Last spring when Stacey Robinson’s name was mentioned in the same sentence as the Heisman Trophy, quite a few people enjoyed a hearty laugh.

It seemed outrageous that someone from NIU, much less DeKalb, would be a candidate for a national award. But after compiling some pretty impressive numbers and setting a couple of national records last year, Robinson began getting some national attention.

In the 1990 Street & Smith’s College Football annual, Robinson was named as a “sleeper” Heisman candidate, and the No. 3 all-purpose quarterback in the country by the Sporting News, behind Darian Hagan of Colorado and Shawn Moore of Virginia.

Moore, in the Cavaliers’ 20-7, first-ever win against Clemson last Saturday, ran for 54 yards and completed 13-of-28 passes for 145 yards. Hagan looked less than impressive in the Buffaloes’ 31-all tie against Tennessee and 21-17 last-minute skid past Stanford. His backfield partner Eric Bieniemy has out-performed Hagan in both contests.

But if the Heisman were to be awarded today, BYU’s Ty Detmer would probably run away with the award. When the Cougars took on No. 1 Miami last weekend, the game was hyped as the meeting of two top Heisman candidates in Detmer and Miami QB Craig Erickson. But Erickson forgot to show up.

Detmer led his squad to a 28-21 victory over the Hurricanes, dropping Miami to No. 10 this week, and racked up some impressive yardage along the way. He completed 38-of-54 passes for 406 yards. Not too bad for a quarterback from the WAC.

Robinson’s numbers through the first two games may not fit in the same category as Detmer, but they are comparable to Hagan and Moore.

Robinson has 125 yards rushing on 37 carries and two touchdowns. He has completed 22-of-31 passes for 309 yards and one touchdown.

So if Robinson can stay healthy, he may still be a longshot, but he may also have a seat at the Downtown Athletic Club in January.