5 best Heisman Trophy candidates in the SEC for the 2024 season

This is shaping up to be one of the best years of SEC football in recent memory. With Oklahoma and Texas joining the league, the SEC is gaining two traditional powers that should be able to hold their own right away. And with the College Football Playoff expanding from four to 12 teams this year, that means we could be looking at upwards of six SEC teams making the 12-team field, four at minimum.

Because more and more SEC teams will be playing in more and more games with greater and greater stakes, it'll just mean more, dude. Everybody knows that. But what I don't think most people even realize is that we could be having multiple SEC quarterbacks being invited to the Heisman Trophy ceremony in early December. It can be between three and five college stars in attendance for it.

Last year's Heisman winner was a former SEC star in LSU Tigers quarterback Jayden Daniels. In fact, four of the last five Heisman winners have hailed from the SEC. Daniels, 2021 winner Bryce Young, 2020 winner DeVonta Smith and 2019 winner Joe Burrow. Two played at Alabama (Smith and Young) and two played at LSU (Burrow and Daniels). The other winner was Caleb Williams out of USC in 2022.

If we had to pick five favorites to keep the Heisman Trophy in SEC country in 2024, here are my guys.

5. Ole Miss Rebels QB Jaxson Dart

This should be one of the best seasons in Ole Miss football history, arguably ever and definitely in most recent history. The 2024 college football season should be viewed as College Football Playoff or bust for Lane Kiffin's Rebels. He faces a ton of pressure. While he may not face as much as his head coach, this is a critical year for how we view quarterback Jaxson Dart in the sport's pantheon.

Entering this season, Dart is a former transfer portal star coming over from USC. He has been as advertised since coming over to Oxford to run Kiffin's offense. Dart will put up a ton of stats running this scheme. If Ole Miss is around a 10-2 team, Dart will have an outside shot at New York. If the Rebels are better than that, he will be there. The problem is I don't know if I trust him or Kiffin yet...

We would be living in a simulation if the first Ole Miss Heisman winner was a Dart, and not a Manning.

4. LSU Tigers QB Garrett Nussmeier

Call me crazy, but there is so much to like about Garrett Nussmeier taking over the reins for Jayden Daniels in Baton Rouge. No, I don't think he is going to be a top-two pick like Daniels just was to the Washington Commanders. However, there is an NFL future for Nussmeier because, man, can this guy spin it. Factor in how respected his father is as an offensive mind and he will be given the opportunity.

This is also Brian Kelly's proverbial pop year. Every third season he leads a program, his team does extraordinary things. With LSU having a better defense this year, it might give Nussmeier the confidence to go out swinging. LSU is a borderline playoff team in my eyes, so it wouldn't shock me if Nussmeier got an invitation to come to New York City should the LSU Tigers win the Magnolia Bowl.

Mike Denbrock might be gone, but Nussmeier is so ready for this. He is not going to let us down.

3. Texas Longhorns QB Quinn Ewers

For as fun as it would be to see either Jaxson Dart or Garrett Nussmeier get to New York, neither is as likely as the next guy up on this list. That would be Texas Longhorns starting quarterback Quinn Ewers. He has the best arm in the game. Now in his fourth college season out of Southlake Carroll, Ewers is poised to be the best quarterback to play in Austin since Vince Young. Yes, he is that good.

While I suspect that Texas will have a phenomenal season under Steve Sarkisian, I do have two slivers of apprehension about Ewers' chances of getting to New York. That would be injuries and the fact that Arch Manning is breathing down his back already. Ewers is the better player over Manning now, but injury concerns are why Ewers returned to Austin for his senior season. Ewers is so very injury-prone.

If he puts it all together, Ewers can win the Heisman, the national championship and be a No. 1 pick.

2. Georgia Bulldogs QB Carson Beck

My Dawg! Carson Beck was absolutely going to make this list. He is the best quarterback talent to play for my Georgia Bulldogs since Matthew Stafford, who went No. 1 overall to the Detroit Lions way back in 2009. Beck has the talent of Stafford, the accuracy of Aaron Murray and the cool under pressure nature that made Stetson Bennett IV a college football legend. Yes, Beck could be special.

Although Georgia is my pick to win its third national championship in four years, Beck is not my favorite to get to New York. This has everything to do with Georgia being ahead of most teams it plays, meaning guys like Gunner Stockton and Jaden Rashada will be getting some run. Also, Beck will not be given the benefit of the doubt if he has a bad game for his standards. He must dominate.

Right now, I have Beck going out as a national champ en route to the No. 1 pick, but not the Heisman.

1. Alabama Crimson Tide QB Jalen Milroe

I am willing to die on this hill. Jalen Milroe is my pick to win the 2024 Heisman Trophy. The second-year starting quarterback for Alabama is not going to lead this team to a national title. If the Crimson Tide go something like 10-2, they will make the playoff. Even if they were to go something like 9-3, if Milroe is the reason why Alabama is winning those games, he is going to win the Heisman going away.

It is the same type of recipe that saw Robert Griffin III win the Heisman in 2011, Lamar Jackson in 2016 and Jayden Daniels last year. With the amount of talent Alabama lost, as well as rampant coaching attrition, Milroe will get the benefit of the doubt if he balls out. He is about to play for the same head coach who believed so much in Michael Penix Jr. Kalen DeBoer is inheriting such a great team leader.

If Milroe takes the next step forward in his evolving game, he will be one five first-round quarterbacks.