This is an illustrious fraternity. Some fans think it may not mean what it once meant. But, make no mistake, this award is the most recognizable in all of collegiate athletics. In front of the College Football world, Baker Mayfield won the 2017 Heisman Trophy. Mayfield is the sixth Sooner to win the award. He joined Billy Vessels (1952), Steve Owens (1969), Billy Sims (1978), Jason White (2003), and Sam Bradford (2008) in Oklahoma lore.
The Record Books
We live in a “what have you done for me lately” sports society, but overwhelmingly among fans and media Mayfield is the best quarterback in the history of the school. Mayfield holds three of the top six single-game passing performances in Sooner history with 487 yards in 2015 against Tulsa, 545 yards in 2016 against Texas Tech, and 598 yards this year in a Bedlam victory against Oklahoma State.
Mayfield will also have the opportunity to break more single-season and career passing records at Oklahoma with two more games possible. With 381 yards, he will become the single-season passing leader. He would surpass Sam Bradford in his 2008 campaign. He will just need seven more touchdown passes to overtake Landry Jones for career touchdown passes.
But, perhaps the greatest statistic for a Quarterback is their efficiency rating. The passer rating is calculated based on a combination of completion percentage, yards per attempt, touchdowns, and interceptions. In 2016, Mayfield passed Russell Wilson as the highest passer rating in a season with a 196.39 rating. Wilson’s record previously was 191.78. This year, Mayfield beat his own record by posting a 203.76 rating.
What Mayfield has Meant to the Sooner Nation
Mayfield is certainly one of those players that is easy to hate if he is not on your side. He is unquestionably the most polarizing figure in College Football. Sometimes that can be good, but it can also be a detriment to a team trying to win a National Championship. But, over the last three years, this Oklahoma football program would look a lot different without him at the helm. He has been 33-5 as a starter over the last three years which includes a playoff berth in 2015, a Sugar Bowl victory in 2016, and another playoff berth in 2017 in the Rose Bowl against the Georgia Bulldogs. The value that Mayfield has brought to this team and program may not be fully realized until next fall. We will all countdown day by day the excruciating time before the playoffs start. But, I would temper the college football world to enjoy the journey because this Mayfield kid is once in a lifetime.
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