Lamar Jackson isn’t letting up on his hold of the top spot in the Heisman Trophy race and he continues to be the lead favorite, thanks to another impressive showing last Saturday. That’s not to say no one can pull the rug from underneath him, though. Let’s take a look at where Jackson and four other Heisman hopefuls stand as of the moment.
Don’t feel sorry for Mr. Jackson. Despite being on the losing end of a showdown with Deshaun Watson and Clemson two weeks back, the explosive Cardinals quarterback stabilized his status as the clear leader in the Heisman Trophy race with a strong outing in a 24-14 win over Duke.
While his 181 passing yards and 144 rushing in that game weren’t exactly the kind of video-game numbers he normally posts, he still looked like the quarterback who could defeat the other team almost singlehandedly when he scored two touchdowns along the way. Thus far on the season, Jackson has collected 2,638 total yards (1,806 passing, 832 rushing) to go with 30 touchdowns (15 passing, 15 passing).
A huge test awaits Watson and Clemson next in Tallahassee against a rejuvenated Florida State program. That’s after a bye week, though, so expect a well-rested Watson to come in fresh in the showdown with the ‘Noles. Clemson hasn’t tasted defeat yet this season and obviously that has a lot to do with Watson, who went supernova in a too-close-for-comfort 24-17 win over NC State, passing for a season-best 378 yards on 39-for-52 completions to go with a pair of touchdowns and an interception. He also rushed for 35 yards and a score.
Like Watson, Barrett is enjoying frontrunner status to win the Heisman Trophy partly because of his team being undefeated thus far this year. Barrett didn’t have eye-popping numbers by his standards in the Buckeyes’ 30-23 overtime win against Wisconsin last Saturday, passing for 226 yards and a touchdown with one interception, while rushing for 92 more and two scores, but his ability to play big in the clutch was on full display. His touchdown pass to Noah Brown sealed the win in Madison and helped secure his place as among the top quarterbacks in the nation.
If you feel like this update is a lot like the last one, it’s because these guys continue to be forces on the field, including Washington QB, Jake Browning. Browning went beastmode the last time out, passing for 304 yards and six touchdowns without an interception in a merciless 70-21 victory over Oregon. That strong performance definitely was a significant reason why Browning went from +1,000 last week to +750 today.
Like Browning, Peppers’ price shifted from +1,000 to +800 in just a week. Browning has played almost all sorts of position on the field and has largely been effective on any of those. He is a defensive menace, one who has 10 tackles, 2.5 sacks, six quarterback hurries. On top of those, he has recorded 98 rushing yards, three touchdowns thus far on the season. Needless to say, he is a major piece for a Michigan team that currently ranks third in the AP Poll.
