Heisman Trophy Power Rankings, Week 5: Milroe picks apart Georgia, Dart stumbles

Week 5 of the college football season was the most anticipated of the season so far. Come on, the headlining game was Alabama taking on Georgia in Bryant-Denny Stadium. Let's just say that the wee lived up to the hype, especially the aforementioned Crimson Tide vs. Bulldogs game that may be the best matchup of the season so far.

There were other notable moments in Week 5, such as No. 5 Ole Miss getting upset by Kentucky, No. 16 Notre Dame defeating No. 15 Lousiville, and Arch Manning leading No. 1 Texas to their first SEC victory.

During these games, we got a better idea of the contenders and pretenders in the Heisman Trophy race. The top five is set in stone, while the No. 6 through 10 spots are really up for grabs. But out of the contenders, who is the favorite to win the award in New York City later this year?

Let's take a look at the Week 5 edition of the Heisman Trophy power rankings.

2024 Heisman Trophy rankings after Week 5

This was the biggest game of the season so far for the Georgia Bulldogs and quarterback Carson Beck. After narrowly beating Kentucky 13-12, they had a bye week to get ready to take on Alabama and Jalen Milroe at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

It was a tale of two halves for Beck, who we were honestly going to bounce off of this list altogether at halftime to be honest. Beck and the Bulldogs looked shaken through the first two quarters, as Alabama bulldozed their way to an early 30-7 lead. It got to the point where Beck looked so bad, the questions about his NFL Draft stock loomed.

But then, the second half happened, where Beck turned things around, put aside his two first-half interceptions, and led the Bulldogs on a 27-3 run. Beck threw three touchdown passes in the second half, including a go-ahead, 67-yarder to Dillon Bell to give Georgia a late 34-33 lead with over two minutes left in regulation.

Unfortunately for Beck, Alabama took a 41-33 lead 13 seconds later. Beck threw an interception in the end zone to officially clinch the loss for Georgia.

Beck threw for 439 yards, three touchdowns, and three interceptions while completing 27-of-50 pass attempts.

The first half was one to forget for Beck, but the second half showed why he is considered a top prospect in the 2025 NFL Draft class. There's still a lot of season left for Georgia and Beck to put this loss behind them, in hopes of making the College Football Playoff.

Quinn Ewers hasn't played a game for Texas since leaving the team's Week 3 matchup against UTSA with an abdominal strain. With that, it has been Arch Manning starting in his place.

Ewers' injury was considered a week-to-week thing, and after the UL Monroe game, there were questions about whether he will return to the starting lineup in Week 5 against Mississippi State. Head coach Steve Sarkisian took the decision all the way down to game day, where he decided to give Manning another start. With that, Ewers would sit, have the bye next week to recover, then return in Week 7 in a big matchup against Oklahoma.

Ewers has been one of the better quarterbacks in the nation before his injury. We'll see how he plays once he returns.

The USC Trojans officially hosted their first Big Ten game at the Los Angeles Coliseum. One week after falling to the Michigan Wolverines in the Big House, the Trojans faced off against the Wisconsin Badgers.

In the first half, it looked like it was going to be another difficult week for USC. Much like they last week, the Trojans trailed at halftime, this time down 21-10. But once again, with two quarters left to play, quarterback Miller Moss stepped up and this time, led USC to their first Big Ten victory.

Moss led the Trojans to three consecutive scoring drives after a six-yard touchdown pass to Ja'Kobi Lane, an eight-yarder to Duce Robinson, and a seven-yard touchdown run, putting them up 31-21. It was a lead USC would not surrender, and they picked up the 38-21 victory.

Moss threw for 308 yards, there touchdowns, and one interception while completing 30-of-45 pas attempts. Additionally, Moss ran for 17 yards and a touchdown on five carries.

The Ole Miss Rebels had quite an easy path to the College Football Playoff considering their schedule. They defeated their opponents with relative ease, as they were expected to. But their first true test was against the 2-2 Kentuck Wildcats. While yes, the team was at .500, but they still held the Georgia Bulldogs to just 13 points earlier this year.

Jaxson Dart had his best chance to increase his Heisman Trophy and NFL Draft stock this weekend against Kentucky. Defeating Kentucky, a team that pushed Georgia to the brink, would be quite the resume booster.

Instead, Dart and Ole Miss' No. 1 ranked offense in the country lost 20-17. This was a shock, considering the Rebels cruised to an early 7-0 lead on the opening drive. But then, the Wildcats defense clamped down and made the day miserable for Dart.

But at the end of the game, Dart was able to get the team in scoring range when trailing 20-17. Head coach Lane Kiffin opted to go for a 48-yard field goal attempt by Caden Davis. The attempt went wide left, and Kentucky won 20-17.

Dart was sacked four times by Kentuckys' defense. He completed 18-of-27 pass attempts for 261 yards and a touchdown.

This game truly shows that Kentucky's defense is the real deal, considering how they limited the nation's top offense. For Dart, he just couldn't do enough to keep Ole Miss' undefeated season alive.

The Tennessee Volunteers were on the bye this week after having a convincing win over the Oklahoma Sooners. When looking at the success of Tennessee, freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava has played a role in it.

Last year, Iamaleava sat behind Joe Milton III. This year, head coach Josh Heupel gave him the opportunity to start for the full season. While the freshman hasn't been lighting up the stat sheets with touchdowns, he is playing at a high enough level to keep Tennessee undefeated in the tough SEC.

