In the wake of Friday’s victory over the Boise State Broncos, the Fresno State Bulldogs launched a Heisman campaign for quarterback Derek Carr.
The campaign, titled “DC4Heisman,” uses social media to raise national awareness of the Bulldogs’ leader.
Carr said the campaign puts no pressure on him to perform beyond expectations.
“No one puts more pressure on me than myself,” Carr said. “I don’t get caught up in the Heisman, I don’t get caught up in the BCS bowls, I don’t get caught up in all that stuff.
“All I know is whenever we have practice, I need to get better and continue to work hard. All we’re going to focus on is getting better and what we can correct from the Boise State game.”
When discussing the likelihood of Fresno State being nationally recognized in the Heisman running, Carr referred to two recent Heisman-winning quarterbacks: Robert Griffin III and Johnny Manziel.
Griffin was a standout at Baylor University, a school that finished 10-3 during his Heisman season. Manziel, currently starting for Texas A&M University, won the trophy as a true freshman.
“I think that helps out every kid in the nation. If a team goes out there and they play well, and there’s a player on that team they think can win it, [Griffin] has done a lot for that,” Carr said.
“I think that whole ‘you have to be undefeated’ thing is kind of out of the door to win it.”
Putting up the numbers
Carr’s season is off to a productive start. After three games this season, he is ninth in the NCAA Division-I in passing yards (1,121) and sixth in touchdowns (12). In the opening game against Rutgers, he threw a career high five scores and 470 yards.
In Friday’s game against Boise State, Carr threw for 460 yards and four touchdowns. His longest play was a 68-yard completion to Greg Watson in the first quarter that would lead to a field goal.
And during this stretch, Carr led his team to close victories. First it was the overtime thriller against Rutgers, then it was Friday’s game that was decided with nearly two minutes remaining.
Establishing a national presence
The Fresno State-Boise State showdown was broadcast on ESPN, and the victory over Rutgers was on ESPNU.
Fresno State also crept into both national rankings. Over the weekend, they entered the AP Top 25 for the first time since Sept. 28, 2008. Currently, they are 25th in the AP Poll and 23rd in the Coaches Poll.
“I think it does nothing but bring great light on our football program, on the school and on the Valley,” said Fresno State coach Tim DeRuyter.
“Being on the West Coast, playing most of our games at night, I think it’s difficult sometimes for people to realize how good of a football player Derek is.”
Win, win, win
Carr only cares about one thing — winning.
The Bulldogs are off to their first 3-0 start since 2004. They will look to go 4-0 for the first time since 2001, when another young man named Carr led Fresno State to six straight victories.
“All I care about is my teammates being happy,” Carr said. “If we were to lose every game and I was to win a Heisman Trophy, it would mean absolutely nothing to me. It wouldn’t feel right, because I’d get this cool trophy and all my teammates are down because we lost every single game.”
The Boise State game was the final home game for the Bulldogs for about a month. After road trips to Hawaii and Idaho and a bye week, they will return home to face the UNLV Rebels on Oct. 19.
Between now and then, Carr is focusing on going 1-0 each of those weeks.
“All we need [to do] is go out there and win some games,” he said. “If a Heisman Trophy comes along and we win it, I promise I’ll be fired up.”
