With college football right around the corner, here’s a look at the top candidates to take home the nation’s most prestigious trophy.
The Favorites
Criteria for a “favorite” in Title Run’s eyes = Super-high production + Hype + potentially good team. If one of your favorites didn’t make the list, it’s because they fail to meet to meet one of those three criteria. Here are the players we feel best meet them:
Bryce Love, RB, Stanford - (2,116 yd, 19 TD, 8.1 YPC)
Last year’s Heisman runner-up burst on the scene with weekly highlights of him scorching opponents with 60-yard touchdown runs. He doesn’t have the all-purpose versatility of his forerunner Christian McCaffrey, but another season with that level of production would make him a lock for a second-straight trip to New York.
Will Grier, QB, West Virginia - (34 TD, 3,490 yd, 12 INT, 64% comp.)
The former Florida Gator is quite possibly the best quarterback in the nation and has been a maestro running Dana Holgorsen’s wide-open offense. He returns with one of the nation’s top receivers in David Sills V (18 TD). West Virginia ends the year with Texas, TCU, Oklahoma State, and Oklahoma, so Grier will have a chance to state his case against some of the best competition in the Big 12. The Mountaineers were ranked late into last season, but ended with three straight losses after Grier broke a finger in the Texas game. A healthy Grier all but guarantees an improvement on last year's seven wins and gives the senior a legit chance to be a Heisman finalist.
Jonathan Taylor, RB, Wisconsin - (1,977 yd, 13 TD)
Taylor had one of the best rushing seasons in Wisconsin history, which is saying a lot at school known for churning out super-productive running backs. He broke Adrian Peterson's FBS freshman rushing record and there’s no reason to think he can’t duplicate last year’s success. If the Badgers are hovering around their usual 10 or 11-win mark, he’s seems highly likely for trip to New York.
Dark Horses
These are the “I told you so” candidates. They aren’t the favorites, but if one of them makes a real run at the Heisman, you want to be able to say “I told you to watch out for him!” The players on this tier have the ability to win the Heisman, but only meet two of the three criteria above:
Drew Lock, QB, Missouri - (3,964 yd, 44 TD, 13 INT, 57% comp)
It’s hard to look past Lock’s SEC-record 44 TD for a very mediocre Missouri team -- a number that also led the nation. BUT...he threw 18 of those in three out-of-conference games against Missouri State (7), Idaho (6), and UConn (5). That’s much less impressive until you realize -- taking those games out -- his 26 remaining touchdown passes would STILL have tied for the conference lead. If Lock matches those numbers with another season of highlight-reel bombs, and Missouri returns to being competitive in the SEC East, he could pick-up a lot of Heisman steam. (Lacking: WINS)
McKenzie Milton, QB, Central Florida - (4,037 yd, 37 TD, 9 INT, 67% comp)
Milton’s performance against Auburn was eye-opening for people who’d never seen UCF play. Head coach Scott Frost is gone, and even if Milton matches last year’s stellar numbers it would likely take another equally stellar 11 or 12-win season from UCF for him to get serious consideration. (Lacking: HYPE)
Trace McSorley, QB, Penn State
(3,570 yd, 28 TD, 10 INT, 67% comp; 491 rushing yd, 11 TD)
With players like Lock and Grier likely to put up PlayStation numbers in wide-open offenses, McSorley will probably need to top the 4,000 yd/30 TD mark to even be considered, and he’ll need the Nittany Lions to be a top-10 team at the end of the season. McSorley has shown himself to be a winner and playmaker, and his knack for highlight reel plays in clutch moments is one of the reasons he’s garnered so much Heisman buzz. (Lacking: PRODUCTION)
Nick Fitzgerald, QB, Mississippi State
(984 rush yd, 14 TD; 1782 passing yd, 15 TD, 11 INT)