This season, Iamaleava recorded 892 passing yards, seven passing touchdowns, and two interceptions on a 69.3 completion percentage.

Tennessee and Iamaleava return next week to take on the Arkansas Razorbacks.

The Oregon Ducks returned from their bye week, looking to continue their quest as one of the favorites to make the College Football Playoff and win the National Championship. This week, the Ducks competed in their first Big Ten matchup and it was, ironically, against the UCLA Bruins, their former Pac-12 counterparts.

Considering Oregon was ranked eighth in the nation and UCLA had a 1-2 record, the game went as expected. Quarterback Dillon Gabriel once again had an efficient showing under center.

Gabriel led the Ducks to an early 28-3 lead in the first half, where he threw two touchdown passes to receiver Tez Johnson (12-yards and 52-yards). But just before halftime, Gabriel threw an interception to former Duck and current UCLA defensive back Bryan Addison, who returned it 94 yards for a touchdown.

Returning from the second half, it was still all Oregon, with Gabriel connecting one more time with Johnson for their third touchdown of the game, and thus clinched the 34-13 victory.

Gabriel threw for 280 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception while completing 31-of-41 pass attempts. Gabriel also ran for 23 yards on three carries. An efficient day for Gabriel, but there were four players this week who made more of an impact.

It's time to start paying attention to Boise State football games. Not only are they ranked 25th in the nation, but they have one of the most exciting players in college in running back Ashton Jeanty. Entering Week 5, Jeanty already had 586 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns on 56 carries. That's all in just three games played.

In Week 5, Jeanty and Boise State took on the undefeated Washington State Cougars. Even facing a 4-0 football team, Jeanty still ran through anyone who stood in his way of the end zone. Look no further than his opening drive touchdown, in which he ran through multiple defenders and broke numerous tackle attempts on a 64 yard dash to the end zone.

Then, in the fourth quarter, Jeanty did the same thing on an outside run for a 59-yard touchdown to put Boise State up 31-17. Simply put, he is so elusive and hard to bring down to the turf. Jeanty is almost an automatic touchdown every time he takes the handoff from Maddux Madsen.

Jeanty finished the game running for 259 yards and four touchdowns on 26 carries. He is now the only FBS player to have multiple games with four rushing touchdowns this season, according to SportsCenter.

Seriously, watch some Boise State games this year. And NFL teams who need a running back, Jeanty is the player you should target.

Travis Hunter was hyped up for quite some time, and he has not only lived up to it, but he is, somehow, exceeding it by leaps and bounds. Hunter has the elite skillset as both a wide receiver and a defensive back. Based on his play, he should already get an advanced invite to the Heisman Trophy ceremony later this year.

After playing hero for Colorado last week, he had to face off against the undefeated UCF Knights on Saturday. Once again, Hunter was a force on both sides of the line of scrimmage.

In the middle of the third quarter, Hunter recognized where a pass from quarterback KJ Jefferson, immediately put on the proverbial jets, and dove forward to pick it off, intended for Evan Morris. Words don't do it justice, take a look for yourselves.

It was only fitting that Hunter hit the Heisman pose after the play. It was a superhero-type play for Hunter, and why he has become one of the popular picks to win the Heisman.

Hunter logged two total tackles, one pass defended, and one interception on defense, while catching nine passes for 89 yards and a touchdown in the 48-12 win.

What a game for Jalen Milroe, who solidified himself as one of the three undisputed favorites to win the Heisman Trophy at season's end.

Alabama and Georgia got off to the best start any Crimson Tide fan could have hoped for. Milroe was a matchup nightmare for the Bulldogs defense, as they were unable to stop him through the air and on the run.

Milroe scored three of Georgia's four first-half touchdowns — a seven-yard touchdown run, a 16-yard pass to Jam Miller, and 36-yard dash. Seriously, it's like Georgia's defense was playing in slow motion, while Milroe squeezing through openings and finding the finding his target downfield.

Yes, Milroe and the Crimson Tide offense sputtered in the second half, but he helped ensure Georgia's lead would last just 13 seconds. Milroe connected with 17-year-old freshman wideout Ryan Williams, who made an incredible catch-and-run for a 75-yard touchdown.

Milroe finished the game throwing for 374 yards, two touchdowns and one interception while completing 27-of-33 pass attempts, and running for 117 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries.

Milroe is thriving in his second year as the starting quarterback, his first under new head coach Kalen DeBoer. Not only has Milroe increased his Heisman Trophy chances, but also his NFL Draft stock. Seriously, Milroe should have opened a lot of eyes in the NFL with his performance against the second-ranked team in the country.

The Miami Hurricanes played on Friday night, and it was an eventful game to say the least. Their game against the Virginia Tech Hokies was by far the toughest matchup of the season for quarterback Cam Ward. Yet, he still was able to continue Miami's undefeated season.

Ward showed off Heisman-caliber plays on Friday. Look no further than his awareness on a play that would set up Miami's game-winning touchdown. Ward sensed the pocket collapsing and that getting sacked was imminent, so he was able to spot Riley Williams, pitched him the football, who ran 26 yards to set Miami up at the one-yard line.

One play later, Ward connected with Isaiah Horton for a one-yard touchdown, which would evntually clinch the win. Well, after a failed Hail Mary attempt by Virginia Tech fell incomplete.

Ward completed 24-of-38 pass attempts for 343 yards, four touchdowns, and two interceptions. Yes, the two picks do stand out, but Ward's play showed that he's going to receive an invitation to New York City as a Heisman finalist.