The Heisman Trophy race this year has been reminiscent of a time when Peyton Manning played college football. One season, he was the shoe-in to win the award at the halfway point, kind of like Leonard Fournette was this season. Then they both stumbled, faded down the stretch and weren’t even in the conversation by the end of the season. It’s hard to believe that Fournette – after his incredible start to the season – is third in line in terms of winning the Heisman but that’s the reality. He’s now a massive underdog compared to another SEC running back:
Derrick Henry, Alabama Crimson Tide
Running Back
Henry capped off an incredible regular season with a career-best finish as he had a career-high 46 carries for a career-high 271 rushing yards and a touchdown in Alabama’s Iron Bowl win over Auburn. The 6’3’’, 242-pound bruiser set program records with 1,797 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns this season. The next stop will be an SEC Championship game showdown against Florida with a spot in this year’s College Football Playoff on the line. The fact that Henry is such a big favorite is testament to his dominance this season. He’s the top player on a team that is favored to win the National Championship, and that’s going to count for a lot. At this point, it would be a major surprise if another player won this year’s Heisman trophy award.
Deshaun Watson, Clemson Tigers
Quarterback
Watson threw for 279 yards and a touchdown in a 37-32 win over South Carolina that capped off Clemson’s perfect regular season. That assured them the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff for one more week heading in to their ACC Championship game showdown against North Carolina. Watson has thrown for 3,223 yards and 27 touchdowns compared to 10 interceptions and as the best player on the top-ranked team in the country he is definitely a lock as a Heisman trophy candidate. However, he’ll need Alabama to lose this week in the SEC Championship Game and for Henry to have a disastrous performance for him to get into the conversation.
Leonard Fournette, LSU Tigers
Running Back
The player that seemed like a lock to win the Heisman just a couple of weeks ago capped off an impressive season with 32 carries for 159 yards and a touchdown in a 19-7 win over Texas A&M this past weekend. While he struggled enough over the previous three weeks to take a major step back, Fournette will still finish with pretty amazing numbers. The sophomore running back rushed for 1,741 yards and 18 touchdowns. The challenge is that while his numbers look similar to Henry’s, Alabama is eyeing a national championship while LSU has fallen off the table. That’s weighing him down. While he couldn’t keep up his incredible pace out of the gate, all eyes will be on him next season to see what he has in store for an encore as a junior.
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Ezekiel Elliott, Ohio State Buckeyes
Running Back
Elliott’s Heisman stock took a massive hit when he was held to 33 yards on 12 carries in Ohio State’s lone loss to rival Michigan State two weeks ago. However, he finished strong with 214 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries in a 42-13 win over Michigan and certainly deserves to be in the mix. The junior running back finished the year with 1,672 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns.
Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma Sooners
Quarterback
Mayfield caps off a string of three star players listed at 14/1 to win this year’s Heisman trophy that likely didn’t do enough to beat out Henry but will still garner consideration. Mayfield threw for 3,389 yards and 35 touchdowns compared to five interceptions in order to lead the Sooners to a Big 12 title and likely a playoff spot. Similar to the odds, he needs Henry to struggle in a major way in the SEC Championship to warrant serious consideration. Still, Mayfield definitely deserves respect based on his incredible numbers as Oklahoma’s MVP this season.
