Former USC Great Matt Leinart Invites BYU QB Zach Wilson To ‘Club Heisman’
Oct 31, 2020, 10:27 AM | Updated: Nov 2, 2020, 3:24 pm
Former USC QB and current FOX analyst Matt Leinart (left) and BYU QB Zach Wilson (right). (Photos courtesy of Getty Images)
(Photos courtesy of Getty Images)
PROVO, Utah – BYU saw firsthand how good former USC great Matt Leinart was when he played for the Trojans. In 2004, BYU faced Leinart and USC in a game that saw the Trojans roll to a 42-10 victory.
That season, Leinart was college football’s top player as he took home the Heisman Trophy.
These days, Leinart is a studio host on FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff pregame show. During Saturday’s show Leinart, his USC teammate Reggie Bush, and former Michigan star Charles Woodson made invitations to join the star-studded trio in “Club Heisman.”
Ascots are now part of the dress code at Club Heisman 👔@CharlesWoodson, @ReggieBush and @MattLeinartQB welcome Oklahoma's Spencer Rattler, Clemson's Travis Etienne and BYU's Zach Wilson behind the velvet ropes.pic.twitter.com/KZdHEHtnSZ
— FOX Sports PR (@FOXSportsPR) October 31, 2020
Leinart dished out his invitation to BYU’s Zach Wilson. Wilson has led BYU to its first 6-0 start since 2008 and is looking to move to 7-0 for the first time since 2001.
Matt Leinart loves BYU’s Zach Wilson
“I gotta stick with my QBs,” said Leinart. “This ain’t the chess club, this is not the book club, this isn’t checkers, this is Club Heisman; and my man Zach Wilson from BYU, welcome to the club.”
Leinart continued, “How about this, more touchdowns than our VIP Trevor Lawrence at 22. He’s got more passing yards than Mac Jones, and most importantly, BYU is undefeated, and they’re the 11th ranked team in the country. I think they’ve got a great shot to go undefeated. Hey, he’s been moving up that line outside the club; he’s in. He’s also moving up draft boards. I love this kid, guys.”
As a former Heisman Trophy winner, Matt Leinart has a vote for the 2020 Heisman Trophy. So this endorsement from the former USC great is big for Zach Wilson in his quest to make it to New York City for the Heisman ceremony at the end of the year. Wilson has passed through six games for 1,928 yards, 16 touchdowns, and, most importantly, only one interception. As Leinart mentioned, every mock draft and draft board you look at in the media now, he’s flying up and is making a case to be one of the top quarterback prospects in the class of 2021.
Wilson and undefeated BYU will return to action Saturday night when they host Western Kentucky in Provo. The Cougars are a four-touchdown favorite over the Hilltoppers, setting up another opportunity for Wilson to put up some big numbers to improve his status at “Club Heisman.”
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (Saturday from 12–3 p.m., KSL Newsradio). Follow him on Twitter: @Mitch_Harper.
