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All in the family Palmer's triumph thrills USC alum, Heisman winner AllenPosted: Sunday December 15, 2002 2:42 PMCLEVELAND (AP) -- For a second, Marcus Allen looked as if he might strike a Heisman Trophy pose himself. Allen said Sunday he was thrilled Southern California quarterback Carson Palmer won this year's Heisman, becoming the first West Coast player to win the award since Allen in 1981. "He had an incredible season," Allen said before working as a CBS sideline reporter for Cleveland's game against the Indianapolis Colts. "He really came on at the end of the year. He deserved it. I voted for him." Palmer received 242 first-place votes, beating Iowa quarterback Brad Banks by 233 points. He is the fifth winner from USC, joining Allen, Charles White (1979), O.J. Simpson (1968) and Mike Garrett (1965). USC now has the third most winners, behind Notre Dame (seven) and Ohio State (six). Allen had wanted to attend Saturday's ceremony, but couldn't risk the chance of bad weather keeping him in New York and missing his Sunday NFL assignment. He wished Palmer luck before Saturday night's presentation, calling Palmer's father's cell phone and leaving a message about 30 minutes before the ceremony. To Allen's surprise, Palmer's father returned the call. "He put Carson on the phone," Allen said. "I told him I had been to a couple games and watched him all year long. I told him he had had an incredible year and that I voted for him. Then, I said, 'Hey, good luck, and whichever way it goes, you're a winner to me.' Allen's anxiety grew as he watched the ceremony. "And when they announced the name of the winner, I went, 'Oh, yeah'! and I started screaming and stuff," Allen said. "I called Carson back and left a message telling them how proud I was." Allen said Palmer's win is a victory for USC, and all West Coast teams. "A few weeks ago I said there's been an East Coast bias and they have to give these players on the West Coast their due," Allen said. "A lot of times they (voters) think that football is only played east of the Mississippi, and that's not the case." |
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