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    Heisman Trophy Trust Announces The 4 Finalists

    Kevin PerryBy Updated:No Comments9 Mins Read
    Heisman Trophy
    PC: Heisman Trophy Trust

    Last night, the Heisman Trophy Trust announced the four finalists for this year’s award. All four of the nominees are quarterbacks with three of them heading to the college football playoff. Today we will be taking a look at each of them and and evaluate the seasons they each had.

    Stetson Bennett, Georgia, 300/1

    Starting with the eldest member of the bunch Stetson Bennett. Bennett has had an interesting career at Georgia. He walked on in 2017 and did not play so he transferred to Jones County Junior College before making his return to Georgia to become their backup. After JT Daniel (USC transfer) went down with an injury in the first game of the 2021 season, Bennett would step in and eventually lead the Bulldogs to their first national championship since 1980. He would finish the year throwing for 2,862 yards and 29 touchdowns to seven interceptions.

    As a senior this season, Bennett improved on his completion rate going from 64% to 68% while throwing for 3,425 yards and 20 touchdowns. He reduced his number of interceptions by one and led the Bulldogs to an SEC title win last Saturday over LSU 50-30. Georgia this season was an absolute powerhouse. The Bulldogs were second in the nation in average margin of victory winning by an average of 25 points per game.

     

    Bennetts best game of the season came all the way back in week 1 when Georgia absolutely dismantled Oregon. Bennett threw for a career high 368 yards en route to a 49-3 blowout starting his Heisman Trophy campaign.

     

    Bennett is for sure the surprise of the group but when you lead the number one team in the country to back to back college football playoffs it really even is not that shocking to consider. Bennett may not have the big arm or mobility the other finalists have but none of the others can call themselves national champions, let alone conference champions.

    Bennett more than likely will not win the Heisman Trophy but is the only one out of the finalists who is a winner. Bennett also already walked away with some hardware this year being named the 2022 Burlsworth Award Winner. The Burlsworth Award recognizes the best college football player that season who began their career as a walk on, but being named for the Heisman Trophy is an honor in itself. 

    Max Duggan, TCU, 200/1

    Max Duggan comes in as the only four year starter out of the finalists. Duggan Became the starter in week three of his freshman year and never turned the reins over. He has thrown for over 9,000 yards in his career as a Horned Frog while tossing 71 touchdowns to 24 interceptions. Each year he has seen steady growth in his number, including the covid shortened 2020 season in which he threw for 1,800 yards in ten games. 

    Duggan this season exploded under new head coach Sonny Dykes. Under Dykes air raid passing attack, Max Duggan was able to show off his elite dual threat quarterback skills. He threw for a career high 3,321 yards this season while throwing for 31 touchdowns this year, which was good for seventh in the country this year.

    Duggan led the Horned Frogs to the ninth highest points per game in the country and increased their scoring by an average of 11 points per game a season ago. Much of this has to do with Coach Dykes philosophy on offense but Duggan was the one leading the charge offensively.

    Duggan’s best statistical game came against Tarleton this season when he threw for 380 yards and five touchdowns but his two best games by far were the 29-28 win over Baylor and the Big 12 title game last weekend. Although TCU was unable to pull out the overtime victory over Kansas State, Duggan showed he had that dawg in him. 

     

    The King of Rizz in the Big 12 led a late charge to force overtime but ultimately came up short. Duggan didn’t have great stats overall in the conference title game but he showed his ability to lead and take control of a game which many quarterbacks in college do not possess.

     

    As I mentioned earlier, Duggan is an elite dual threat quarterback. Not in the way that Lamar Jackson is elite as a runner but Duggan can break off a run here and there. His best ability is his ability to extend play and being able to find his big receivers downfield. As we saw on Saturday, Duggan can run though. He ran for 110 yards on fifteen carries for a touchdown late in the game. This was Duggan’s second 100 yard rushing game this season and the fifth of his career, more than any other Heisman Trophy candidate. 

     

    Although Duggan is the third favorite at the moment to hoist the Heisman Trophy later this month, he did punch a ticket to the college football playoff as the third seed. 

