7 Players Who've Emerged As Heisman Trophy Candidate So Far

We’re officially one month into the college football season, and it’s become pretty clear which teams make up the cream of the crop—as well as the players who’ve set themselves apart in the hunt for the Heisman Trophy.

There’s still plenty of football left to be played before the Heisman Trophy is presented in Decemeber following the conclusion of the regular season, but we already have a pretty clear picture when it comes to the guys who are going to be contending for college football’s ultimate individual prize.

There’s a chance some other names emerge as front-runners over the next couple of months, but they’ll have their work cut out for them based on how these guys have looked so far.

Jalen Milroe—Alabama

Plenty of people wondered how Alabama would fare in the Post-Nick Saban Era, and the answer appears to be “very well” now that they’re the No. 1 team in the country after beating Georgia.

The Crimson Tide can credit a good chunk of that success to Jalen Milroe, who is currently the odds-on favorite to win the Heisman after racking up 964 yards in the air while throwing ten touchdowns and just a single interception this season.

The dual-threat QB has also racked up 273 rushing yards while punching the ball into the end zone eight times, and he’s one of the biggest reasons Alabama has remained a force to be reckoned with.

Cam Ward—Miami

Miami looks like the team to beat in the ACC, and the Hurricanes have reaped the benefits of Cam Ward’s skills at quarterback after he transferred from Washington State following two seasons with the Cougars.

Ward is second only to Jaxson Dart when it comes to the most passing yards in the country with 1,782, but no one is able to match the 18 touchdowns he’s thrown while helping The U get off to a 5-0 start.

Travis Hunter—Colorado

I may not be able to cast a ballot for the Heisman, but if I was a voter, I’d probably be giving it to Travis Hunter on sheer principle.

Colorado’s two-way phenom is easily the most impressive player college football has seen in a long time, and he obviously thinks he deserves the trophy when you consider he struck the signature pose after snagging his second interception of the season against UCF.

Hunter also has 561 receiving yards and six TDs, and if he keeps doing what he’s done so far this year, he may end up with the iconic piece of hardware.

Ashton Jeanty—Boise State

The nature of the Heisman Trophy means QBs are going to be disproportionately represented on this list, but Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty is doing everything in his power to become the first guy at his position to win it since Derrick Henry in 2015.

Jeanty currently leads the country in rushing with 845 yards (Iowa’s Kaleb Johnson is in a distant second with 685) and has averaged more than 200 yards per game and an absurd 10.3 per carry while racking up 13 TDs (the most in the country by three).

It’s a bit hard to imagine the pace is sustainable, but if he doesn’t drop off, he has a very real shot at winning.

Dillon Gabriel—Oregon

Dillon Gabriel has some work to do if he wants to catch up to Milroe and Ward, but the Oklahoma transfer has more than held his own during his first season at Oregon while throwing for 1,192 yards and tossing nine TDs and a lone interception.

He’s helped the Ducks get off to a 4-0 start, but he’ll probably need to kick things into high gear in the second half of the year if he wants to be a true Heisman contender.

Nico Iamaleava—Tennessee

There was a ton of hype swirling around Nico Iamaleava ahead of his first year as a starter at Tennessee, and he’s managed to live up to it so far.

The redshirt freshman has supplemented the 892 yards and seven touchdowns he’s recorded in the air with 117 rushing yards and a score on the ground, and while he may not end up winning the Heisman this year, he’ll likely be in the running for the rest of his college career.

Jaxson Dart—Ole Miss

Jaxson Dart’s Heisman hopes probably took a hit after Ole Miss was stunned by a Kentucky team that entered last week’s game as 15.5-point underdogs.

However, as I previously noted, he leads the country in passing yards with 1,815 yards along with 13 touchdowns in the air and three more on the ground.

A team’s performance shouldn’t necessarily be a huge factor when it comes to who deserves the Heisman Trophy given the nature of the award, but he’ll likely be fighting an uphill battle against other QBs on squads with better records based on how things are currently looking.