Week 7 saw some more stellar performances from the top Heisman contenders, particularly from the two Big 12 quarterbacks. Oh, and that Leonard Fournette guy looked pretty good, too. Let’s take a look at how the top five Heisman favorites fared this week, and how their performances changed their odds for the coveted trophy as the college football season heads into the halfway stage.
[sc:NCAA240banner ]It’s official: not even one of the best front sevens in college football can contain the force of nature that is Leonard Fournette. Fournette had perhaps his most impressive performance of this season – considering the quality of opposition – as he ran for 180 yards and scored two touchdowns in LSU’s 35-28 win over Florida.
While LSU’s no lock to come out of the SEC West, especially as it finishes off the season with four tricky division games, Fournette at -250 to win the Heisman should be the biggest lock in college football.
Seth Russell, Quarterback (Baylor)
The skill position players Baylor has at its disposal make it almost impossible for any quarterback not to succeed. This play from +2,500 Heisman long shot Corey Coleman is absolutely filthy. But Seth Russell should still get credit for hardly getting a foot wrong in his first year as a starter.
Speaking of feet, Russell used his to great effect against West Virginia, as he rushed for 180 yards and a touchdown, adding to his 380 passing yards and five passing touchdowns.
The redshirt junior is piling up some insane stats – he’s first in the nation in touchdowns (27), yards per attempt (11.7) and passer rating (209.99) – and is now the lowest-priced quarterback contender at +500. While the eye test says the trophy is still Fournette’s for sure, any slip-up from the sophomore could open the door for Russell, whose jaw-dropping numbers will be hard to ignore.
Trevone Boykin, Quarterback (TCU)
Speaking of numbers, TCU’s Trevone Boykin (+800) is right there with his Big 12 rival in terms of stat-stuffing. Boykin had 510 total yards and accounted for five touchdowns last week against Iowa State.
The TCU senior is second to Russell in the nation in touchdowns (27) and yards per attempt (10.2) and is third in passer rating (180.71), but he has the edge over Russell in terms of completion percentage (66.4 to 63.2) and yards per game (362.7 to 317.8).
Boykin also has the added dimension of his legs, which he has used to run for 440 yards and five touchdowns thus far this season. Just look at this game-changing run against a Kansas State team that was sensing an upset. If that doesn’t just shout “Heisman contender,” what does?
Derrick Henry, Running Back (Alabama)
How good has Derrick Henry been this season? He’s already set three new career highs in terms of rushing yards, and all three have come against ranked opponents. It could take a bit longer to hit his new benchmark, though, after he just torched Texas A&M for 236 yards and two touchdowns.
Henry won’t come close to matching the front-runners like Fournette and Russell in terms of sheer statistics. The best hope for his +1,200 odds to pay out is if he’s the centerpiece of a Bama offense that runs the table the rest of the way, which isn’t too farfetched when you think about it.
Ezekiel Elliott, Running Back (Ohio State)
Ezekiel Elliott continues to be excellent in conference play as he had 153 rushing yards and a touchdown in Ohio State’s 38-10 win over Penn State. Through three games against Big Ten opposition, Elliott is averaging 177 yards per game with six touchdowns.
Elliott’s still priced at +1,200, but his days of being the focal point of the Buckeyes offense could be numbered with the emergence of J.T. Barrett. Barrett is making a very strong case to replace Cardale Jones as the starting quarterback after compiling 164 yards rushing and five rushing touchdowns in his last two games.
Create a betting account now and cash in on some college football action with the help of these Heisman hopefuls.