    CJ Stroud, Ohio State, 500/1

    As the most bet player to win the Heisman Trophy last summer, CJ Stroud currently sits in the underdogs spot to win the award at 500/1. Stroud had an incredible season for the Buckeyes this year throwing for 3,340 yards and 37 touchdowns. Although he had a better season statistically last year, Stroud led the nation this year in passing touchdowns while having fewer passing attempts than 45 other quarterbacks in FBS this year. 

    Stroud is truly a gifted quarterback. He makes plays that not many other players in the country can make. When pairing his vision, arm strength, and pocket presence all together with the weapons he has at receiver it is no question why he led the NCAA in passing touchdowns. Some of the throws that he is able to make is quite impressive from a 21 year old.

     

    Stroud led the Buckeyes offense to number two in points per game at 44.5 while having the number seven total offense in the nation. The crazy thing about this is that Ohio State was ranked 92nd in average plays per game. This means that their offense was so effective that they averaged one point for every 1.5 plays they ran this year. If that is not efficient enough then I have no clue what is.

     

    Stroud this season was assisted by the running game so the pressure for him to throw as much as he did last year was unneeded. Ohio State steam rolled through their schedule until they fell flat on their face against Michigan. Stroud also missed Jaxon Smith-Njigba for most of the season, who was Stroud number one target a year ago and will most likely be the first or second receiver taken in the draft.

     

    Stroud will likely leave Ohio State after their playoff run and enter into the NFL draft as he could be the top player selected in the draft. He does leave Ohio State winless in his career against their arch rival Michigan (0-2) and could have an early exit in the playoff as they square off against undefeated Georgia.

     

    If Stroud chooses to enter the NFL draft he will leave Ohio State as one of the most dominant players in school history to not win the Heisman Trophy. Stroud, in just two seasons, threw for 7,775 yards and 81 touchdowns to 12 interceptions.

    Caleb Williams, USC, 1/25

    The odds on favorite to win the Heisman Trophy is Caleb Williams of USC. After transferring from Oklahoma after Lincoln Riley left to take the USC job, Williams did nothing but perform this season. Leading the Trojans to the Pac 12 title games last Friday and a CFP spot on the line, USC was unable to beat Utah. Although the USC Trojans did not make the college football playoff their season was a complete success.

     

    Riley showed he was able to create a team through the transfer portal with 19 starters being transfers this year. With Caleb William being one of those transfers, the team looked unstoppable at times due to Williams’ play.

    Williams threw for over three hundred yards seven times, over four hundred twice, while throwing multiple touchdowns in 11 games. William finished the season with 4,075 passing yards (4th in FBS) while being tied with CJ Stroud in touchdowns with 37. Williams did however only turn the ball over four times all year. The turnover differential I believe is why Williams will win the Heisman Trophy. USC also finished 4th in points per game with 41.1 and total offense. Four out of the five teams in the top 5 were from the Pac 12.

    Williams’ best game came against Arizona in a 45-37 victory on the road. He went 31-45 for 411 yards and five touchdowns. This was after USC lost on the road at Utah the week before by a point, which was when the Heisman Trophy buzz really started.

    William’s ability as a passer is special to watch. His arm strength is elite while his mind is sharp. This year he proved that he could completely take control of a team and bring them to victory by himself multiple times. After he took over for Spencer Rattler at OU last year, Williams struggled in some games as a freshman. Williams took full advantage of his new scenery by proving he is the best quarterback in college football. 

    If Caleb Williams’ name is not called for the Heisman Trophy then everyone should and will be shocked. I believe the only thing that could have hurt William is if enough voters waited until after the Pac 12 title game to vote which he did not have his best performance in, although he was battling a leg injury. Williams is not only the favorite to win this Heisman Trophy but surely will be the odd one to collect next year as well.  

     

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    Kevin Perry is a 2021 Graduate of Fitchburg State University. He has written for The Boston Globe, Patriot Ledger, Providence Journal, and Sentinel Enterprise. He has covered the Patriots for the past 3 seasons as well as NHL/ College Hockey and EUFA soccer.

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