ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, December 15, 1996 TAG: 9612160134
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: NEW YORK
SOURCE: Associated Press
THE GATORS' QUARTERBACK lives up to expectations and is honored as the nation's top collegiate football player.
Even while he was becoming the most accurate passer in NCAA history, Florida's Danny Wuerffel never sought the spotlight. On Saturday night, it found him when he was awarded the Heisman Trophy.
An articulate and thoughtful young man off the field, Wuerffel was the perfect trigger-man for coach Steve Spurrier's Fun 'N' Gun offense on the field. He threw for 3,625 yards and led the nation with 39 touchdowns while guiding the the Gators (11-1) to a fourth straight SEC title and another shot at Florida State in the Sugar Bowl.
Wuerffel, an Air Force chaplain's son who is always quick to praise others, beat out Iowa State running back Troy Davis, Arizona State quarterback Jake Plummer and Ohio State left tackle Orlando Pace.
In a historic Heisman twist, Wuerffel became the first winner to be coached by a former winner. In 1966, Spurrier won the Heisman as the Gators' quarterback.
After the announcement, Wuerffel hugged his father and mother and smiled when he stepped up to the podium. He was true to form.
``If you guys are watching,'' Wuerffel said, talking to his teammates, ``I hope you have a sense of accomplishment. This is just as much you as it is me.''
Many people expected a close race between Wuerffel and Davis, the first player to have two 2,000-yard rushing seasons. And it was, with Wuerffel winning by 189 points. (Voting in Scoreboard. C11)
The 22-year-old from Fort Walton Beach, Fla., probably clinched the Heisman last week with a six-touchdown, 401-yard performance in a 45-30 SEC title game victory over Alabama.
He beat Davis in the closest vote since 1989, with Plummer third, Pace fourth and Florida State running back Warrick Dunn fifth.
Wuerffel, third in last year's Heisman voting, received 300 first-place votes and 1,363 points in balloting by media and former Heisman winners.
Davis, who ran for 2,158 yards despite the Cyclones' 2-9 season, received 209 first-place votes and 1,174 points. The 5-8, 185-pound junior was fifth in last year's Heisman voting, and was trying to become only the second player from a losing team to win the Heisman. Notre Dame's Paul Hornung won in 1956 when the Irish were 2-8.
Plummer, the Sun Devils' daredevil quarterback who led them to a perfect regular season and Rose Bowl berth against No.4 Ohio State, had 116 first-place votes and 685 points. Plummer threw for 2,575 yards and 23 touchdowns.
Pace, trying to become the first offensive lineman to win the Heisman, had 87 first-place votes and 599 points. He won the Outland Trophy on Thursday night as the nation's top lineman to go with his second Lombardi Award, which he captured earlier this month.
Wuerffel and Davis each won three of the six regions, with Wuerffel taking the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and South and Davis winning the Southwest, Midwest and Far West.
The closest Heisman vote was in 1985, when Auburn's Bo Jackson edged Iowa's Chuck Long by 45 points. The largest victory margin was in 1968, when USC's O.J. Simpson beat Purdue's Leroy Keyes by 1,750 points.
In 1989, Houston's Andre Ware beat Indiana's Anthony Thompson by 70 points.
Rounding out the top 10 were Texas Tech running back Byron Hanspard, Northwestern running back Darnell Autry, Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning, Wyoming wide receiver Marcus Harris and Air Force quarterback Beau Morgan.
Wuerffel, who graduates Dec.21 with a public relations degree, gets a chance to avenge his team's only defeat when No.3 Florida plays the top-ranked Seminoles on Jan.2 in New Orleans.
Wuerffel, who puts his palms together in a ``thank-you prayer'' after many of his touchdown passes, said all along that winning the Heisman wasn't really important.
``When I look at things that are important to me, football is not way up there at the top,'' he said earlier this week. ``That takes the pressure off. Bar none, what's important are the relationships you have. My relationship with God, my relationship with my family, my relationship with my girlfriend.''
The 6-2, 190-pounder put up some amazing numbers. He hit on 207-of-360 passes, many on perfectly-timed fade routes to Reidel Anthony and Ike Hilliard, and finished his career as the NCAA's most efficient passer. His rating of 163.6 surpassed the mark of 162.7 set by 1990 Heisman winner Ty Detmer.
Wuerffel has set 47 school, SEC and NCAA records, 17 of them this season. Among his marks are a school-record 10,875 yards (fifth in NCAA history) and an SEC-record 114 touchdown passes (second in NCAA history).
In addition to playing on a pass-happy offense, Wuerffel may have had another advantage over his competition - lots of TV time. The Gators were No.1 most of the season, and Wuerffel was superb almost every time he played in front of a national TV audience.
Against Tennessee, he threw four scoring strikes in the first 19 minutes of a 35-29 win. Later came his 401-yard, six-touchdown effort against Alabama.
In a 24-21 loss to the Seminoles on Nov.30, Wuerffel was sacked six times and knocked around the whole game but still threw for 362 yards and three touchdowns.
``He's as tough mentally and physically as any guy I've ever seen,'' Gators' first-year defensive coordinator Bob Stoops said. ``You may get to him here or there, but just when you think you have him rattled, he hits a beautiful pass.''
Saturday was a beautiful night for Wuerffel.
LENGTH: Long : 107 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: 1. (headshot) Wuerffel. color. 2. AP. Florida's Dannyby CNBWuerffel won the Heisman Trophy by 189 points over Iowa State
running back Troy Davis. Wuerffel became the NCAA's most accurate
passer this season.