Fitzgerald’s number’s don’t jump off the page, but his impact was obvious in big games against Alabama and LSU where -- for large stretches of time -- he looked like the best player on the field. The Bulldogs actually over-achieved by going 9-4 last year, but it’s uncertain what the new offense will look like with former head coach Dan Mullen now at Florida. If Fitzgerald’s passing numbers continue to improve it would only take one big upset (Ala LSU last year) to vault him back into the Heisman short list. (Lacking: PRODUCTION)
Shea Patterson, QB Michigan (2,259 yd, 63.8% comp, 17 TD, 9 INT) Projected numbers: 3,872 yd, 29 TD, 15 INT
Patterson only played seven games due to a knee injury, but he averaged 322 passing yards a game for a rebuilding Ole Miss program. Now at Michigan, Patterson is far-and-away the best QB prospect coach Jim Harbaugh has landed, and his play-making ability combined with Michigan’s high profile seems like a perfect match to launch him into the Heisman stratosphere. (Lacking: PRODUCTION)
Khalil Tate, QB Arizona
(1,591 yd, 62% comp, 14 TD, 9 INT;1,411 rushing yd, 9.2 YPC, 12 TD)
Tate finished with gaudy rushing statistics despite missing two games to injury. He strung together six straight 100-yard rushing games in conference play, including 200-yard games against UCLA & Oregon State and 327 yards against Colorado. His production and highlights were amazing, but players on 7-5 teams don’t win the Heisman. If Arizona can hover around the top-20, Tate will undoubtedly be the reason why, and will have a legitimate shot at a trip to New York. (Lacking: WINS)
Worth Watching
This group of talented players are either under-classmen expected to pop with an increased role, or productive players that get slept on because of the school they attend. (In Ed Oliver’s case, it’s just because he plays defense):
Jarrett Stidham, QB (Auburn)
Justin Herbert, QB (Oregon)
Ed Oliver, DT (Houston)
*Kelly Bryant, QB (Clemson)
Devin Singletary, RB (FAU)
Cam Akers, RB (FSU)
Justice Hill, RB (Oklahoma State)
AJ Dillon, RB (Boston College)
* As of right this writing, Kelly Bryant is still the starting QB at Clemson.
**Jalen Hurts/Tua Tagovailoa are both excluded until one is named Bama’s full-time starter.
***UGA fans will notice QB Jake Fromm missing from this list. Here’s why:
Fromm doesn’t project to have the statistical profile of a Heisman trophy candidate. He a pure pocket passer and would likely need to flirt with the school records for yards (3,893), completion percentage (67.9%), and TD (36) to build a Heisman-level resume EVEN IF UGA is top-five team as expected. That seems unlikely on a dominant run-first offense that led the conference in rushing (258 yd/game), has the nation’s deepest backfield, and is returning four starters on the offensive line.
Fromm averaged just 19 passing attempts a game last year, only eclipsed 30 attempts once, and only passed the 300-yard mark once. Yes, a lot of that was due to being a true freshman and coordinator Jim Chaney breaking him in with very conservative play-calling. Still, it’s hard see the nation’s fifth-best rushing attack shifting their identity to the point where Fromm is able to accumulate monster numbers. That isn’t a knock on Fromm’s talent, it just doesn’t seem likely he’ll be given the opportunity to put up Heisman-worthy stats.
Surprise Candidates
Nearly every year at least one player pops up out of nowhere to make some serious noise in the Heisman race. We’re not talking about a darkhorse candidate that showed some promise the year before, but rather a complete unknown that bursts on the scene and wows people with their production for a winning program. Some examples of previous surprise finalists/winners:
2017 - Bryce Love, Stanford
2016 - Dede Westbrook, Oklahoma
2015 - Christian McCaffrey, Stanford
2013 - Jameis Winston, FSU (Winner)/ Jordan Lynch, Northern Illinois
2012 - Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M (Winner)
2010 - Cam Newton, Auburn (Winner)
2009 - Toby Gerhart, Stanford
2006 - Troy Smith, Ohio State (Winner)
Who will it be this year?? We don’t know...and that’s one of the things that makes college football great.
Agree? Disagree? Who did we miss? Let us know in the comments!
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