The college football season is already into the conference
season, which can only mean one thing – it is time to start announcing our
Heisman watch lists.
Sure, it may seem a little early, but considering that last
year’s winner – Lamar Jackson of Louisville – pretty much won it based on the
first half of the season, I think we can get off to a quick start.
I’m sure many of you will think I am going to go the homer
route with my frontrunner but honestly the best player I’ve seen thus far has
been Penn State’s Saquon Barkley. I put him as the top guy reluctantly,
however, because he has surpassed 100 yards rushing only twice in his five
games. He does have 27 catches and two touchdowns receiving along with a
kickoff return touchdown. But Penn State has yet to play anyone and it is
likely those numbers won’t look as great in a few weeks.
This is one of those eye test decisions (he looks great but
his numbers could look better). Barkley’s highlight reel is way more impressive
than anyone else’s thus far, but his numbers have to improve. Plus, I’m still
not giving a free pass to anyone who made a decision to attend the school Jerry
Sandusky made infamous for all the wrong reasons.
Yes, Baker Mayfield is the number two guy on my list. He
averages over 300 yards passing a game and has 13 touchdowns versus zero
turnovers. He has been a leader on a top five team and he has a chance to
really improve his numbers in a league that isn’t well known for defense. Yes,
I’m an OU guy but he really is a Heisman contender, whether you hear it from me
or from someone else.
Number three for me is a guy most of you probably haven’t
heard about but soon will. Tailback Bryce Love of Stanford is just another in a
long line of superstar ball carriers from this West Coast university. With an
average of over 200 yards a game to go with his eight touchdowns, Love is
definitely the feature guy on this team. Hurting his chances, however, are his
team’s 3-2 record (including a loss to San Diego State) and the fact that he
typically plays when many people have gone to bed.
My fourth guy is last year’s winner – Jackson. However, I am
going to have a tough time removing the memory of him chasing stats against
backup Clemson players in a blowout loss a couple of weeks ago. Jackson is a
multi-talented player with 13 passing touchdowns and five rushing touchdowns,
but he was a letdown the one time he had the stage. Plus, it is important to
note that he was not a Heisman player down the stretch last year. We’ll be
watching him carefully.
I like Oklahoma State signal caller Mason Rudolph as my
fifth guy. Yes, they lost a home game against TCU. Yes, they played a miserable
non-conference schedule. But, his numbers have been good (over 300 yards in
every game and six rushing touchdowns to go with his 16 passing touchdowns) and
he will get to play against some questionable defenses during conference play.
If OSU only has a couple of losses at the end of the season, everyone will
forget about that home loss to the Horned Frogs.
Among the guys who aren’t likely to make the list are
favorites Sam Darnell and Josh Rosen. Darnell, the quarterback at USC, has
looked awful. Let the Jets or whoever finishes with the worst record take him
with the first pick in the NFL draft – he is a high risk, high reward guy who
is not having a good season. As for Rosen, the numbers look good but the loss
to Memphis does not. Sorry, bro, don’t “at” me.
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