The Heisman Memorial Trophy annually recognizes the outstanding college football player whose performance best exhibits the pursuit of excellence with integrity.
If that's the case, then no, Tyrann Mathieu can't win or be nominated for the Heisman, IMO. The suspension for "illegal substances" rules him out. And before you guys jump my case about Cam Newton last year, he was ruled by the SEC and NCAA to have no knowledge of all the stuff surrounding him, which is different that actually being suspended for violating a rule. So that's just me going by the rules.
With that being said, I still don't think he's a Heisman finalist for one reason.
Claiborne and the rest of the defense.
When Mathieu missed a game, LSU didn't skip a beat. Hell, Ron Brooks played pure defensive back better that game than Mathieu has most games this season. I don't think LSU NEEDS Mathieu as much as Baylor needs Griffin, Bama needs Richardson, Stanford needs Luck, Boise needs Moore, and Wisconsin needs Ball. That's my 5.
Griffin, Richardson, Luck, Moore, Ball.
I've got nothing about Mathieu as a player. Think he's a tremendous player, great nose for the ball, really fantastic athlete. But unlike most, I don't think he'll succeed at the next level as a pro (isn't that great in coverage, very very rarely covers on the outside) and I feel that his ability to create alot of those turnovers is due to the support by the rest of his team. I wish I had all this year's LSU games recorded because I've noticed that he goes for the strip a lot and doesn't get it a lot of the time... BUT he's always got another one of those ball-hawking freaks is always there to make the tackle for him. I just feel like he's a wheel in a cog. A tremendous wheel in a cog, but a wheel in a cog. With no Morris Claiborne, no Eric Reid over the top... no way he could play as reckless as he does, especially on that slot blitz. I will however say he deserves every bit of credit he gets for his ability on special teams. If anything, that's where I think he'll excel as a professional.