NEW YORK — Like he did last year inside the Nokia Theater in Times Square, Darren McFadden remained seated Saturday as he put both his hands together. He watched as Tim Tebow climbed to the podium and accepted the 2007 Heisman Trophy. Then he listened to his acceptance speech and forced a smile.

As it was all unfolding right before his eyes, Arkansas’ star running back realized he will again return to Fayetteville without college football’s greatest prize.

“ I was kind of down, ” McFadden said. “ I had high hopes coming in here. ”

Tebow, Florida’s dualthreat quarterback, became the first sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy in the award’s 73-year history. Behind him when he addressed the audience were great college football players of the past, including running backs Archie Griffin and Tony Dorsett as well as wide receiver Desmond Howard.

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“ I was a little overwhelmed at the moment, ” Tebow said. “ I was a little unsure, to tell you the truth. ”

He accumulated 1, 957 points — 254 more than McFadden garnered. It was little consolation for McFadden that he received the highest percentage of the vote by a runnerup or that he became only the fifth player to finish in the top two in consecutive years.

After all, he and the other two finalists, quarterbacks Colt Brennan of Hawaii and Chase Daniel of Missouri, didn’t climb atop the stage. Instead, it was Tebow, who was expected to win the award.

“ Everybody knew it was going to him, so it was no surprise, ” said Daniel, who finished fourth in the final vote. “ Congratulations go to him. ”

In his first year as a fulltime starter, Tebow has passed for 3, 132 yards and has rushed for 838 yards. He also set an SEC record for touchdowns produced, as he accounted for 51 scores through the air and on the ground.

“ Obviously, Tebow came on last year and did some great things with Florida winning a national championship, ” said 1987 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Brown, who was a wide receiver at Notre Dame. “ And he has played great this year. ”

On Wednesday, Tebow won the Maxwell Award, which is presented to the player of the year. He also took home the Davey O’Brien Award, which is given to the nation’s top quarterback.

“ He’s a great player making plays, ” Florida coach Urban Meyer said. “ I’m proud of him. ”

Before the ceremony, ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit said some of the voters may have held Tebow’s age against him.

“ I don’t have a problem with a sophomore, ” Herbstreit said at the entrance of the Nokia Theater on 44 th Street before the ceremony.

“ If Tim Tebow ends up not winning, I think it’ll be because there are still enough voters who hold that as part of their criteria. “

But Tebow did win and McFadden lost again, despite the fact he rushed for 1, 725 yards and 15 touchdowns and did so while facing eight- or nine-men defensive fronts that were stacked in the middle of field to contain the nation’s most highprofile running back.

In no uncertain terms, McFadden’s reputation preceded himself.

“ This year, getting off the bus, everybody knows he’s got a big bull’s eye on his chest, ” said former Arkansas coach Houston Nutt, who is now at Ole Miss. “ For him to get 300 yards in one ball game and then a bigger ballgame to go beat the No. 1 team, put the team on his back, this guy deserves this trophy. I’m partial, but I know that he does. ”

McFadden burst on the scene in 2006, when he gained 1, 647 yards on the ground and led the Razorbacks to a 10-4 record — their highest victory total since 1989. Last December, he made the trip to New York and finished second in the race for the Heisman Trophy. Former Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith earned 2, 540 points — 1, 662 more than McFadden, who many considered a surprise runner-up.

This year, McFadden was the early favorite to win college football’s most coveted award. And, for the most part, he performed well with the spotlight on him.

“ I think he shows he can do it all, ” said 1995 Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George, who was a running back at Ohio State. “ Not only is he a running back, but he can throw the ball. He’s the most outstanding player, I think, in college football. ”

Although he suffered a concussion in September and was hampered by bruised ribs during the middle of the season, he established an SEC record this year with 2, 172 all-purpose yards. More impressively, he gained more than 100 yards on the ground in nine of the 12 games in which he played. But in October, McFadden lost support for his Heisman candidacy when he gained only 43 yards on 17 carries in a 9-7 loss to Auburn that was televised on ESPN.

“ It’s one of those things everybody makes a big deal out of about why I shouldn’t win the Heisman, ” McFadden said Friday. “ To me, everybody has a bad game. It’s not a problem. ”

Still, Mc Fadden was named the Walter Camp Player of the Year, the Sporting News’ Player of the Year and was voted by the coaches in the Southeastern Conference as the league’s Offensive Player of the Year.

The Heisman Trophy, though, remained out of his reach.

“ I have no regrets, ” McFadden said. “ If I had to do it all over again, I’d do it the same way. I love all my fans back home. I don’t think they are going to disown me because I didn’t win the Heisman. ”