Florida State Quarterback Christian Ponder
Seminoles Junior Setting Stage for Heisman Trophy Run
Oct 23, 2009
Florida State's junior quarterback added considerable sparkle to an already stellar 2009 campaign Thursday night, rallying the Seminoles to a 30-27 victory over North Carolina.
Ponder completed 33 of 40 passes for a career-high 395 yards and three touchdowns. And he did it on the road against a team that entered the game ranked No. 1 in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision in passing defense.
The Tar Heels had been giving up only 125.17 passing yards per game, but couldn't prevent Ponder from bringing Florida State back from a 24-6 third quarter deficit. It was the type of performance that creates Heisman Trophy talk.
But in Ponder's case, legitimate Heisman candidacy is not likely to become a reality until next season. College football's most prestigious award doesn't go to those who play for losing teams. And Florida State is still – at least technically – a losing team.
On the other hand, the Seminoles could win their next four games – against North Carolina State, Clemson, Wake Forest and Maryland – and Ponder could continue to excel.
If that happened, Florida State would be 7-4 entering its regular-season finale vs. defending national champion Florida. The game would be a showdown between Ponder and Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, the 2007 Heisman winner and the favorite to win the 2009 award.
So who knows?
Ponder Puts Up Dazzling Numbers
Ponder has completed 70 percent of his passes in 2009, hitting on 180 of 257 throws for 2,176 yards and 12 touchdowns. Perhaps most impressively, he's tossed just one interception, and that came in the season opener vs. Miami. He's now thrown 238 consecutive passes without being picked.
His Thursday night effort enabled him to raise his completion percentage to 70 percent, and it marked the third consecutive game in which he delivered a career high in passing yards.
Ponder was 26-for-36 for 359 yards and five touchdowns in a 49-44 loss to Georgia Tech on Oct. 10. And he went 29-for-42 for 340 yards but was held without a TD pass in a 28-21 setback vs. Boston College on Oct. 3.
Only once has he passed for less than 250 yards this year, and that came in one of his more impressive performances .
Ponder connected on 21 of 26 passes for 195 yards and two TDs in the Seminoles' 54-28 drubbing of then-No. 7 Brigham Young. He also ran 11 times for 77 yards and a touchdown.
What Makes Ponder Tick
Ponder has at least most of the tools of a solid NFL prospect. He's strong at 6-foot-2, 219 pounds, and he's a talented runner who can turn a 4.6 40-yard dash.
His arm strength might not rate at the highest level, but it's adequate at the very least. And his numbers this season are a testament to his accuracy (he actually had a couple of passes dropped during his 33-for-40 outing Thursday night). Ponder's also been praised for intelligence and toughness.
The down side? Ponder does have eight touchdown passes over his last two games, but before that, he had managed just four over his first five contests.
And while Florida State's losing record is mostly blamed on a shaky defense, the Seminoles did give up just 17 points in their loss to South Florida. And the offense had chances to pull out wins vs. Miami, Boston College and Georgia Tech but fell short.
What Ponder Did Before 2009
Florida State went 9-4 in Ponder's first season as starting QB, capping a 9-4 season with a 42-13 bowl drubbing of Wisconsin. Ponder was inconsistent, passing for 2,006 yards and 14 touchdowns, with 13 interceptions. He also ran for 423 yards and four TDs.
Ponder played one game as a freshman in 2007, taking over for an injured Drew Weatherford and going 8-for-18 for 105 yards in a 40-21 loss to Virginia Tech.
A three-star recruit out of Colleyville Heritage High in Texas, Ponder chose Florida State over Oklahoma State and Georgia Tech. His father Richard played linebacker for the Seminoles.
