Heisman Trophy Power Rankings, Week 4: Ward shines again, Hunter comes up clutch

Week 4 of the college football season is in the books. There were a ton of top teams in the country on a bye, but there were still plenty of notable events to take place. No. 18 Michigan pulled off a huge comeback win against No. 11 USC in the latter school's Big Ten debut. No. 24 Illinois defeated No. 22 Nebraska in overtime to continue their undefeated season. No. 6 Tennessee beat the No. 15 Oklahoma Sooners.

With not many contending teams playing this week, that meant some Heisman Trophy contenders were out of action. But there was still plenty of candidates making a name for themselves iin hopes of taking home one of the most prestigious individual awards in college sports.

Without further ado, here are our Heisman Trophy rankings after Week 4.

2024 Heisman Trophy rankings after Week 4

If we were to go by the first half of the USC vs. Michigan game, Trojans quarterback Miller Moss may have been dropped from the rankings altogether. USC and Moss were unable to muster anything on offense, while Michigan's offense ran all over them.

But once the second half took place, the momentum shifted, thanks in part to Moss. Trailing 14-3, Moss threw a nine-yard touchdown pass to Duce Robinson. After Moss threw a pick six to Michigan star defensive back Will Johnson, he rebounded with a 16-yard touchdown pass to Jay Fair. Then, with seven minutes remaining in regulation, Moss threw a 24-yard touchdown to Ja'Kobi Lane to take a late 24-20 lead.

Unfortunately for Moss, USC's defense couldn't hold back senior running back Kalel Mullings at the end of the game, and lost 27-24.

Moss completed 28-of-51 pass attempts for 283 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception.

Sure, the Colorado Buffaloes may not make it out of the Big 12 and into the College Football Playoff, but there's no denying how big of an impact Travis Hunter has on their team.

The dual-threat player on offense and defense is a pure playmaker, and that was more evident on Saturday night when Colorado took on the Baylor Bears.

Colorado managed to force overtime after an incredible, Hail Mary touchdown pass by quarterback Shedeur Sanders. In overtime, Colorado took a 38-31 lead, and the defense just had to hold up and stop Baylor to get the victory. Baylor running back Dominic Richardson looked for the one-yard touchdown run, but Hunter dove in and knocked the football out of his hands. That resulted in Colorado securing the win.

Hunter finished the game with two tackles and one tackle for loss on defense, while catching seven passes from Sanders for 130 yards.

There's no denying that Hunter is one of the all-around most talented players in college football. He showed what he can do to NFL teams before the draft.

The best running back in college football is Boise State's Ashton Jeanty. The junior has been putting up video game numbers on a weekly basis. Through the first two games of the season, Jeanty ran for 459 yards and nine touchdowns on 45 carries.

After returning from a bye, Jeanty took on a winless Portland State Vikings team. The game went as expected for the Broncos, winning with relative ease. As for Jeanty, he had a quick night at the office, playing just one half of football before ultimately getting pulled. Boise State picked up the 56-14 victory.

Jeanty ran for 127 yards on 11 carries, averaging an absurd 11.5 yards per run against Portland State. Jeanty didn't reach the end zone in this contest. Even so, that shouldn't hurt his Heisman chances.

Carson Beck and the Georgia Bulldogs were on a bye this weekend, allowing them a chance to regroup after a narrow 13-12 win over the Kentucky Wildcats in Week 3.

The Bulldogs are still undefeated but fell down to the No. 2 spot in the AP Top 25 rankings. As for Beck, he is still considered one of the top quarterbacks in college football and one of the best prospects at his position in the 2025 draft class. Beck and the offense didn't light up the scoreboard against Kentucky, but they will have to when they take on the Alabama Crimson Tide next week.

This year, Beck has thrown for 680 yards, seven touchdowns, and zero interceptions while completing 56-of-82 pass attempts.

The biggest game of Week 4 was undoubtedly the No. 6 Tennessee Volunteers taking on the No. 15 Oklahoma Sooners. This game had it all. Two Top 25 teams in the country and Josh Heupel returning to Norman to take on his alma mater.

Once again, Tennessee leaves Saturday with a win, this time beating Oklahoma 25-15.

