Heisman Watch 2016: Week 1 players to watch
By Jack Crosby
With the college football season set to begin this coming weekend, it’s officially time to start the Heisman Watch
The 2016 college football season is just about here, and some of the best players in the country are ready to take the field in front of thousands of rabid fans to showcase their immense talent. While football is a team sport, we as fans love for nothing more than to watch incredible individual performances that make our jaws drop. With that being said, you know this means that it’s time for Heisman watch season to get underway.
When it comes to college football, there is no award more coveted than the Heisman. Hell, to a lot of people, there is no individual trophy in all of sports that carries more prestige than the bronze statue that’s handed out in New York each December.
Alabama running back Derrick Henry won the award last season, but he opted to head to the NFL, where he now resides in Tennessee with the Titans. So this season, we’re guaranteed a new winner of the Heisman Trophy, and the journey to crowning that new recipient starts this coming weekend with Week 1.
Greg Ward Jr. vs Oklahoma
The Houston Cougars under the direction of first-year head coach Tom Herman took the college football world by storm in 2015, and that was thanks in large part to the efforts of junior starting quarterback Greg Ward Jr. The good news for 2016 is that Ward is back to lead the offensive charge, and he’ll have a chance to make a huge statement in Week 1 of the season.
Ward will have the chance right off the bat to follow up on his tremendous Peach Bowl win over Florida State last season as he and the Cougars take on the Oklahoma Sooners at NRG Stadium in Houston. This game will really get the first full Saturday of college football season started off with a bang, and Ward has the national audience that he needs to show that he’s one of the best players in the country.
Oklahoma will be bringing in a stifling defense to Houston, so a huge performance from Ward will open the eyes of a lot of voters. Tearing apart a team that’s coming off a College Football Playoff appearance will be something that won’t slip the minds of the people running the Heisman voting show.
There’s no doubt that the senior who threw for over 2,000 yards and rushed for over 1,000 last year will have another stellar season, but if he can start that campaign by lighting up the Sooners –and maybe even getting the win– then he’ll have himself in good position for a December run at the statue.
Next: Dalvin Cook