College Football Heisman Watch : Week 7

We are not at the halfway mark of the college football season and as the NCAAF odds show, this is one of the most wide-open seasons in years. That openness extends to the Heisman race where there are two co-favorites and a dozen more realistic candidates. While a wide receiver stunningly won last year’s award, the top 18(!) favorites for the award this season are either quarterbacks or running backs. Let’s run through our top five picks, which may be different than the consensus odds at this point.

1. Bryce Young, QB, Alabama    Odds: +200

Stats: 1,734 yards passing, 69.4 % completion, 20 TD, 3 INT

High profile losses are the number one way for a quarterback to throw away their Heisman chances but that appears to not have happened to Young, who is still the co-favorite for the award despite losing in a stunning upset to Texas A&M. Young was 28 for 48 for 369 yards against the Aggies, throwing for 3 TD and 1 interception, while being pressured all night. 

Like some of the other serious contenders, Young is a QB that does not put up rushing numbers. Young does have the type of game left on his schedule that could throw off his campaign, Alabama plays some porous SEC West defenses, like Auburn and LSU still and the Tide have a game remaining against New Mexico State where Young could potentially pad his numbers. Young’s major stumbling block could be a SEC title game showdown with Georgia’s vaunted defense. 

2. Kenneth Walker III, RB, Michigan State  Odds: +1400

Stats: 129 carries, 913 yards, 9 TD, 7.1 avg, 4 receptions, 30 yards, TD

Kenneth Walker has rushed for 913 yards in six games. No other player in the country has even rushed for 800 yards thus far. IF Walker can continue his record setting pace, or at the very least win the national rushing title, he can position himself as the primary RB Heisman candidate, beating back competition from Bijan Robinson of Texas and TreVeyon Henderson of Ohio State. 

Walker was a relatively little known player before this season, he had rushed for exactly 579 yards in each of the past two seasons at Wake Forest, before transferring to Michigan State. The junior running back just went for 233 yards and a score against Rutgers and has 558 yards in three Big Ten games thus far. Walker does have some tough defenses left, like Penn State and Ohio State, but he can pad his numbers against Purdue and Maryland in the next few weeks. 

3. CJ Stroud, QB, Ohio State      Odds: +800

Stats: 1,699 yards passing, 66.2 % completion, 18 TD, 3 INT, 17 rushing yards 

No player in the sport is hotter than Stroud, Ohio State’s freshman QB, who now has two consecutive 5 TD, 0 INT games. Stroud threw for 484 yards and 3 TD in the Buckeyes’ lone loss this season to Oregon, tossing a single interception. If there’s a knock on Stroud, it’s that he doesn’t run at all, with 14 carries for 17 yards this season. Stroud does have three tough defenses left to play as OSU still needs to face Michigan, Michigan State, and Penn State, but those all present high profile opportunities for Stroud to make his Heisman case to a national audience. 

4. Matt Corral, QB, Ole Miss   Odds: +200

Stats: 1,497 yards passing, 69.2 % completion, 12 TD, 0 INT, 255 rushing yards, 8 TD

Corral is actually the co-favorite with Bryce Young to win the Heisman, but that might be a case of people getting excited about his NFL potential more than what he’s been able to do on the field with Ole Miss. 

Corral was just okay against Alabama this season, throwing for 213 yards and one TD in a  blowout loss. Last year Corral made his name known to the country by shredding the Tide for 48 points, throwing for 365 yards and 2 TD. 

Corral does have one advantage over the Bryce Youngs and CJ Strouds of the world, in that he runs. Corral already has a whopping 8 rushing touchdowns. But, most of the damage Corral has done this season has come against Austin Peay and Tulane, where he tossed a combined 8 TD passes. Corral will need a signature game late in the season when Ole Miss faces Texas A&M or Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl. 

5. Desmond Ridder, QB, Cincinnati  Odds: +2000

Stats: 1,304 yards passing, 65.5 % completion, 12 TD, 2 INT, 104 rushing yards, 3 TD

Betting on Ridder to win the Heisman is a bet on Cincinnati to go undefeated. One loss will absolutely knock the senior QB, whose numbers are very good but not eye-popping, out of the race completely. Ridder is a four-year starter who actually had 22 career rushing touchdowns before this season, including 12 last season. 

Ridder will have a few chances to impress later in the season when the Bearcats play SMU and in the American title game, but Cincinnati is playing in lower profile games every week than many of Ridder’s main competitors. Will Ridder shredding Tulsa, Tulane, South Florida, and Central Florida be enough to win him a Heisman? He needs to root against some of the guys above him to falter. 

Also received strong consideration: 

Bijan Robinson, RB, Texas

Malik Willis, QB, Liberty

Drake London, WR, USC

Grayson McCall, QB, Coastal Carolina

Kenny Pickett, QB, Pittsburgh