Quarterback Nico Iamaleava hasn't put up the same numbers as he did in the season-opener against Chattanooga. But, this is a team that relies on what has been a successful run game. Iamaleava did, however, help put the Volunteers ahead of the Sooners at the end of the first quarter, connecting with Dont'e Thornton Jr. on a 66-yard touchdown pass. That put Tennessee up 10-3, and they were never looked back.

Iamaleava threw for 194 yards and a touchdown while completing 13-of-21 throws.

Now, Tennessee enters a bye week, then face off against Arkansas upon their return.

Ole Miss is beating the teams they are supposed to beat decisively. While they haven't faced anyone in the SEC just yet, quarterback Jaxson Dart is playing at a high level.

This week, Dart and the Rebels faced off against a Georgia Southern Eagles team that were coming off two consecutive wins. To the surprise of no one, Ole Miss won, decisively.

Dart helped put up Ole Miss by the score of 24-3 at halftime behind three touchdown passes — a 35-yarder to Antwane Wells Jr., a 23-yarder to Jordan Watkins, and a 70-yarder to Tre Harris. From there, Ole Miss pulled away, leaving Week 4 with the 52-13 victory.

Overall, Dart threw for 382 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception while completing 22-of-31 pass attempts.

Next up for Dart is a Kentucky team that held the Georgia Bulldogs to 13 points last week. We'll see how Dart and the Rebels offense performs.

Jalen Milroe went through the ups and downs of replacing Bryce Young at Alabama last season, and has now come into his own under new head coach Kalen DeBoer. Milroe is a truly dynamic quarterback, able to make huge throws downfield along the sidelines and be able to fake out defenders and run for huge gains. Milroe is a huge reason why Alabama is 3-0 to start the season.

Through three games, Milroe threw for 590 yards, eight touchdowns, and zero interceptions while completing 35-of-52 pass attempts. Milroe also ran for 156 yards and six touchdowns on 36 carries.

Milroe will have the chance to do what he did in last season's SEC Championship Game, and that's beat Georgia.

The Oregon Ducks are on the bye week after beating the Oregon State Beavers 49-14. This was a team expected to be contenders for the CFP National Championship. While it hasn't been easy, the team is still undefeated. Quarterback Dillon Gabriel is a reason for that.

Gabriel transferred over from Oklahoma and effectively replaced Bo Nix, who is currently the starting quarterback for the Denver Broncos. Gabriel is arguably the most efficient quarterback in the entire nation currently, as evidenced by his 84.0 completion percentage, which is the best in all of college football. Plus, Gabriel can make plays on the run and open things up for Oregon's offense.

Through three games, Gabriel threw for 914 yards, six touchdowns, and zero interceptions, while running for two touchdowns on 18 carries.

Oregon returns next weekend to take on the UCLA Bruins.

Last week, Quinn Ewers left the Texas Longhorns' game early against the UTSA Roadrunners with what was determined to be an abdominal strain. This came after Ewers had a strong start to the game, throwing 14 completions for 185 yards and two touchdowns on 16 pass attempts.

In the days after the UTSA game, it was revealed that Ewers is considered week-to-week due to the abdominal injury, but it wasn't as serious as initially thought. But what was confirmed was that Arch Manning would get the start in Week 4 against UL Monroe Warhawks.

Speaking of, Manning threw for 258 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions while completing 15-of-29 pass attempts in the 51-3 victory.

We'll see if Ewers will head back into the starting lineup next week when they take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

What a year it has been for Cam Ward, who transferred over to Miami from Washington State. Last year, Miami had a bit of a revolving door at quarterback, mostly due to the injuries to Tyler Van Dyke. But through the first three weeks, Ward has been everything the Hurricanes were missing, and they are now the favorites to win the ACC.

In three games, Ward threw for 1,035 yards, 11 touchdowns, and one interception while completing 65-of-89 pass attempts. This weekend, Ward faced off against probably his toughest challenge so far — a USF Bulls team that put Alabama on upset alert just two weeks ago.

Ward helped give Miami a 14-9 lead on a six-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Horton. After two field goals by USF, Ward connected with Samuel Brown on a 76-yard touchdown to give Miami a lead they would not relinquish for the rest of the game.

Ward completed 24-of-34 pass attempts for 404 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception while rushing for 25 yards on four carries.

Next up for Ward and the Hurricanes are the Virginia Tech Hokies, who lost to the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in Week 4. If Ward continues to keep up at this rate, he should be a lock as a Heisman Trophy finalist.