On Michigan’s second play from scrimmage Saturday, I looked on as sophomore virtuoso Denard Robinson sliced and diced, bobbed and weaved and outright embarrassed the Indiana defense for a 72-yard run that made him look like a grown man dominating a peewee game. Media members from Indiana looked impressed, but I was shocked and appalled by my own lack of astonishment.

After all, I had seen this before, um, nine or 10 times.

In fact, Denard wasn’t even to the second level of defenders before I whispered to myself — He’s gone.

Chances are, if you’ve followed Robinson’s performances in the first five weeks (383, 504, 345, 189, 494), you’ve said the same thing to yourself as he sprinted away from the mere mortals that were left in his dust.

Then, as the dust cleared from Robinson’s near-eclipsing of the sound barrier, that word crept into my head.

It’s too early, I thought. It’s only been five weeks, and those five teams weren’t even that good.

But then it began to fester. My friends were talking about it. Your friends were talking about it. ESPN was talking about it. There was no escaping it.

You could talk about how bad Michigan’s defense was, but that wasn’t the story. It was Denard Robinson. It was the obliterated Michigan record books.

It was the H-word.

I still cringe a little bit when I say it, but it’s not worth ignoring anymore. Denard Robinson is no longer just great. He’s blurring the lines between hyperbole and reality.

Still I searched for every possible reason not to start the discussion, to battle against the omnipresent power of the national media hype machine. It has only been five games after all. But the last five Heisman winners’ stats through five games offer little consolation to the doubters.

Last year, Alabama running back Mark Ingram had just 487 yards and six touchdowns through five games. The year before, Sam Bradford had accumulated almost 1,700 yards and 18 touchdowns by game five, but most of that came through the air.

Going back even further, Tim Tebow, in one of college football’s greatest seasons, accumulated 1,730 total yards (1,297 passing, 433 rushing) and 19 touchdowns by week five of the 2007 season. And in 2005, if you can still consider it a Heisman year, USC running back Reggie Bush notched 791 yards and eight touchdowns.

Solid seasons — for someone with his shoes tied.

But Robinson’s numbers tower over the award’s modern winners through five games of their legendary seasons. His 1,008 yards passing nearly eclipses 2006 winner Troy Smith, and Smith rarely ran for any yards. Robinson’s 905 yards on the ground are closer to Ingram and Bush’s total combined than either of their separate contributions. And though it goes without saying, his total yardage makes every member on that list look pedestrian through five games.

There’s only one candidate in the history of the honor who Denard looks like through five games. And it’s the most staggering comparison of all.

Barry Sanders’ 1988 season is arguably the best of any collegiate football player in the game’s history. He ran for 2,850 yards and tallied 39 touchdowns from all over the field, absolutely dominating every single player he faced.

But through five games, Robinson has been, well, better.

Granted, he has 100 fewer rush yards and two fewer touchdowns, but that fails to account for any of Robinson’s 1,008 pass yards. Or the fact that he’s a freaking quarterback.

It’s safe to say that no one knows how to deal with Robinson’s astronomical stats or domination of his opponents. A significantly more difficult slate lies ahead in Big Ten season that will absolutely separate the contenders from the pretenders.

But no one can stop Denard Robinson, and Rich Rodriguez sure won’t stop using him because he as well as anybody knows they’re going nowhere without him. He is indeed college football’s most valued player. How often do you hear that about someone who’s started just five games?

So temper your expectations a bit, maybe he won’t keep this pace up. But the Terrelle Pryors and Ryan Malletts of the world have tougher schedules, too, and they don’t have Robinson’s enormous head start.

The truth is, he’s running away with it after five weeks, and I’m not scared to say it anymore.

It’s time to start talking Heisman.