Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield wins 2017 Heisman Trophy
Baker Mayfield
CLOSE Oklahoma Sooners quarterback  Baker Mayfield  won the 2017 Heisman Trophy. USA TODAY Sports
Oklahoma Sooners quarterback  Baker Mayfield  wins the 2017 Heisman Trophy. (Photo: Todd J. Van Emst  USA TODAY Sports)
 Baker Mayfield  had been to this New York City ceremony before. This time   he  left with a statue.
There was little suspense Saturday night with the announcement that the Oklahoma quarterback is the 2017 Heisman Award recipient.  Mayfield   the fifth man to finish in the top four of the Heisman race three times  is the sixth Sooner so honored overall and the third OU signal caller since 2003 to claim the trophy.
 Mayfield  received 732 first-place votes  Love had 75 and Jackson  got 47.
AWARDS:  Baker Mayfield  wins Walter Camp Award
"Wow. This is unbelievable for me "  Mayfield  said. "Being up  her  among these greats is something words can't describe. ... It's such an honor."
Baker Mayfield got choked up while thanking Lincoln Riley and his parents pic.twitter.com/eQf16E7MpM — Sports Illustrated (@SInow) December 10  2017
After the Sooners' 31-16 win at Ohio State   Mayfield  ran around the field at Ohio Stadium with a crimson OU flag  then took it to the “O” at midfield and tried to stick it in the ground as his teammates celebrated around him.
On the following Monday   Mayfield  that he didn’t mean any disrespect. He said he should have saved his celebration for the locker room  adding that he would be upset if someone did that on Oklahoma’s home field.
The next step for for the former walk-on: To once again prove some folks wrong. Listed at 6-1  220 pounds — and that might be a stretch —  Mayfield  is not the prototype NFL quarterback prospect  but that hasn’t stopped  him  from becoming one of the most prolific passers in college football history.
“I’m going to have the same work ethic and mentality ”  Mayfield  said Friday. “I think I’ve proven that size doesn’t matter. Even if you had a 6-5 quarterback  you’re not going to see over my left tackle. He’s 6-8. I’m just excited to be able to play the game of football. Winning is fun  and something that I work hard to do. That should be accounted for more than any size  any measurement.”
 Mayfield  is likely to be a much-debated prospect in the months leading up to the NFL draft in late April. Same goes for fellow Heisman finalist Jackson.
 Mayfield  will likely be compared to other undersized quarterbacks like Drew Brees  Russell Wilson and maybe Johnny Manziel. His mobility and ability to improvise makes those Wilson-Manziel comparisons seem more apt.
“Being compared to those guys is an honor ”  Mayfield  said.
The Manziel comparison is not necessarily positive. Manziel was a college superstar and Heisman winner who played a highly improvisational game. He was a much better and more frequent runner in college than  Mayfield .  Mayfield  is a more refined passer. Manziel’s biggest issues  though  were not physical skills and talent. He came into the NFL with baggage when he was a first-round pick by the Cleveland Browns in 2014. After two years in the league  he was released  with some questioning his commitment to football. Manziel has had run-ins with the law in college and after.
CLOSE Oklahoma Sooners quarterback  [TGT]won the 2017 Heisman Trophy. USA TODAY Sports
Oklahoma Sooners quarterback  [TGT]wins the 2017 Heisman Trophy. (Photo: Todd J. Van Emst  USA TODAY Sports)
 [TGT] [TGT]had been to this New York City ceremony before. This time   [TGT]  left with a statue.
There was little suspense Saturday night with the announcement that the Oklahoma quarterback is the 2017 Heisman Award recipient.  [TGT]the fifth man to finish in the top four of the Heisman race three times  is the sixth Sooner so honored overall and the third OU signal caller since 2003 to claim the trophy.
 [TGT]received 732 first-place votes  Love had 75 and Jackson  got 47.
AWARDS:  [TGT] [TGT]wins Walter Camp Award
"Wow. This is unbelievable for [TGT] "  [TGT]said. "Being up  her  among these greats is something words can't describe. ... It's such an honor."
[TGT] got choked up while thanking Lincoln Riley and [TGT] parents pic.twitter.com/eQf16E7MpM — Sports Illustrated (@SInow) December 10  2017
After the Sooners' 31-16 win at Ohio State   [TGT]ran around the field at Ohio Stadium with a crimson OU flag  then took it to the “O” at midfield and tried to stick it in the ground as his teammates celebrated around him.
On the following Monday   [TGT]that he didn’t mean any disrespect. He said he should have saved his celebration for the locker room  adding that he would be upset if someone did that on Oklahoma’s home field.
The next step for for the former walk-on: To once again prove some folks wrong. Listed at 6-1  220 pounds — and that might be a stretch —  [TGT]is not the prototype NFL quarterback prospect  but that hasn’t stopped  [TGT]  from becoming one of the most prolific passers in college football history.
“I’m going to have the same work ethic and mentality ”  [TGT]said Friday. “I think I’ve proven that size doesn’t matter. Even if you had a 6-5 quarterback  you’re not going to see over my left tackle. He’s 6-8. I’m just excited to be able to play the game of football. Winning is fun  and something that I work hard to do. That should be accounted for more than any size  any measurement.”
 [TGT]is likely to be a much-debated prospect in the months leading up to the NFL draft in late April. Same goes for fellow Heisman finalist Jackson.
 [TGT]will likely be compared to other undersized quarterbacks like Drew Brees  Russell Wilson and maybe Johnny Manziel. His mobility and ability to improvise makes those Wilson-Manziel comparisons seem more apt.
“Being compared to those guys is an honor ”  [TGT]said.
The Manziel comparison is not necessarily positive. Manziel was a college superstar and Heisman winner who played a highly improvisational game. He was a much better and more frequent runner in college than [TGT] .  [TGT]is a more refined passer. Manziel’s biggest issues  though  were not physical skills and talent. [TGT] came into the NFL with baggage when [TGT] was a first-round pick by the Cleveland Browns in 2014. After two years in the league  [TGT] was released  with some questioning [TGT] commitment to football. Manziel has had run-ins with the law in college and after.