Texas Football: Big 12 Title Game performance for Kyler Murray won him 2018 Heisman

It was a hard pill for Texas football to swallow, but Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray won himself the Heisman Trophy this year in the Big 12 Title Game.

The way that the junior superstar quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners Kyler Murray showed out in the 2018 Big 12 Championship Game was a clear indication that he was deserving of the Heisman Trophy. The stigma behind an Oklahoma quarterback winning it two straight years seemed like it might deem Murray’s chances, but he was able to hold on in the end.

Last year, it was another Oklahoma quarterback that was a former transfer to the program that took the Heisman Trophy back to Norman. Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield won the Heisman Trophy last year, over the likes of Baltimore Ravens rookie quarterback Lamar Jackson and senior Stanford Cardinal running back Bryce Love.

Moreover, Oklahoma put a representative of the program among the three Heisman finalists in the running for the third straight year. Mayfield finished in third behind the former Louisville Cardinals quarterback Jackson and Houston Texans star Deshaun Watson in 2016. Mayfield bested the field to win the Heisman Trophy last year.

Oklahoma continued its run of Heisman Trophy winners as Murray edged Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Dwayne Haskins to get the crown in 2018. Tagovailoa was the favorite for most of the season, but Murray caught up with him late in the regular season.

Murray was the heavy favorite to win the Heisman this year after his performance in leading Oklahoma past Texas football to come out on top in the Big 12 Championship Game. That performance helped Murray total nearly 5,000 yards and 51 touchdowns. He tossed just seven interceptions in the process this year.

In the Big 12 Championship Game, Murray registered more than 400 total yards and three touchdowns while completing more than 73 percent of his passing attempts. That proved that he could handle himself when it matters most on the national stage.

Moreover, Murray gets another shot at proving himself in the College Football Playoff Semifinal game against head coach Nick Saban, Heisman runner-up Tagovailoa, and the vaunted Crimson Tide. That will be Tagovailoa’s chance to either get revenge on Murray and the Sooners for his supposed Heisman snub or prove that the voters were right putting him in second place for the award.

Between the numbers he posted this year, and the difference he made in his first year as a starting quarterback for the Sooners, Kyler Murray deserved to win the Heisman. Kyler Murray was excelling in the Big 12 Title Game against the Texas Longhorns while Tagovailoa struggled to lead his team past the Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC Championship Game. It didn’t help Tagovailoa’s case that he only completed 10-of-25 passing attempts for less than 200 yards, one touchdown, and interceptions, in the SEC Title Game.