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College Football 2018: Biggest question facing every Top 25 team in spring practice

By Nicholas Ian Allen

NEW ORLEANS, LA - JANUARY 01: Jalen Hurts (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - JANUARY 01: Jalen Hurts (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /
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SAN ANTONIO, TX – DECEMBER 28: Bryce Love #20 of the Stanford Cardinal rushes past Travin Howard #32 of the TCU Horned Frogs for a touchdown in the first quarter during the Valero Alamo Bowl at the Alamodome on December 28, 2017 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
SAN ANTONIO, TX – DECEMBER 28: Bryce Love #20 of the Stanford Cardinal rushes past Travin Howard #32 of the TCU Horned Frogs for a touchdown in the first quarter during the Valero Alamo Bowl at the Alamodome on December 28, 2017 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /

Will Stanford RB Bryce Love win the Heisman Trophy?

The Heisman Trophy is the top individual honor in college football, and though the award itself and its voters are highly flawed due to the fact defensive players go largely ignored, we talk about it constantly. Not long after the Way-Too-Early Top 25 rankings filter out through the industry, early Heisman lists follow. Oddsmakers have already released their first run, and last year’s runner-up, Stanford running back Bryce Love, is among the early favorites.

Love had a monster 2017 season, rushing for 2,118 yards and 19 touchdowns as a junior, despite missing one full game and parts of others with an ankle injury. The first-time starter didn’t allow a gimpy ankle to slow him down as he averaged an incredible 8.1 yards per carry over the course of the season and racked up 12 100-yard rushing performances in 13 games for the Cardinal.

The 5-foot-10, 196-pound North Carolina native is a pre-med major at Stanford, and his studies played a big role in Love opting to pass up the NFL Draft to return to Stanford for the 2018 campaign. The NFL’s loss is college football’s gain, and we’ll have another opportunity to watch one of the most explosive players in the country once more.

Love is the obvious headliner, and the Cardinal have a lot of question marks on defense, but head coach David Shaw has built Stanford into one of the premier programs in the country. The Cardinal have a lot of talent and play a tough-nosed style of football that helps them match up well with nearly any opponent. As a result, Stanford should be in the mix for the Pac-12 title once again, and Love is a legitimate Heisman candidate.

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