As the lore of the Honey Badger grows, so does LSU sophomore cornerback Tyrann Mathieu’s Heisman hype.
Mathieu, who said he doesn’t hate the nickname, doesn’t like the sweet implication of the word “honey,” especially since his play is anything but sweet.
“I think of myself as tough,” Mathieu said.
Through six games he’s recorded seven turnovers, including two touchdowns, 41 tackles, five tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks and four pass breakups.
“I won’t doubt myself. I definitely think I can win [the Heisman] whether it’s this year or next year,” Mathieu said. “It’s really just about me staying focused and playing hard and making the plays I’ve been making.”
Since the inception of the award in 1935, 38 running backs and 29 quarterbacks have won the Heisman. Only eight players at other positions have hoisted the trophy.
ESPN analyst Ivan Maisel said Mathieu faces an uphill battle in his hunt for the Heisman.
“It’ll be a very tall mountain for [Mathieu] to climb,” Maisel said. “In part because of the handicap of being a defensive player and in part because there are about eight offensive players who are having a Heisman candidate season as well. When Woodson won it, no one was playing as well as Woodson was.”
Former Michigan cornerback Charles Woodson became the first primarily defensive player to hold college football’s most prestigious award after his standout junior season in 1997.
Fourteen years later, Mathieu is attempting to make a run to become the second defender and the second LSU player to win the Heisman.
Mathieu has posted similar numbers to Woodson’s Heisman season. Woodson had eight interceptions during Michigan’s 12-0 national championship season, while Mathieu has recorded seven turnovers through only six games, a stat that has helped propel LSU to No. 1 in the nation.
The main difference between Woodson’s and Mathieu’s games is that Woodson was also a part-time receiver for the Wolverines while Mathieu is strictly a defensive player. In his Heisman season, Woodson caught 11 passes for 231 yards and two touchdowns, as well as recording one rushing touchdown.
“[Woodson] did a lot of things. He played offense and he caught touchdowns, and it’s really just about me finding my way in there whichever way I can,” Mathieu said. “If I keep making the plays I’ve been able to make, then hopefully our team can go to the national championship and I’m able to go to New York one day.”
With the strong bias toward offensive players in voting, strong numbers alone may not be enough for Mathieu.
“What [Mathieu] needs is a signature moment. He can’t just play the second half of the season like he’s been playing,” Maisel said. “Billy Cannon had the punt return, Desmond Howard had the pose, everyone you can name has a moment where everyone in the country says, ‘Yeah, that’s the guy.'”
This isn’t the first time an LSU player has received Heisman hype early in the season.
In 2007, former LSU defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey received more votes than any other defensive player that season, despite finishing ninth in the overall voting.
Last season, former LSU cornerback Patrick Peterson also received plenty of Heisman notoriety.
Peterson recorded 42 tackles, four interceptions, 1.5 tackles for loss and six pass breakups in 2010, numbers similar to Mathieu’s through six games.
“[Peterson] was definitely a mentor to me last year and still is this year,” Mathieu said. “It’s really about me going out there and just believing in the things Patrick taught me and exceeding his expectations and just do things a little better then he did it.”