Ranking the 10 best early Heisman Trophy candidates for 2023

Joe Milton is the next QB who could be Heisman-charged in Tennessee’s offense

Had Hendon Hooker not suffered a devastating season-ending knee injury near the end of Tennessee’s loss to South Carolina, you have to believe the Vols quarterback would’ve been in New York as a finalist, especially because he still finished fifth in voting.

With Hooker leaving after this year, though, it’s now next-man-up in Knoxville to lead Josh Heupel’s high-powered offense. And though it could be incoming 5-star freshman Nico Iamaleava that takes over, the safe bet is that former Michigan signal-caller Joe Milton follows a similar path to Hooker’s in finding a new life with the Vols.

Milton has a massive arm that could be lethal in the deep passing attack. The big key, however, will be if he can show he’s developed more touch with short and intermediate throws under Heupel’s coaching. If he does, he’ll put up big numbers and should lead Tennessee to quite a lot of success.

Michael Penix Jr. returning puts him in the Heisman Trophy conversation

What Michael Penix Jr. did this past season after transferring from Indiana to Washington was nothing short of remarkable and, frankly, was one of the most impressive seasons that not enough people were talking about. In his first season under Kalen DeBoer (also in his first year with the Huskies), Penix threw for 4,354 yards with 29 touchdowns to only seven picks while completing 66% of his throws and also rushing for four scores.

Now with a full year in DeBoer’s potent offense and with the head coach now having another offseason opportunity to get his guys into the building, we could see an even better performance from Penix in the 2023 season. He’s got a great arm to go with mobility and a strong system to work in. If the Huskies can make another Big 12 run, it’ll hard to deny Penix for a second time after he missed out on being a Heisman finalist in 2022.