Published: April 16, 2008 12:55 am      

WVU has new Heisman approach

MORGANTOWN — Mark Twain wrote that it “is the difference of opinion that makes horse races.”

Well, it’s a difference of opinion that will make Patrick White a more visible Heisman Trophy candidate, too.

It’s no longer a matter of whether, but when, that West Virginia University will roll out stepped-up promotion of its No. 5 and star senior quarterback for college football’s top individual award.

When Rutgers wanted to push its recent rushing star, Ray Rice, for the Heisman, it rented space on the side of a building in downtown Manhattan. Don’t expect WVU to paint the side of the historic Hotel Morgan here with White’s image.

However, once the Gold-Blue spring scrimmage is over Saturday, the Mountaineer communications staff and Coach Bill Stewart will begin the push for a worthy player who finished 12th and sixth in the last two Heisman races, respectively.

It isn’t that WVU was lax in pushing White or his former teammate, running back Steve Slaton, for the Heisman in recent years.

It was more a case of former WVU coach Rich Rodriguez believing the best sales pitch is a player’s performance. Rodriguez’s philosophy was that the team concept superseded individual campaigns.

Slaton finished fourth in 2006 without West Virginia making a major case for him.

Stewart said he is of a different mindset than his former boss, as White heads into his final season ranked among the top contenders with 2007 winner Tim Tebow and Missouri’s fourth-place Chase Daniel — also QBs — for the 74th Heisman.

Players from 36 schools have won the 25-pound award, and seven of the last eight victors were quarterbacks.

“Patrick is the greatest player in college football today,” Stewart said when asked about his OK and endorsement of WVU’s pending promotional plan. “He’s the greatest winner in college football today ... the best winner, right now, today, to-day.

“If you’re the best ... then whatever our people can do for Patrick White, they should do. Patrick is such a down-to-earth, level guy, I’m not scared about him and what the attention might do. A lot of it is the type of individual he is. If he was some guy strutting around here, not doing some things, I’d say, ‘Well, let’s just keep it within the framework of the team.’”

The Mountaineers’ highest finish for the Heisman was third place in 1989 by quarterback Major Harris, following his fifth-place finish the previous season.

White needs to help himself, too. He must play well in televised games, particularly the Thursday night “only game in town” intersectional ESPN dates against Colorado and Auburn.

He’ll have to perform consistently in the passing game, too, as WVU hopes to raise its air profile from the 20.4 attempts it averaged last season — the low among teams in the six Bowl Championship Series conferences (no other team averaged fewer than 24.1).

It also will aid the 6-foot-2, 185-pound southpaw Alabaman if he becomes more loquacious with the media, rather than giving most of what you might call the “stand Pat” answers he has in past seasons. He needs to smile more, too — because he has a great smile.

What doesn’t hurt is that White is a rarity in one fashion. Not many college quarterbacks can say that they’ve won three “New Year’s Day” bowl games in their careers.

Stewart is sure of one thing WVU must do if it is to help White.

“First, he needs to be on the cover of our media guide,” the first-year coach said. “I’m on the cover of the spring guide, that old ugly mug on that thing, good God almighty. I’m going to save a bunch of them for my barn someday, when I can get me a farm. That last thing we need is my mug on something.

“Patrick needs to be that guy. He needs to be on our cover, and his teammates won’t say anything about it because he’s such a down-to-earth guy. He needs to be our focal point because he is our guy, but also because our men love him and rally around him. Winning just oozes from him.”

Maybe White will run to the award. With 3,506 career yards, he needs 784 to become major college football’s all-time top rushing quarterback. In the last two seasons, he’s run for 1,219 and 1,335 yards, respectively.

If that’s the case, he will have more than returning All-America tackle Ryan Stanchek paving the way for him.

“His teammates would be mad at me, would be livid with us, if we didn’t promote him,” Stewart said. “He’s a quality person and brings good publicity to our university. You ask our players, ‘Who makes the Mountaineers tick?’ and the answer is always ‘5.’ Sugar Bowl ... Gator Bowl ... Fiesta Bowl ... 5.

“It’s like Coach (Don) Nehlen says: ‘Whatever it is, Patrick White’s got it.’ And whatever it is, Patrick has plenty of it.”