One strong week of football will not be enough to win a Heisman trophy, but it is enough to put several players in the conversation. At the same time, there are at least a couple of players whose stock has been hurt following a disappoint start to the year. Here is a look at the updated Heisman trophy odds following week one.
QB: Deshaun Watson, Clemson
Heisman Trophy Odds: +500
This year’s preseason favorite to win the Heisman struggled in Clemson’s season opener against Auburn, but did just enough to secure a 19-13 win on the road against a tough SEC opponent in Auburn. Watson completed 19-of-34 pass attempts for 248 yards with a touchdown and an interception while carrying the ball 11 times for 21 yards. The numbers the Tigers’ offense put up in week one don’t stand out but they are still loaded on that side of the football and should produce a much better effort at home versus Troy this Saturday.
RB: Christian McCaffrey, Stanford
Heisman Trophy Odds: +600
McCaffrey picked up from where he left off a year ago when he broke Barry Sanders’ single-season yardage record. The Heisman trophy runner-up rushed for 126 yards and two touchdowns with an additional seven catches for 40 yards in a 26-13 win over Kansas State. It was an excellent start for the top running back on the Heisman board as he continued to set the pace for the Stanford offense.
QB: Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma
Heisman Trophy Odds: +800
Mayfield is the biggest loser from week one and his Heisman stock should certainly take a hit following a week one loss to Houston. Mayfield completed 24-of-33 passes for 323 yards and two touchdowns but the Sooners’ offense looked out of sync for most of the game and the fact that they couldn’t find their rhythm ended up costing them. The main issue here is that while Oklahoma’s overall image was damaged in the race for the College Football Playoff, many would say that Mayfield’s image in terms of the Heisman Trophy was hurt much more. The key here is that while Houston is a good team, they aren’t known as a strong defensive team. Their offense is what carries them. So to see Oklahoma struggle so much from the offensive side of things – especially down the stretch when they could barely get first downs – is a big concern.
Oklahoma will have the opportunity to bounce back at home against Louisiana-Monroe this week but there is no doubt Mayfield’s Heisman stock took a big hit. He’ll need multiple signature performances to get back in the conversation.
RB: Leonard Fournette, LSU
Heisman Trophy Odds: +800
You wouldn’t be able to tell that Fournette suffered an ankle injury in week one based on his final stat line in a 16-14 loss to Wisconsin. LSU’s star running back averaged 6.0 yards per carry while rushing for 138 yards with an additional three catches for 38 yards. Fournette was dealing with a nagging ankle injury that kept him from performing at his absolute best but head coach Les Miles said that the injury shouldn’t keep him out for an extended period of time. The Tigers need Fournette back at full strength as they look to bounce back at home this week versus Jacksonville State.
However, the bigger issue here is that Fournette’s odds simply don’t look so enticing. The LSU passing game showed no improvement in Week 1, which means that Fournette is going to face plenty of stacked boxes this season. It’s really hard to pile up the stats you need and for LSU to get the wins they’ll need for Fournette to be a contender when that’s the case.
QB: J.T. Barrett, Ohio State
Heisman Trophy Odds: +1600
Barrett boosted his Heisman stock more than any other player on this list last week when he set a Buckeyes’ record with seven touchdowns in a 77-10 win over Bowling Green. Barrett completed 21-of-31 pass attempts for 349 yards and six passing touchdowns while rushing for 30 yards and another score in the lopsided victory. Ohio State will face another relatively easy test this week against Tulsa and the expectation will be that Barrett will deliver more of the same following a strong performance in week one.
