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Louisville QB Bridgewater wants no Heisman hype

the sports xchange

Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater asked the school not to promote him as a Heisman Trophy candidate.

Schools spend lots of money to campaign players for the trophy that rewards the best player in college football.

However, Bridgewater does not want to be at the center of individual hoopla, according to WDRB.com.

"We're going to let Teddy go and play," Louisville coach Charlie Strong said. "Teddy doesn't want to let people down and he doesn't want all of the attention. He wants to win first and foremost."

Bridgewater has been considered a Heisman Trophy candidate since the end of last season, when he lifted the Cardinals to a win over Rutgers despite playing with a broken wrist and sprained ankle. He then led Louisville to a Sugar Bowl victory over Florida.

At first, Bridgewater said he would not mind if the school campaigned him for the Heisman.

"Not at all," he said in April. "It's something that I've been training for my whole life to be in these shoes, and at this stage, I don't see anything wrong with it."

But he has since changed his mind.

"He went to the coaches not wanting a Heisman-type campaign," football sports information director Rocco Gasparro said. "He wanted it to be about team and if we won as a team, individual recognition would come anyway. It says a lot about the character of Teddy, I think, and how much his team means to him."

Bridgewater said he does not want the hype because the Heisman is not a priority for him.

"I don't pay attention to it," he said. "I'm all about this team. I'm all about the team having success. I'm all about my teammates becoming better players. The Heisman isn't a goal of mine. A team effort, a national championship, a BCS game, those are our goals."

ESPN's Mel Kiper listed Bridgewater as the No. 2 overall player on his "Big Board" for next year's NFL draft, behind South Carolina's Jadeveon Clowney.

Bridgewater is listed as tied for fifth for the Heisman by betting website Bovada.com, with 12-1 odds to win the trophy.