Heisman Trophy Power Rankings 2023: Which finalist wins it?

Michael Penix Jr. beat Bo Nix and the Oregon Ducks in the Pac-12 Championship Game to help them clinch the No. 2 seed in the College Football Playoff and face the No. 3 Texas Longhorns in the Sugar Bowl. The team would not be where it was without Penix, who showed toughenss throughout the year to pick up some huge wins, including against Utah, Oregon State, and Washington State.

So, why doesn't Penix get the No. 1 ranking on our list?

Penix started off the season lighting up stat sheets and looking like the early favorite. In the first month of the season, Penix threw for 1,999 yards, 16 touchdowns, and two interceptions while completing 74.7 percent of his passes. But since the Oregon game in October, Penix wasn't putting up similar performances and struggled against teams like Arizona State and Oregon State down the stretch.

To end the regular season, Penix leads the league in passing yards with 4,218. Additionally, Penix recorded 33 passing touchdowns and nine interceptions on a 65.9 completion percentage.

Would it be shocking if Penix were to win the Heisman on Saturday? Absolutely not. But there is one player who we believe deserves the honor.

Who would have thought that LSU senior quarterback Jayden Daniels would be a finalist to win the Heisman to start the year, especially compared to the preseason favorites? But what Daniels did this season was nothing short of remarkable.

After a rough season-opening game against the Florida State Seminoles, Daniels had since rebounded and put up more incredible showings by the week. Yes, he can run for a huge chunk of yardage every carry, but you can't take away what he did in the passing game. Let's not forget that he had some performances that looked like it came straight out of a video game.

Taking on Alabama, Daniels threw for 219 yards and two touchdowns while running for 163 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries. Against the Florida Gators, Daniels put up 372 passing yards, three passing touchdowns, 234 rushing yards, and two rushing touchdowns in a 52-35 win. Facing Georgia State, Daniels threw for 413 yards and six touchdowns while completing 25-of-30 pass attempts and picked up 96 yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries.

After 12 games, Daniels tied Bo Nix for the most passing touchdowns in a game this season with 40. Besides that, he also threw for 3,812 yards and just four interceptions on a 72.2 completion percentage. In the running game, Daniels picked up 1,134 yards and 10 touchdowns on 135 carries.

There's an argument that can be made that without Daniels, LSU would have finished the season with a worse record, and it's a valid one. Given how he has played, Daniels should be the favorite to hoist the Heisman Trophy this Saturday.