In this photo provided by the Heisman Trophy Trust, Auburn quarterback Cam Newton, right, speaks with Chris Fowler, center, after being named the Heisman Trophy winner, Saturday, Dec. 11, 2010, in New York. (AP Photo/Heisman Trophy Trust, Kelly Kline)NEW YORK – After hearing his name called as the 2010 Heisman Trophy winner, Auburn quarterback Cam Newton stood up, turned to his mother, Jackie, and gave her a hug, the emotions of a month’s worth of turmoil surrounding his recruitment pouring out in one embrace.
“I didn’t really want to let go,” Newton said. “It’s been hard for me, but it’s been extremely hard for her just to see what her son has been through.
“I just wanted to hug her the whole night, just to make her feel at ease, letting her know that it’s over for this particular moment of our lives.”
The presentation wasn’t filled with suspense. Newton was the runaway winner, earning 78.7 percent of the first-place votes to beat Stanford’s Andrew Luck by 1,184 points, the 11th largest margin of victory in the trophy’s history.
But all eyes were on Newton as he accepted the award as college football’s best player not long after the NCAA concluded that his father, Cecil, actively marketed his son’s services to Mississippi State during the recruiting process last year.