ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com’s Heather Dinich

In order to understand just how valuable Clemson running back C.J. Spiller is to his team, look on the sideline during a game, not at the box score after it. On Saturday against then-ranked No. 10 Miami, several of Spiller’s teammates approached him and asked him to make a play for them, to get the Tigers back into the game.

	Dale Zanine/US Presswire
	Clemson running back C.J. Spiller is someone his teammates and coaches can count on.

“Once you have your teammates come and do that to you, say things like that,” Spiller said, “you have no choice but to go out and play hard.”

If it sounds like pressure, it’s not -- at least not to one of the most explosive, versatile players in the country.

“That’s why I came back,” Spiller said of his decision to put the NFL on hold. “This is the type of game I came back for to be a part of. I realized I could be one of the leaders on this team and make plays to give us a chance to win each Saturday.”

After what he did on Saturday -- amassing a school record 310 all-purpose yards with 125 in kickoff returns, 104 receiving and 81 rushing against a Miami defense ranked in the top 25 in the nation in total defense -- Spiller has done more than just give his team a chance to win games. He’s put the Tigers in position to win their first ACC title since 1991. His performance in Saturday’s 40-37 overtime win against the Hurricanes was worthy of Heisman Trophy consideration, and with former frontrunners Tim Tebow and Colt McCoy struggling to match last year’s success, the door is wide open for college football’s most prestigious award.

“If you’re looking at MVPs, Heisman and all that, I don’t know of any player in the country that’s more valuable to their team than C.J.,” said Clemson coach Dabo Swinney. “Sometimes I feel kind of guilty because this is my first time being a head coach and there’s a lot of coaches who coach their whole lives and don’t get the opportunity to coach a guy like C.J. Spiller. For me to have the opportunity to coach a guy like this in my first year as a head coach is just very special. … Nobody impacts his team more than this guy.”

The problem has been Clemson’s consistency, and it’s been an annual trend in Death Valley. After stringing together back-to-back wins against Wake Forest and Miami, though, the Tigers suddenly look a lot more convincing as a contender in the Atlantic Division. With wins over Florida State, NC State and Virginia, Clemson will head to the ACC championship game in Tampa on Dec. 5. Those within the program realize what needs to happen in order for Spiller to get the national recognition he deserves.

“A lot of that, we have to do well as a team,” said left guard Thomas Austin. “If we continue the momentum and continue to win games and he continues to play the way he has, which I know he will, then I think he has to be in consideration for the Heisman. To me, it’s more impressive for a guy like C.J. who’s playing on a team that might not have as much talent as some of those other teams. Then you say what would our team be without that player?”

It’s a scary thought for the Tigers, considering Spiller has taken four of his 17 returns this year into the end zone. He has eight plays of 60 yards or more -- seven of which have gone for touchdowns. He leads the nation in all-purpose running with 208 yards per game, and he’s done that against a schedule that has included three Top 15 teams.

Spiller's list of accolades is far too long to list, and he’s literally breaking records almost every weekend. What he did last Saturday against Miami was another first.

“That was probably my best performance I’ve had since I’ve been playing football,” he said.

That’s saying a lot, considering Spiller is on pace to become just the fifth player in NCAA history to reach 7,000 yards in a career.

And it’s time the rest of the country took notice of it.