Alabama LB Rolando McClain::Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Maybe we need more football players voting for the Heisman Trophy. That way, the award might actually go to the nation's most outstanding player every year instead of the best quarterback, running back or receiver who returns kicks on a national title contender.

Tuesday, I asked Alabama tailback Mark Ingram, who leads Gene Menez's Heisman Watch this week, who he would vote for if he had to pick a player from his own team. His answer? Linebacker Rolando McClain.

"It's just the impact he has on our team," Ingram said. "It's not just how he plays, but from a leadership standpoint. As a player, he goes out there and makes the plays and comes to play every day, but from a leadership standpoint, he knows everything that's going on with the defense. He knows what the D-line is doing. He knows what the corners are doing. He makes all the calls."

Don't get me wrong. Ingram is a fantastic player, but he knows he isn't the best player on his team. That would be McClain, a 6-foot-4, 258-pound force of nature who appears to share a brain with Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban.

So if we're picking a Heisman winner, and the selection criteria require that we choose the nation's most outstanding player, shouldn't we at least make sure we pick the best player on his own team. Ingram knows it's McClain, and so should voters.

Of course, there's always one stickler for the backs. Told of Ingram's choice Tuesday, McClain laughed. "If I had to vote," he said, "I'd give it to Mark or Tim Tebow."

Like I said, maybe we need fewer football players voting for the Heisman Trophy.