re: Is Manziel really deserving of the Heisman?

Part of the reasoning for Manning, for me, was not stat based, but because he came back for his senior year despite his status as a first round lock and was a model college athlete and student. Much like Te'o is now, who by all accounts seems to be a quality person and student. I think those factors matter (at least to me) for this award, but are mostly irrelevant to voters.