Can't Wait For Saturday | Heisman ballots don't grow on trees, they are haded out with care

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Greetings from "Can't Wait For Saturday," your morning morsel of college football, courtesy of longtime Illini beat writer, AP Top 25 voter and Heisman state rep Bob Asmussen. He'll give you his views each day on the game he loves.

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So, you want to be a Heisman Trophy voter. I know a guy.

Actually, for this purpose, it is me. I'm the fortunate person who gets to help decide who votes in Illinois for what I consider the most prestigious award in sports. There's a Nissan ad campaign centered on the Heisman (very funny too). 'Nuf said.

Living in Illinois isn't the only criteria, Actually, you don't need to live in Illinois as long as your work is based in the state. You do need to cover college football on a regular basis. In the old days that meant folks from newspapers and radio and TV stations. But it has expanded to include subscription-based Internet media like Rivals.com and 247Sports. Both have votes in Illinois.

The goal is to have a balance of voters from all different media types. And to make sure there is representation from several geographic regions. The current list has Chicago area voters of course. But also from other parts of the state.

There are a few rules for those who vote. No. 1 is to make sure you select a winner (actually, the top three) before the deadline, And you can't tell people who you voted for before the winner is announced.

Right now that would be easy for me because I have absolutely no idea. I am considering a bunch of players for the Heisman.

I can tell you who I voted for last year: Southern California's Caleb Williams, who was an easy choice.

You have to wait a few weeks to see who wins the 2023 Heisman. I will list my picks right after the announcement.