Heisman rankings after Week 8: C.J. Stroud, TreVeyon Henderson both staking claims at Ohio State

Heisman rankings after Week 8: C.J. Stroud, TreVeyon Henderson both staking claim at Ohio State

COLUMBUS, OHIO - OCTOBER 09: C.J. Stroud #7 hands the ball off to TreVeyon Henderson #32 of the Ohio State Buckeyes during a game between the Maryland Terrapins and Ohio State Buckeyes at Ohio Stadium on October 09, 2021 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) /

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TreVeyon Henderson, Ohio State Buckeyes. Mandatory Credit: USA Today Sports/The Columbus Dispatch /

Ohio State stars C.J. Stroud and TreVeyon Henderson are both making their case in the Heisman Trophy conversation. But Kenny Pickett isn’t going away either.

Even though we’re nearing the end of October and through eight weeks of the college football season, the 2021 Heisman Trophy conversation remains up in the air. It’s actually in line with the landscape of the sport as a whole, though.

The one certainty this season has been the Georgia Bulldogs dominating. But given that Kirby Smart’s team doesn’t have a natural candidate in the Heisman race, that leaves us looking at a relative homogenous blend of teams and players that have their moments while also giving us all reasons to doubt them.

So as top-ranked teams continue to get upset each week, the Heisman rankings continue to get shuffled, this time with a pair of Ohio State teammates making a charge into and up the top five.

Heisman Trophy rankings after Week 8: No. 5-4

5. TreVeyon Henderson, RB, Ohio State

In the simplest terms, there isn’t a better runner in college football right now than TreVeyon Henderson. While the Buckeyes were blowing out Indiana, the freshman back didn’t get a ton of work but he made his touches count, taking nine carries for 81 yards and two touchdowns and with his one reception going for a 14-yard touchdown.

Averaging 8.8 yards per carry for the year, Henderson has 693 yards and 11 touchdowns despite not hitting 80 carries yet. He also has eight receptions for 168 yards and three more scores there. If he can keep this up, he’ll make a case for the second straight non-quarterback to win the award.

4. Matt Corral, QB, Ole Miss

Hats off to Matt Corral for suiting up for Ole Miss against LSU after the quarterback carried the ball for 30 times last week. And an even bigger nod of respect for playing well and getting the win. But the truth is it was the type of game to hurt him in the Heisman race as Corral didn’t have to do all that much.

The Ole Miss signal-caller had only 185 yards passing with two total touchdowns (one passing, one rushing) in the win as the Rebs could run the ball at will. That’s a winning formula for the matchup but not so much in the race for his award.

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