Those Heisman High-flyers

College football's most famous running back is 13½ inches tall and weighs 25 pounds. He's hard to bring down because he has a pretty mean stiff-arm and is made of solid bronze. He is, of course, the Heisman Trophy, which goes each season to the man voted the game's outstanding player. Heisman time is here again, and for the past two weeks ballots from 1,050 writers and broadcasters, many of whom know something about football, have been arriving at the offices of Harris, Kerr, Forster & Co., certified public accountants, in New York City.

Shortly after noon on Monday, Dec. 1 the final tally will be hand-carried to the Downtown Athletic Club, which founded the award in 1935 and has sponsored it ever since. Minutes later, Carmine Ragucci, the DAC's Heisman chairman, will pick up his telephone and call—well, no one can be sure just whom. Here are the leading candidates:

•George Rogers, South Carolina. Not playing in a major conference could hurt. Most winners have come from the likes of the Pac-10 and Big Eight, or from among notable independents like Notre Dame, Penn State and Pitt. South Carolina lacks a great football heritage. Also, no southern black has ever won, largely because, until about 1965, blacks weren't recruited by the major football schools in the South.

Rogers began to stake his Heisman claim last season, when he rushed for 1,681 yards—second only to USC's Charles White. South Carolina won eight games, the most in its history. This season the Fighting Gamecocks once again have eight victories. Credit Rogers, a one-man offense. Although South Carolina was upset 27-6 by Clemson last Saturday, Rogers banged out 168 yards in 28 carries, his 21st consecutive 100-yard game. He has gained 1,781 yards this season and is the leading runner in the country. So were the last four Heisman winners.

Rogers was a long shot in the preseason Heisman sweepstakes. His talents had never been showcased on national television, nor were they scheduled to be, and getting on the tube is a must. All winners since 1967 have played in at least one nationally televised game. And though Rogers was second to White in rushing, in the Heisman voting he was seventh—behind Ohio State's glamour quarterback, Art Schlichter and just ahead of Purdue's Mark Herrmann, both back this fall. Because South Carolina faced such powerhouses as Georgia, USC and Michigan, it trumpeted that fact to emphasize that Rogers wasn't getting his yards against patsies. But because the schedule also included Pacific, Wichita State, Cincinnati and The Citadel, the rugged-opponent argument didn't wash.

Rogers promoted himself by gaining more yards against USC (141) and Michigan (142) than he did against Cincinnati (128) and Wichita State (108). And when the Georgia game was shown on national TV, Rogers ran for 168 yards. The trouble was, Bulldog freshman Herschel Walker had more (219), including a glittering 76-yard touchdown run, and Georgia won. What might damage Rogers more was his fourth-quarter fumble on the Georgia 16. But remember, two years ago Oklahoma's Billy Sims made a similar fumble that cost the Sooners a possible national title and gave Nebraska a tie for the Big Eight championship. And he still won the Heisman. Rogers should do so, too.

•Herschel Walker, Georgia. One intangible going for Walker is his name. Consider these past winners: Nile Kinnick, Angelo Bertelli, O.J. Simpson, Archie Griffin and—yes—Doak Walker. A Jim Walker gets no easy votes. A Herschel Walker might.

But Walker has credentials, too. He is fourth in the nation in rushing with 1,411 yards through 10 games. If he hits his average (141.1) this week against Georgia Tech, he'll have 1,552—second only to Tony Dorsett among freshmen runners. Project Walker's average over a 44-game career and it comes to 6,208—surpassing Dorsett's record 6,082.

Walker is 6'2" tall, weighs 220 pounds and has 4.3 speed. Without him last year, Georgia had a 6-5 record. With him, practically the same Bulldog team is 10-0 and ranked No. 1. Besides the televised game against South Carolina, Walker was on the next week against Florida, when he ran 72 yards for a touchdown. The two TV appearances came at what might be called Heisman prime time, the first two weeks in November, a definite plus.

If the Bulldogs beat Tech—and they will be heavy favorites to do so—they will need only one more victory, over Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl, to nail down the national championship. Nineteen of the 45 Heisman winners played either on undefeated teams or teams that won some kind of mythical national championship.