Heisman Buzz Entering The Final Weekend of September

Entering the final weekend of September, the Heisman race is still running at a moderate pace with a large amount of competitors bunched together. There are no breakaway sprinters. Yet.

So let’s take a dive into the thick of the pack and see who is trying to elbow their way into a bit of breathing room in front and what the national media is making of it all.

We’ll start with CBS Sports longtime national college football reporter Dennis Dodd, who shared his most recent top 6 Heisman rankings before joining the Official Heisman Trophy Podcast.

Dodd, who you can hear also talk about conference realignment and early CFP jockeying here, is fully on board with Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter.

The Buffalo star caught seven passes for 130 yards at receiver and made three solo tackles in a full day at cornerback, including a game-sealing, fumble-causing stop in overtime. Hunter played a combined 145 snaps and just about the only thing he did not do was catch CU’s Hail Mary that sent the game into OT in the eventual 38-31 win over Baylor.

Dodd is not alone in his appreciation for Hunter. 

Dodd’s CBS colleague, Aaron Taylor, said: “This ain’t even up for discussion. Travis Hunter is the best player in college football.” You can see his entire comments here.

Dodd had Miami QB Cam Ward second on his list and some of Taylor’s fellow CBS hosts had Ward atop their Heisman list.

Ward has the Hurricanes at 4-0 following a walloping of South Florida in which he passed for 404 yards and three TDs while rushing for another 43. He has passed for 1,439 yards and 14 touchdowns in four games.

Interestingly Dodd has Texas sophomore Arch Manning third on his list despite starting just his first game Saturday. Manning didn’t flex his arm too much as the Longhorns were in the midst of manhandling overmatched Louisiana-Monroe. But if season-opening starter and fellow Heisman contender Quin Ewers’ injury lingers, Manning could gain some Heisman momentum.

Dodd had Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart fourth. Like Ward, Dart is off to a tremendous statistical start and has the Rebels ranked in the top 5. He threw for 382 yards and four TDs in a win over Georgia Southern and already has 1,554 passing yards and 12 TDs.

Holding firm in many rankings is Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, who continues to produce prolific numbers. He had 127 yards on just 11 carries in the Broncos 56-14 win over Portland State, removed from the game early in the blowout.

Athlon Sports latest Heisman rankings had Ward atop their list while Hunter was second. And as they astutely point out, Hunter is racking up Heisman moments early, including the aforementioned forced fumble as well as this circus catch to beat North Dakota State in Week 1, one of three TDs he had.

Athlon had Dart third and Jeanty fourth and Alabama QB Jalen Milroe fifth. 

NBC’s Nicole Auerbach had Ward first as well with Hunter second, Dart third, Milroe fourth and Jeanty fifth.

It’s a bit surprising to see any unbeaten Alabama QB that low, but Milroe has been solid so far in the Kalen DeBoer era, helping the Tide to a 3-0 start with 590 passing yards and eight TDs with another 156 rushing yards and six scores.

Alabama faces Georgia in its SEC opener and will provide a great platform for Milroe. On the flip side, Bulldog QB Carson Beck also has his team unbeaten at 3-0 and has produced similar passing numbers. The winning QB in this matchup will have a solid Heisman resume bullet point to build on.

Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel, in many media members’ top 10, was also on a bye week and returns to play at Big Ten rival UCLA this week. Yes, that’s as weird to type as it is to read.

Tennessee QB Nico Iamaleava was certainly not a on a bye this week and helped lead the Vols to a big road win over SEC rival Oklahoma. (Again, weird, we know.) He passed for 194 yards and a score in the relatively low scoring 25-15 win. But if he keeps the Vols unbeaten, look for his Heisman hype to grow.

Robert Griffin III came out with his latest Heisman rankings this week and has Jeanty first with Hunter second and Ward third. Dart was fourth, Milroe fifth and Hunter’s QB Shedeur Sanders sixth.

What about some dark horse candidates?

Let’s start with Iowa running back Kaleb Johnson. The Hawkeyes haven’t exactly been an offensive juggernaut of late, but thanks in part to Johnson, they’ve been scoring early and often en route to a 3-1 start.

Johnson has gained 685 yards, averaging 8.4 yards per carry while scoring a whopping nine touchdowns with at least two rushing scores in each game. 

His nine ground TDs are tied with Jeanty for second-most in the NCAA, behind only fellow dark horse candidate Dylan Sampson of Tennessee. Sampson is also off to a great start and has rushed for 449 yards, averaging 6.5 yards per carry to go with seven receptions for 70 yards.