Heisman Trophy Power Rankings 2023, Week 5: Caleb Williams' big game, Shedeur Sanders bounces back
- Caleb Williams throws six touchdowns vs. Colorado
- Shedeur Sanders picks apart USC's defense
- Michael Penix Jr. held without a touchdown for first time this season
By Scott Rogust
Last Week's Ranking: No. 5. Shedeur Sanders. Shedeur Sanders Heisman Week 5. . . Colorado QB. Shedeur Sanders. 514. 4.. player
One week ago, the Colorado Buffaloes had a rough outing against the Oregon Ducks. Quarterback Shedeur Sanders was unable to do much, given the ineffectiveness of the offensive line. But this week against the USC Trojans, Sanders rose to the occasion and nearly pulled off an upset.
The Buffaloes entered halftime with a 34-14 deficit, seemingly on the verge of another blowout loss. But, Colorado's offense capitalized on USC's suspect defense and pulled within a touchdown. Yet, an onside kick recovery by USC with Colorado having no timeouts remaining helped them escape Boulder with a 48-41 victory.
Sanders was incredible on Saturday, completing 30 passes for 371 yards and four touchdowns on 45 attempts while throwing one interception. Sanders also ran for 50 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries.
515. . . 3.. Last Week's Rankings: No. 3. player. Bo Nix Heisman Week 5. Oregon QB. Bo Nix. Bo Nix
Bo Nix and the Oregon offense last week were on fire against Colorado. With that, Nix combed up to the No. 3 spot in the Heisman Trophy power rankings. Nix had the opportunity to pull behind Caleb Williams and Michael Penix Jr. While there is still a pretty sizable gap between Nix and those two signal callers, Nix could be a finalist for the award if he keeps this up.
Nix and the Ducks suffered a scare early on, as they were trailing 6-0 in the starting moments of the second quarter. But the Ducks were able to wake up and eventually pull away from the Cardinals, scoring six unanswered touchdowns.
The senior quarterback completed 27-of-32 pass attempts for 290 yards and four touchdowns, while running for 18 yards on three carries.
Nix will now enter a bye week. On Oct. 14, Nix and the Ducks face Penix and the Washington Huskies.