Jalen Hurts’ first game at Oklahoma raised the bar in the developing 2019 Heisman Trophy race as the quarterback followed the footsteps of his predecessors.
The last two Heisman Trophy winners, Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray, were Oklahoma Sooners quarterbacks. With both players now in the NFL, though, the question was if graduate transfer Jalen Hurts could replicate that kind of success. He answered that emphatically in his debut on Sunday night against the Houston Cougars.
Hurts looked the part of a Heisman contender against Houston, showcasing his talent as both a passer and runner as he diced up the Cougars defense. If anyone thought that the next quarterback in Lincoln Riley’s offense wouldn’t be making a case to earn some hardware, they are clearly sorely mistaken.
Elsewhere in college football, several others submitted strong opening efforts in their Heisman campaigns. Expected candidates like Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa, Wisconsin’s Jonathan Taylor and Texas’ Sam Ehlinger showed up well. Meanwhile, others made a name for themselves early on to earn a spot in the first Heisman rankings of the 2019 season.
Though there are only 10 players placed in these initial Heisman Trophy rankings after Week 1, some others do deserve mentioning. Washington State quarterback Anthony Gordon exploded for a five-touchdown debut while Brandon Wimbush impressed in his first outing for UCF.
Furthermore, Houston quarterback D’Eriq King may have been a part of a losing effort but with a strong statistical performance still, the path remains clear for the Cougars signal-caller to climb his way firmly into the race as the season wears on. As they say, there’s plenty of football left to play.
With all of that in mind, let’s get into the 2019 Heisman Trophy rankings after Week 1 of the college football season.