With the first week complete, all of college football’s top players have a game and stats under their belts this fall, and early September will be an opportunity to see who could win the Heisman Trophy in December.
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The experts at On3 know what it’s like to vote for the highest honor in sports, so they gathered earlier this season with a vote to best determine what the picture looks like after the opening games. Each voter ranked their top 10 players nationally, with a point value set for each position. For example, a first-place finish was worth 10 points, while a vote for tenth place was worth one point.
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Here is the On3 panel’s prediction for the Heisman Trophy battle as of September 2nd after Week 1.
Whether you knew it before this season or not, Cam Ward was one of the better quarterbacks in the country with what he did while State of Washington over the past two seasons. He proved this in a primetime spot with his performance in his debut with the Miami Hurricanes on Saturday.
In a 41-17 rivalry win in The Swamp over FloridaWard went 26-35 (74.3%) for 385 yards, three touchdowns and one interception overall. It was one of the best games of his college career to that point, as Ward and the ‘U proved they can be serious this season, especially since he was ranked No. 1 in this poll’s debut.
Most have already recognized how impressive Travis Hunter is as a two-way player for the Buffaloes, but he further underscored that fact with his performance in last week’s opener.
Hunter finished the game with seven catches for 132 yards and three scores, which was his career best as a receiver, while also making three tackles amid defensive coverage at corner in Colorado’s 31-26 win over State of North DakotaIf he can keep that up for the rest of his junior year, regardless of what the Buffs do the rest of the way, he’ll have a good shot at the Heisman Trophy in New York.
After his first two seasons in Tucson, McMillan was already one of the best receivers and better players in the entire sport. The start of his third season proved to be no different, with what he statistically produced in Arizona’s opening game against New Mexico.
McMillian caught 10 passes for 304 yards and scored four touchdowns in the Wildcats’ 61-39 victory, a record-setting performance for both the program and their new conference that was more than enough to put him so high in the polls after just the first week of fall.
Jeanty also put up massive numbers for his own claim to the Heisman in Boise State’s 56-45 victory over South Georgia.
Jeanty finished the game with 267 yards on 20 carries, good for 13.4 yards per touch, and scored six rushing touchdowns for the Broncos. That was a program record for yards and touchdowns, and the scores also set a Mountain West record.
Although there was a lot of talk about Jalen Milroe’s potential fit for the new offense in Tuscaloosa, he was still considered one of the best players and quarterbacks in the nation this season, including his numbers from the Crimson Tide’s 63-0 opening game over Western Kentucky.
Milroe was just 7-9 (77.8%) for 200 yards and three touchdowns, while also running 10 times for 79 yards and two more scores, enough for the next quarterback under Kalen DeBoer after finishing runner-up for the Heisman award last season. Washington’s Michael Penix Jr.
Lincoln Riley knows this about Heisman winners, having coached three of the last seven. Now, after one game, he might actually have the fourth of the last eight in the running, tied with Miller Moss.
Moss completed 27 of 36 (75%) passes for 378 yards and a touchdown and was the deciding factor in the Trojans’ 27-20 victory over LSU on Sunday in Las Vegas. After two career starts, he has proven that he is quite capable at quarterback and is the next likely contender for the award under Riley.
Jaxson Dart didn’t even need a full game to make it onto this list, after a 76-0 win for Ole Miss above Furman.
In the first half, Dart went 22-27 (81.5%) for 418 yards and five touchdowns and a run score, giving him a career-best performance in just 30 minutes of action, as he left the game with the Rebels leading the Paladins 52-0 in their opening game.
Carson Beck is entering his fifth season, but his first with real experience after last year. That was also evident in Georgia’s 34-3 victory in Atlanta on Saturday over Clemson.
Beck began the season 23-33 (69.7%) for 278 yards and two touchdowns against the Tigers, which was all the more impressive considering he was playing against one of the better defenses in the country and working with some newer weapons on offense for the Dawgs.
Nico Iamaleava has long been expected to be the Volunteers’ quarterback in Rocky Top. Tennessee got a glimpse at the end of last season and even more of it on Saturday in a 69-3 victory over Chattanooga.
Iamaleava only played in the first half against the Mocs, but was efficient in it, going 22-28 (78.6%) for 314 yards and three scores, making the redshirt freshman in Knoxville look like he’s never looked before as he begins his first full college season.
Quinn Ewers completes the top 10 as the fifth quarterback from the SEC. He does so after leading the Longhorns in their 52-0 victory over State of Colorado.
Ewers finished 20-27 (74.1%) for 260 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. That was enough for the fourth-year junior before his big-name replacement, Arch Manning, was allowed to finish the game on The 40 Acres.
Honorable Mentions (in order):
Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders
Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia
Michigan CB Will Johnson
Notre-Dame CB Benjamin Morrison
Penn State Quarterback Drew Allar
LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier
Nebraska Quarterback Dylan Raiola
It’s too early to start predicting the Heisman Trophy, as you only have one weekend’s worth of games to play, but some of these players will want to hold onto their spots in hopes of being one of the four finalists or the ultimate winner at the ceremony toward the end of the season.
