The 5 Most Backed Heisman Trophy Candidates Entering Week 15
Week 15 of the college football season sees every conference championship up for grabs in the hopes of making the coveted College Football Playoff, which leads to a national championship. But the tall golden football-shaped trophy isn’t the only piece of hardware available. For the players, it’s all about college football’s second best prize—the Heisman Trophy.
As the regular season kind of wraps up, as from here on out after this week is college football’s postseason, there are surprisingly still many candidates in consideration for the Heisman. So, who are the five most prominent, and why would they take home this special prize?
1. Travis Hunter, WR/DB, Colorado
A spectacular dual-threat player on both sides of the ball, it’s no wonder why the junior Buffalo has led consideration for the Heisman most of this season. Hunter has 14 receiving touchdowns and almost 1200 receiving yards, well past even the best marks set by today’s NFL stars. Hunter also picks up roughly 13 yards on every catch he makes, so he definitely gets the Buffaloes’ offense down the field in a hurry. Hunter excels further on the defensive side of the ball as well, with 20 solo tackles, 11 opposing passes broken up, and four interceptions this season.
He hasn’t managed a pick-six since his freshman year at Jackson State, but given Hunter’s other prowess, that omission doesn’t matter one bit. Don’t be too surprised if Travis Hunter takes home the Heisman by a landslide, which would be Colorado’s 2nd ever after RB Rashaan Salaam won the award in 1994. History 30 years in the making? Given the latest odds, it’s looking overwhelmingly so. And Hunter’s QB Shadeur Sanders is also a Heisman favorite in his own right but doesn’t have the votes since we’d all be mad at the Buffs for having two trophy finalists.
2. Ashton Jeanty, RB, Boise State
There’s so much hype surrounding Colorado that the Heisman committee has almost forgotten about its other potential spoilers. Case in point with Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty, the junior RB who has almost 2300 total rushing yards. That’s 5th all-time for the single-season record, and Jeanty can absolutely get his chance to break it, even if Boise State has to settle for a bowl game. Jeanty also has an absurd 28 rushing touchdowns, an exact double of what he had in 2023, and he only managed a little over 1300 rushing yards despite still getting 220 touches. With 312 touches this season, this RB has just proven yet another reason why Boise State should’ve been a Power 5 team years ago.
3. Quinn Ewers, QB, Texas
Ewers is… a surprise on some Heisman lists, to put it mildly. He’s done alright, with 24 passing touchdowns and seven interceptions while amassing just over 2300 yards. The only thing(s) holding him back is that he missed time in the middle of the season with an oblique strain suffered in game three vs UTSA. Arch Manning filled in amicably for Ewers during that time, and since his return in game six against Oklahoma in the Red River Showdown (perfect timing), he’s had a pair of near 300 passing yards games.
That’s another thing holding him back, however- despite passing for 211 against Georgia, a game that probably should’ve been won by the Longhorns, Ewers is the sole reason Texas is ranked #2. In most other scenarios, such play by a QB and the rest of the team wouldn’t add up.
4. Dillon Gabriel, QB, Oregon
There’s good news and bad news for the QB leading the #1 team in the nation. Good news, Gabriel’s stats are very impressive – 24 touchdowns and six interceptions while racking up almost 3300 passing yards. Notice how his TD-INT ratio is similar to Ewers’, but Gabriel’s done way more with the rest of his offense. That honestly makes him a much stronger candidate than Ewers. Sure, Oregon has looked like a weakening team in the last couple or so weeks with some nail-biting wins, but don’t count out these web-footed warriors just yet. They are still unbeaten on paper, even if they don’t play nearly as well as you’d expect them to.
5. Jalen Milroe, QB, Alabama
Yes, Milroe and the rest of Alabama are having a not as ideal season in 2024 (to the delight of literally everyone else), but don’t completely ditch Milroe in the Heisman race just yet. Yeah, the 15-10 TD-INT ratio isn’t exactly Heisman-worthy, but then you look at the ground damage he can do. Milroe can run it in way more than he can pass it in. 20 rushing touchdowns for a QB is insane- that’s basically Jeanty’s territory, and he’s at least done more. I guess even with the lesser numbers, playing for Alabama gives you an automatic Heisman candidacy, doesn’t it?
There are a few other notables that don’t quite make the final 3 Heisman contenders. As mentioned earlier, Colorado QB Sheudeur Sanders has numbers as impressive as Gabriel’s, with almost 4000 passing yards and a 35-8 TD-INT ratio. That’s right- he’s out-performing the overwhelming favorite in his own teammate, no less! Maybe the committee should’ve double checked between Hunter and Sanders. The Heisman has become a sort of popularity contest, and you’d think the son of Deion “Prime Time” Sanders would get a shout-out.
Cam Ward from Miami and Jaxson Dart have also been in Heisman talks, but after their team’s struggles, said talks have all but died. Even Vanderbilt legend Diego Pavia, a former CC graduate and Alabama slayer, got some brief consideration before it evaporated! It just goes to show you how interestingly twisted the voting process for whoever gets college football’s 2nd biggest prize really is.
Related: Is the Heisman Trophy Just A Popularity Award Above All Else?
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