Who are the signature players so far this college football season? Who belongs front and center in the Heisman chase? It’s the weekly Race to the Heisman, ranking the current five top candidates.
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The candidates are dropping fast with Greg Ward’s Houston team losing to Navy and Christian McCaffrey bowing out, along with Stanford. However, so superstars are emerging at the top as the Heisman race is starting to take shape.
If the season ended right now, the Heisman top five would be …
Post-Week 6 Race For The Heisman Rankings
1. QB Lamar Jackson, Louisville, Soph.
Yeah, he’s still getting the juice even with the week off and with the loss to Clemson two weeks ago. However, even though he’s thrown for 14 touchdowns and ran for 14 more, and even though the stats are phenomenal, he’s going to have to keep it going and can’t afford a clunker. One more Cardinal loss will doom his chances.
2. QB Deshaun Watson, Jr.
He’s heating up at the right time. He’s not only the guy who came up with the win over Lamar Jackson and Louisville two weeks ago, but he rolled against Boston College with a flawless performance for a team that’ll be in the mix for the CFP No. 1 spot soon. The spotlight games are coming – Florida State is up in a few weeks – and that’ll be what matters. He has yet to run for a touchdown and he’s got seven picks, but it won’t be about the stats with him.
3. QB Jake Browning, Washington, Soph.
How’s this for a performance when everyone was paying attention after the Stanford win? Against Oregon, Browning hit 22-of-28 passes for 304 yards and six touchdowns, and ran for 21 yards and two scores in the 70-21 blowout. The Huskies will be everyone’s darling for a while, and Browning will be the face of the franchise.
4. QB J.T. Barrett, Ohio State, Jr.
He’s coming off his mere-mortal passing game against Indiana – hitting just 9-of-21 passes for 93 yards and a touchdown with a pick in the sluggish win. But when the offense started sputtering a bit, what did he do? For the first time all year, the Buckeyes cranked up the running attack with Barrett running for 137 yards and a score on 26 carries. The spotlight will be on against Wisconsin next week. Stats won’t matter against the Badgers; just get the W.
5. S/LB/KR Jabrill Peppers, Michigan, Jr.
The face and signature superstar on the crushing Wolverine season, Peppers is working out just fine at linebacker. He’s second on the team with 38 tackles, has 2.5 sacks and ten tackles for loss, forced a fumble, returned a punt for a score, and against Rutgers, ran three times for 74 yards and two touchdowns. If the vote is for the best all-around player in college football, Peppers is it.
In the green room waiting for a call
QB Jalen Hurts, Alabama, Fr.; QB Trevor Knight, Texas A&M, Sr.