Lamar Jackson continued to improve his Heisman stock with another outstanding performance in a big win for Louisville over the weekend. While Jackson continued to trend upwards, the rest of the top Heisman candidates didn’t come nearly as close to matching the impression the Louisville quarterback made on the sportsbooks. Here is a look at the updated Heisman trophy odds heading in to week five.
QB: Lamar Jackson, Louisville Cardinals
Heisman Trophy Odds: -125
Jackson moved from +125 last week to -125 following another outstanding performance in a 59-28 win over Marshall. The sophomore quarterback threw for a season-high 417 yards and five touchdowns while rushing for another 62 yards and two scores. Jackson is up to 25 combined touchdowns through just four games including a five-score performance in last week’s blowout win over a top-five opponent in Florida State. There is no doubt that Jackson is the clear Heisman favorite through the first four weeks of the college season and all eyes will be on him again this weekend when Louisville faces another tough test on the road against the defending ACC champions in Clemson.
RB: Christian McCaffrey, Stanford Cardinal
Heisman Trophy Odds: +700
Consistency has been the key for McCaffrey through his first three games of the season as he put together his third straight games with more than 120 rushing yards in Saturday’s 22-13 win over UCLA. McCaffrey ran for 138 yards and added another two catches for 13 yards, but was held out of the endzone for the first time this season. The junior running back has averaged 5.5 yards per carry while rushing for 436 yards and he has a combined four scores through three games. The Stanford back needs to pick up the pace but he is clearly still very much in the Heisman picture through four weeks. The issue is that right now, he’s viewed as the solid candidate while Jackson has the ‘wow’ factor. Either Louisville will have to lose or Jackson will have to put in a few duds if McCaffrey is to get back in this race.
QB: Deshaun Watson, Clemson Tigers
Heisman Trophy Odds: +800
Lining up opposite Jackson this week will be Watson, who will have the opportunity to put a relatively slow start in the past and make a statement this weekend. Watson has dropped to third on this list despite playing some consistent football through four straight wins and the problem has been that his production isn’t nearly as impressive as it was last season. Watson’s completion percentage, yards per attempt, touchdowns and rushing averages are all down from a year ago so he will need to pick up the pace. However, Watson has still completed 60-percent of his passes for 996 yards and nine touchdowns so he is definitely still in the conversation heading in to Clemson’s showdown with the Cardinals.
QB: J.T. Barrett, Ohio State Buckeyes
Heisman Trophy Odds: +800
Barrett is another potential star quarterback whose production hasn’t been as good as expected early on, but he is still in the Heisman conversation after leading the Buckeyes to three wins in a row. What helps his case is he plays for a team that already has credible wins and – assuming they keep this up – will be heading to the College Football Playoff.
Barrett has completed 67.1-percent of his passes for 650 yards and 10 touchdowns compared to just one interception, while rushing for another 159 yards and three scores. Barrett still has plenty of time to pick up the production and he will get another chance to showcase his skill set over the next two games at home to both Rutgers and Indiana.
QB: Chad Kelly, Ole Miss Rebels
Heisman Trophy Odds: +1800
There is clearly a major drop off following the big four with Kelly moving up in to the final spot on this list following a strong start to the season for Ole Miss. Kelly has completed 65.4-percent of his passes for 1,235 yards and 12 touchdowns compared to three interceptions, supporting the idea that he is still the best quarterback in the SEC. A 2-2 record means Kelly isn’t in the same position that the top four are in when it comes to the Heisman odds but it does say a lot that he is in the conversation despite the Rebels early struggles as a team.
