NEW YORK » When emcee Chris Fowler asked Manti Te’o what he noticed about the Heisman Trophy before the naming of the 2012 winner Saturday night on ESPN, Te’o quickly answered that it was the famous "stiff arm" pose of the bronze player atop the award.
It was an altogether appropriate observation on a night when Te’o was stiff-armed in his bid to become the first exclusive practitioner of defense to win the most prestigious award in college athletics.
Instead, it was Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel who made Heisman history, becoming the first freshman to win the trophy in its 78 years, outpointing Te’o 2,029-1,706.
Kansas State quarterback Collin Klein finished a distant third at 894.
Michigan’s Charles Woodson won the Heisman in 1997, but in addition to starting at cornerback, he also played wide receiver and returned kicks.
Te’o’s totals, which included 321 first-place votes, were the most for a defensive player and second-most first-place votes for any runner-up in Heisman history. Pittsburgh defensive end Hugh Green, the 1980 runner-up to running back George Rogers, finished second with 861 points and 179 first-place votes.
Te’o was named on 84 percent of the votes cast. By comparison, Heisman officials said that 2011 Heisman winner Robert Griffin III was named on 80 percent and Andrew Luck, who finished second, was named on 75 percent.
"I did the best I could do, and I’m happy with that," Te’o said afterward. "I wish I could have come in first, obviously, but it gives me the fire to come back and get better. Obviously what I did wasn’t good enough. I felt I could do better. So that’s exactly what’s going to happen."
Te’o said, "I’m relieved that it’s over, I’m excited I get the chance to prepare for (Alabama)," which Notre Dame plays Jan. 7 in the Bowl Championship Series title game in Miami.
"Heisman Trophy or national championship, I’ll take a national championship 100 times out of 100," Te’o said.
Te’o said his first reaction was, "like, ‘Man, I wish it was my name.’ Then it was that he (Manziel) deserved it. For me to just be there was an experience. And I just felt that burn. I can’t really describe it. That burn to get better. It is motivation. I always wanted to be the best and I just use that as motivation to be the best that I can be. Obviously I have a lot of work to do and I’m just excited to get back and get things cracking."
When the decision was announced at the Best Buy Theater in Times Square, Te’o momentarily lowered his chin. Then a smile creased his face and he went and patted Manziel on the back.
Te’o, a senior captain for the Fighting Irish, was the heart of the nation’s top scoring defense, leading Notre Dame to a surprise 12-0 regular season and No. 1 place in the polls.
"I definitely thought I could win and (the people who gave me) over 1,000 points thought the same thing," Te‘o said.
He won six major postseason awards — the most in college football history — and is still up for one more, the Lott Trophy, in Newport Beach, Calif.
"I came a long way," Te’o said. "That’s something to look at; I came a long way. They said that is the most points a defensive player has ever gotten, I guess. But you know, congratulations to Johnny. He deserves it. He had a wonderful season."
Manziel won five of the six voting regions, with Te’o taking the Midwest.
Manziel saluted Te’o as "the heart and soul of (Notre Dame’s) defense and a big reason why they are 12-0." And Klein praised Te’o’s "passion and spirit" in playing the game.
Te’o was the first Hawaii native to be invited to New York as a Heisman finalist, and his finish was the highest of anybody with Hawaii ties. The University of Hawaii’s Colt Brennan finished third in 2007.
Te’o said earlier in the day, "I want to win because I want that honor and that attention, not only for me and my family. I’m not just me. I represent a whole bunch of people. So for me to win this award it would bring a lot of honor and attention and love to the people who I represent, and that’s my only thing."
Te’o said "I’m a representative of that state (Hawaii) and I always will be. Everything I try to do I try to make them proud."
As a reflection of that, Te’o said, "I was going to wear an i‘e, which is a Samoan skirt-like thing, that only Samoan men wear, but they (officials) asked me to just wear (a suit). We didn’t think that would be appropriate for this event."
Instead, he was attired in a dark pinstripe suit and tie adorned in lei.
The Te’o family presented Manziel’s family with kukui nut lei, and they exchanged embraces after the trophy winner was announced. And Manti made a point of hugging and congratulating them. "Our (parents) are the reason we are here," Te’o said. "It would make no sense for me to congratulate Johnny and not come hug his parents."
Manziel said, "I have been dreaming about this since I was a kid, running around the backyard pretending I was Doug Flutie, throwing Hail Marys to my dad."
Te’o admitted to once upon a distant time envisioning himself a Heisman Trophy winner, too. It was on a video game as a youngster. And, Te’o said, "I was a running back."
Even back then it was evident that it was tough for a defensive player to win the Heisman.
