Heisman Trophy 2015: Power ranking the finalists

Power ranking the three finalists for the 2015 Heisman Trophy

The 2015 Heisman Trophy will be handed out on Saturday night in one of the most anticipated evenings of the college football season. All of the nation’s top players have been competing for the honor of even being considered as a Heisman candidate, but three individuals have emerged as the finalists for this year’s award: Stanford Cardinal running back Christian McCaffrey, Clemson Tigers quarterback Deshaun Watson, and Alabama Crimson Tide running back Derrick Henry.

This year’s race for the Heisman stands in stark contrast to recent years, in that the three-person field is headlined by two running backs. Heisman candidacy has been dominated by the quarterback position this century. In fact, the past five Heisman Trophy winners in Cam Newton (2010), Robert Griffin III (2011), Johnny Manziel (2012), Jameis Winston (2013), and Marcus Mariota (2014) have all been quarterbacks, and only one running back (Mark Ingram in 2009) has won the award since 2000.

However, this season has been dominated by running backs, even if the deck of players in the fold has been shuffled on numerous occasions. Early in the year, it seemed as if Georgia Bulldogs running back Nick Chubb and LSU Tigers running back Leonard Fournette were destined to lead a two-man race for the award. After a horrific injury ended Chubb’s season and Fournette trailed off after a demoralizing loss to Alabama, the race changed dramatically and backs such as Henry and McCaffrey came into the fold.

Over the past few weeks, these three individuals looked like the three sure-fire finalists, though there were other players, such as Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Baker Mayfield and Navy Midshipmen quarterback Keenan Reynolds, that seemed deserving of invitations to New York. The fact that those two phenomenal players weren’t invited, though, speaks to the quality of the finalists.

Even if the voting doesn’t fully reflect it when it’s revealed on Saturday night, all three of these players – McCaffrey, Watson, and Henry – have put together incredible seasons. After all, the quarterback of the unbeaten, No. 1 team in the country, the record-setting running back who racks up all-purpose yardage every time the football is in his hands, and one of the most dominant offensive workhorses in all of college football will be in New York for the presentation on Saturday.

But there must be a winner and these are how the finalists stack up against one another leading up to the Heisman cermony.

Next: No. 3 Deshaun Watson