Shenault’s Heisman dreams aren’t “behind the 8-ball”
Archie Manning pulled him aside for a private chat, and a dozen possibilities danced like cockatoos around Steven Montez’s head.
Am I rocking this camp? Am I in trouble? Does Eli have some pointers? Will Peyton write me into in his next commercial?
“Would you get upset if Eli takes Laviska and throws with him, instead of you throwing with him?” the elder Manning asked the CU Buffs quarterback at the Manning Passing Academy, where Montez and teammate Laviska Shenault served as counselors this past June.
“And I was like, ‘Oh, no. I promise I won’t be upset at all,’ ” Montez recalled. “‘I’ll be more honored than anything.’ ”
That’s our No. 2, the toy everybody wants to play with. Or ogle. Last Sunday, 2004 Heisman Trophy winner redactee Reggie Bush went to Twitter to join the chorus of Laviska Hallelujahs, proclaiming:
I could watch Laviska Shenault’s highlights all day! This young man is a work horse and finishes his runs like a running
back on top of having great hands!
Heisman hands?
“I think the biggest thing is, you’ve got to win and you’ve got to be decent,” Pac-12 Network analyst Yogi Roth said of Shenault’s candidacy for college football’s most prestigious honor. “You’ve got to be above-average. You’ve got to be on a bowl team.
“If you don’t make a bowl game, I think it’s really, really hard. Especially for a skill guy.”
Of course, skill isn’t the issue here. Never was. The Buffs’ junior wideout is a pro’s pro, a coach’s dream, a cornerback’s nightmare and the scouts’ Holy Grail — a game breaker cut like an outside linebacker. Eli doesn’t demand a catch with just any schmo off the street. Be viral, my friend.
“But you can’t be (on a team that’s) 1-5,” Roth countered.
He’s superlative. If the Buffs aren’t, at least through the first week of October, the conversation’s probably moot.
In a perfect world, the two go hand-in-hand. If CU is to make a national dent, or even a divot, it’ll likely be because No. 2, its best player and lead dog, is pulling the sled. Or pushing the envelope.
Be viral, my friend. “He’ll get used and he’s more valuable to his team in more ways,” Roth said. “Laviska will play outside, he’ll play slot, he’ll play inside, he’ll play H-back, he’ll play the wildcat — not because of the Heisman campaign, but because of his skillset.”
That helps. So does a slate of at least five nationally televised appearances, which includes a showcase game at Broncos Stadium at Mile High against Colorado State and a Nebraska tilt that’s all about fresh eyeballs and old grudges.
“You’ve got to be the best on the biggest stage in the biggest moments,” Roth said. “I don’t think he’s behind the 8-ball. I don’t see that. I think that people are expecting him to be one of the most dominant players in the country.”
When Pro Football Focus released its top 50 top college players for 2019, the 6-foot-2 Shenault checked in at No. 9. Among Phil Steele’s preseason top 75 NFL wide receiver prospects, the CU star landed at No. 2, behind only Alabama’s Jerry Jeudy.
And yet …
“Can you make everybody around you better?” Roth asked.
It’s the rarest of air, which is why, since Larry Fitzgerald finished second in the voting to Oklahoma’s Jason White in 2003, only one true receiver — Alabama’s Amari Cooper in 2014 — wound up better than fourth in the Heisman balloting.
And the five receivers to crack the top 6 in votes since 2008 averaged 17.2 touchdowns per campaign. Shenault scored 11 in nine contests last fall, or 1.22 per game.
Be viral, my friend. Be everywhere.
“At times, I just shake my head and I’m just like, ‘Wow, I don’t even know if this guy really understands just how talented he is,’ ” Montez said. “Because he’s the best receiver in the entire United States at the collegiate level.”
Even the best at a position that isn’t quarterback or tailback, realistically, has one beast of a climb. Although if anybody can handle elevation, it’s
Shenault.
Sean Keeler: skeeler @denverpost.com or @Seankeeler