The Heisman Trophy chase is rounding into shape and Baker Mayfield is the clear favorite but what other players have a chance to pull off an upset should Mayfield falter down the stretch?
The Heisman Trophy will be awarded on Dec. 9 and barring something crazy happening in the next three weeks, Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield will be the winner. He’d join Sam Bradford and Jason White as Oklahoma quarterbacks to win the Trophy should that come to fruition. With only a few weeks remaining in the season, Mayfield has distanced himself from the field with strong performances in wins over Oklahoma State and last week vs. TCU.
Meanwhile, some of the other top candidates have had poor performances coupled with their teams losing. It’s not entirely over yet though, and players are still vying for an invitation to the Downtown Athletic Club to be a finalist, so let’s check in on those leading candidates and how they stack up entering Week 12.
Heisman Stock Report
5. Khalil Tate, Arizona, QB – Stock Up
If only Arizona started Khalil Tate from the beginning of the year instead of waiting until October. Tate is doing his best to make up for lost time, rushing for 200 yards per game in his six starts with 11 touchdowns and adds 8 more scores through the air. He also ranks third in the nation in yards from scrimmage despite playing in fewer games than the players ahead of him. He’s putting up Lamar Jackson numbers and will enter 2018 as one of the leading Heisman candidates.
4. Saquon Barkley, Penn State, RB – Stock Down
Saquon Barkley is running out of gas. If there was a Heisman vote at the end of October, the Penn State junior running back would have been the runaway favorite. Defenses have been able to key on him and limit his production in recent weeks. Barkley went from leading the nation in yards from scrimmage three weeks ago to 10th. He’s still going to earn an invitation to the ceremony, but he’s not going to win the Trophy. He’ll take the consolation prize of being a top-five pick in the NFL Draft.
3. Jonathan Taylor – Wisconsin, RB – Stock Up
Wisconsin’s true freshman running back continues to impress. Taylor was kept out of the end zone in the Badgers’ 38-14 win over Iowa, but added 157 more yards but now ranks third in the nation with 1,525 yards. He has a realistic shot at hitting 2,000 yards for an undefeated team, which is going to guarantee he’s a Heisman finalist.
2. Bryce Love – Stanford, RB – Stock Up
Bryce Love may have been written off a couple weeks ago when he was out with an injury and Stanford lost their third game of the year. But Love remains the nation’s leading rusher with 1,622 yards on nearly 9 yards per carry. His 166 yard, 3-touchdown effort against Washington led to the Stanford pulling off the upset to stay alive for the Pac-12 championship. He’s not going to win but looks poised to join former Stanford players, Christian McCaffrey, Andrew Luck and Toby Gerhart as runners-up for the Heisman.
1. Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma, QB – Runaway Favorite
The prohibitive favorite entering the weekend remains in the driver’s seat after throwing for 333 yards and 3 touchdowns in Oklahoma’s win over TCU. The win also propels the Sooners into the top four of the Playoff rankings and the rest of Mayfield’s competitors keep getting knocked. The Heisman Trophy is Mayfield’s to lose, and it doesn’t like he’s going to let up anytime soon as the Sooners are playing their best football of the season in the stretch run.