — as a junior and a senior.

For three decades, the improbable mark was thought untouchable until 2007, when Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow became the first sophomore to win the Heisman. That meant he had two more shots — as a junior and a senior — to pick up the second. But the following years weren’t as stellar for Tebow, now with the New York Jets, and Griffin is still the only player since the inaugural Heisman was given out in 1935 to have won twice.

After graduating, Griffin was a first-round draft pick for the Cincinnati Bengals. He played there seven seasons (1976-1982) — was even part of the Bengals’ Super Bowl XVI appearance in 1981 — but never became the big NFL star that he had been in college. Still, the man is legend, and I had a chance to talk football with him — including his thoughts on the continuing controversy over whether the current BCS (Bowl Championship Series) playoff system should be replaced by one more akin to the NFL’s.

It’s getting on four decades since you won the Heisman twice. Can anyone do that again?

Archie Griffin (AG): I guarantee somebody else will win the Heisman Trophy twice. If you can win as a sophomore, win as a junior and stay your senior year [without leaving early for the pros], it’s possible you can even do it three times. I really believe that. It’s just a matter of it happening.

Does a day go by in your life now when someone doesn’t say the word “Heisman”?

AG: Really, I can’t think of a day without someone mentioning it, other than maybe a Sunday when I’m around the house just with my family.

Where do you keep the trophies?

AG: With two, I can keep one at home and the other at The Buckeye Hall of Fame Café. I figure more people will see it there than in my home. And I do get lots of comments from people who’ve seen it there.

In 1974, I was at the University of Maryland with the great defensive lineman Randy White, who later became a Dallas Cowboy and nine-time NFL Pro Bowl pick. But in Heisman voting that year, he only finished ninth. Why do linemen continually get snubbed?

AG: It’s running backs and quarterbacks who win because those positions put up the big numbers. With running backs, you can count yardage, touchdowns; with quarterbacks, it’s the number of completions and touchdowns thrown. Those are measurement statistics people seem to use in their Heisman voting. Linemen get sacks and things like that, but remember, they didn’t even start counting sacks until the 1970s. I do believe somewhere along the line, though, there will be winners from offensive and defensive linemen positions.

Can you recall instances where voting was close

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