College football Week 12 players of the week: Gardner Minshew’s record night

Tua Tagovailoa and Kyler Murray have made headlines all year but it’s time to make the Heisman a three-man race with Gardner Minshew.

Move over Tua and Kyler. Gardner Minshew is one of college football’s best players.

Minshew, the nation’s leading passer threw for a school-record seven touchdowns in Washington State’s 69-28 win over Arizona. Five of them came in the first half when the No. 8 team in the College Football Playoff rankings scored 55 points to put away Arizona early. Minshew added a career-high 473 yards on 43 of 55 passing.

Tua Tagovailoa and Kyler Murray didn’t do anything to hurt their cause for the Heisman as both are represented on this list, as they have all season. With two weeks left, Murray and Tagovailoa might be neck-and-neck and what they do in the next two games will determine who wins the Heisman. Minshew should be assured of an invitation and can win a few more votes with a win next week in the Apple Cup vs. Washington and a Pac-12 Championship.

Week 12 was more than just Kyler, Tua and Minshew so let’s take a look at this week’s FanSided college football players of the week.

11. Nick Fitzgerald, QB, Mississippi State

• 9/14, 127 yards, 4 TD; 14 carries, 85 yards, 1 TD

He didn’t have a ton of yards, but if you account for five total touchdowns, you’re going to be one of the players of the week. Nick Fitzgerald goes as Mississippi State goes. In State’s four losses, he has thrown zero passing touchdowns. In State’s seven wins, he has 14 passing touchdowns, including back-to-back wins with four passing scores.

10. Tua Tagovailoa, QB, Alabama

• 18/22, 340 yards, 3 TD; 4 carries, 37 yards, 1 TD

Alabama and The Citadel were tied at 10 at halftime, which was the closest first half the Tide has played this year. Tua Tagovailoa and company broke it open in the third quarter en route to a 50-17 win. Tagovailoa threw his 31st touchdown on the year to give him the single-season record at Alabama as he moves one step closer toward becoming the first Alabama quarterback to win the Heisman.

9. J.K. Dobbins, RB, Ohio State

• 37 carries, 203 yards, 1 TD

With Mike Weber Jr. injured, Ohio State leaned heavily on Dobbins who carried the ball a career-high 37 times in the 52-51 overtime win over Maryland. He was an absolute workhorse on an afternoon the Buckeyes desperately needed him. As impressive as Dwayne Haskins was, Dobbins was just as important to the win, and he should be soaking in a cold tub for the next 48 hours to get his body right so he’s ready for Michigan.

8. Pooka Williams Jr, RB, Kansas

• 15 carries, 252 yards, 3 TD

The freshman out of Louisiana ran for a career-high 252 yards in the loss to Oklahoma. In fact, he ran for more yards than he totaled in his four previous games combined. Williams is one of the bright spots for this Kansas team that will reportedly be coached by Les Miles next year. Miles has traditionally had dominant running backs during his time at LSU and it looks like, in Williams, he’s got a special talent to work with.

7. Joshua Kelley, RB, UCLA

• 40 carries, 289 yards, 2 TD

UCLA got a big win over rival USC in Chip Kelly’s first game as part of the rivalry, but it was Joshua Kelley who stole the show. The UC Davis transfer ran a career-high 40 times for a career-high 289 times for two touchdowns. His 55-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter gave the Bruins a 28-27 lead they’d never relinquish.

6. Anthony McFarland, RB, Maryland

• 21 carries, 298 yards, 1 TD

Have a day, young Terp! The redshirt freshman running back ran for more than 200 yards in the first half against Ohio State to announce his presence to the nation. He finished two yards shy of 300 and the Terps may have some regrets not putting the ball in his hands on the decisive two-point attempt that resulted in an incomplete pass to lose the game. This was his second straight 200-yard game.

5. Taylor Cornelius, QB, Oklahoma State

• 30/46, 338 yards, 5 TD, 2 INT; 13 carries, 106 yards, 1 TD

Oklahoma State trailed 31-14 at halftime but Taylor Cornelius outdueled Will Grier as the Pokes completed the comeback over West Virginia to end the Mountaineers playoff hopes. Cornelius ran for a touchdown and threw a pair of scores in the fourth quarter, including the game-winner with 42 seconds left.

4. Jonathan Taylor, RB, Wisconsin

• 33 carries, 321 yards, 3 TD

Jonathan Taylor was my preseason Heisman winner. He’s not going to win, but he had a Heisman-caliber performance in Wisconsin’s comeback 3OT win vs. Purdue. The Badgers back matched his career-high for carries for 33 and set a new personal best with 321 yards. He had three touchdowns, including the 17-yard scamper in triple overtime to win the game.

3. Kyler Murray, QB, Oklahoma

• 21/32, 272 yards, 2 TD; 8 carries, 99 yards, 3 TD

If Tua is the Heisman favorite, Kyler is the most valuable. Take him off this team and Oklahoma has another loss or three and they definitely aren’t in first place in the Big 12 with a shot at the playoff. He’s basically what Michael Vick was in Madden but in real life. There is no defense in the Big 12, but there’s really no defense for Murray’s dual-threat ability. With West Virginia up next, you can expect Murray to put on a show to continue to boost his Heisman resume on Black Friday night.

2. Dwayne Haskins, QB, Ohio State

• 28/38, 405 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT; 13 carries, 59 yards, 3 TD

It wasn’t always pretty for Ohio State vs. Maryland but Dwayne Haskins had one of the best games of his season in the overtime win. The Buckeyes needed all six of his total touchdowns to overcome the 14-point second-half deficit to keep their Big Ten and Playoff hopes alive. Haskins may have also just got himself an invite to the Heisman.

1. Gardner Minshew, QB, Washington State

• 43/55, 473 yards, 7 TD

The nation’s leading passer threw for 311 yards and five touchdowns against Arizona to boost his case for an invite to the Heisman ceremony. Oh, and he did all of that in just the first half as the Cougars put up 55 points on Arizona before halftime. He didn’t let up in the second half, finishing with a school record seven touchdown passes. This performance all but clinches an invite to the Heisman ceremony.