Why Sonny Dykes says Max Duggan should be a Heisman finalist
TCU head coach Sonny Dykes has been very vocal with his praise for Max Duggan.
From his attitude and mentality to how he operates the offense, Dykes has made sure to show his appreciation for the quarterback all season.
Up until this week he hasn’t spent too much time speaking on Duggan’s Heisman Trophy chances.
Dykes preferred to wait until the end of the season and had the line of thinking that it would all work itself out.
With two games left before the award is handed out, Dykes let it be known that he thinks his quarterback should be one of the finalists for the award and receive an invite to New York City for the trophy presentation.
“I definitely do. I don’t think there’s any question that Max deserves that for a couple of reasons,” Dykes said Tuesday. “I’m not a Heisman Trophy expert, I’m not a voter. I usually let people that vote on things vote, that’s their job. My job is to coach my football team. If you look at the entirety of what’s happened to us this season, it’s hard not to go there’s got to be a reason this happened.
“There’s a reason that a team to picked finish seventh in the league is in the position we’re in.”
One of the main reasons has been the play of Duggan.
“It’s almost like an act of God that this happened, then you go and say ‘Why?’” Dykes said. “Well here’s this guy that’s played incredibly well in an incredibly important position. If you watch us play you can’t help but notice what he means to our team. The confidence, the belief he has in this team and the players and our scheme and the number of plays he makes during the game.”
Duggan has thrown for 2,858 yards, 26 touchdowns and has posted a quarterback rating of 78.6. He’s added another 291 yards on the ground and five more touchdowns.
Keep in mind he’s done that in basically 10 games as he entered the season opener at Colorado midway through the second half. The numbers only paint a small picture of what he’s done for the No. 4 Horned Frogs.
“Max’s best plays in my opinion aren’t even in the statistics,” Dykes said. “There are things that will never show up in the stat line. The decisions he makes, the leadership he provides in crucial plays in crucial situations that people never notice. It’s all these little things he does for us.”
Duggan has been great on the field and even greater in the locker room. Offensive lineman Wes Harris said he would do anything for Duggan and that he has the heart of the warrior.
Those type of relationships go beyond coaching, it speaks to the character of a player more than anything and to Dykes, that should matter.
“Our guys have undying belief in him,” Dykes said. “They play their tails off for him because they have so much respect and admiration for what he brings to our football program. When you sit down and say ‘Who’s moved the needle the most for some programs that’s in this conversation I think it’s got to be Max Duggan.”
The Heisman race is still wide open with Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud and USC’s Caleb Williams the leaders in the race.
Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker suffered a season-ending injury in the upset loss to South Carolina while Michigan running back Blake Corum could be included if he has a massive game against Stroud and the Buckeyes on Saturday.
Like Williams and Stroud, Duggan has two more opportunities to state his case. The first will be against the top defense in the Big 12 and one of the best in the country with Iowa State coming to town Saturday. The next time will be in the Big 12 championship game against a ranked Kansas State or Texas team.
Winning the award may be difficult, but there’s no doubt in Dykes’ mind that Duggan should be a finalist.
“I don’t know what the requirements for the award are, I’ve heard it described in a bunch of ways,” Dykes said. “To me it’s who’s meant the most to that particular football program and who’s raised that team to greatness and when you consider that I think he’s certainly got to be apart of the conversation.”
The Heisman Trophy announced last year that it would begin inviting four finalists to New York City for Heisman Trophy weekend. What if Duggan is not one of those four?
“I think it’ll be a tragedy if he’s not,” Dykes said.
This story was originally published November 23, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
