The Heisman committee has officially announced the five finalists for this year’s Heisman Trophy award. Last year, only three finalists were invited to New York, in a very talented class. This year, we can expect a much closer race, one that was close enough for the committee to invite five to New York for the presentation. With only four days remaining until the announcement is made on ESPN, let’s rank all the finalists from 1-5, in order of likeliness of winning.
Lamar Jackson, QB, Louisville
Even with Deshaun Watson going off in his last few games, I still can’t think of anyone more deserving of the award this year. Jackson dominated defenses, even top defenses like Clemson and Florida State, all season. Jackson finished his regular season with 3390 passing yards, 30 passing touchdowns, 1538 rushing yards and 21 rushing touchdowns. The craziest part is that Jackson is ranked eighth in the country in rushing yards among all players, not just quarterbacks. He is the only QB in the top 10, and one of two in the top 25 in rushing yards. As a passer, Jackson currently sits at 12th on the passing yard leaderboard, 10 spots in front of early-round draft prospect Brad Kaaya of Miami. Top 15 in two separate stat categories. My question for the doubters is, how could you not vote for Jackson?
Odds: 2-1
Deshaun Watson, QB, Clemson
This will be a lot closer than people think. In the ACC title game against Virginia Tech, Watson dominated, throwing for 288 yards, 3 touchdowns, and running for 85 yards and 2 touchdowns, leading Clemson to a 42-35 victory. Clemson has ended the season 12-1, and find themselves ranked second in the CFB Playoff poll, setting up a matchup with Ohio State. Time and time again Watson has found a way to win, even with his early season and turnover struggles. In 3 years, Watson has compiled a 31-5 record as a starter, proving his label as a “winner”. To put those losses in perspective, they came at the hands of Georgia, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Alabama, and Pittsburgh. Not exactly any cakewalks in that group. For his 2016 campaign, Watson’s numbers impress, with 3914 passing yards, 37 passing touchdowns, and 529 rushing yards and 6 touchdowns. Once again, these numbers are good enough for a Heisman in most years, but Watson’s turnovers will open up this race.
Odds: 5-1
Baker Mayfield, QB, Oklahoma
After resurfacing in my rankings last week, Mayfield showed that he is there to stay, with an impressive 288 passing yards and 3 touchdowns in a convincing 38-20 victory over in-state rival Oklahoma State. Mayfield has put together an impressive campaign, with 3669 passing yards and 38 touchdowns. Somehow, he continued to be overlooked. As a team, Oklahoma found themselves out of the national spotlight after losing two of their first three games to Houston and Ohio State, but not because of a lack of effort on Mayfield’s part. Unfortunately, Mayfield’s season just doesn’t quite stack up to Watson’s or Jackson’s campaigns. However, since he already announced his plans to return to school next year, Mayfield is my early Heisman favorite for next year.
Odds: 12-1
Dede Westbrook, WR, Oklahoma
For the first time since 2004, two teammates are going to New York as Heisman finalists. This time it will be Baker Mayfield and his talented wide receiver Dede Westbrook. Westbrook was incredible once again, catching 4 passes for 111 yards and a ridiculous touchdown in the first half against Oklahoma State. After dominating for most of the first half, Westbrook missed the rest of the game after taking a bone-crushing hit going across the middle. Still, Westbrook’s numbers on the season make him a worthy candidate, with 74 catches, 1465 yards and 16 touchdowns and 1 return touchdown on the year. Still, it’s tough to give an award of this magnitude to a wide receiver, but just getting to New York is a major accomplishment.
Odds: 20-1
Jabrill Peppers, DB/LB/WR/RB/QB/KR/PR, Michigan
This was a bit of a head-scratcher for me. While there is no doubting that Peppers is a dynamic talent, his numbers really don’t jump off the page (72 total tackles, 16 TFL, 4 sacks and 1 interception). Including return yards, Peppers has totaled 751 all-purpose yards, 3 rushing touchdowns and 1 return touchdown. While those numbers are impressive considering that Peppers is a defensive back, there were much more deserving candidates. Bleacher Report’s lead NFL Draft writer Matt Miller called this year’s Heisman class “the weakest Heisman class ever”. Many will point to Peppers as a symbol of the class’s weakness.
Odds: 50-1
The committee missed on: D’Onta Foreman, Jalen Hurts
My Pick: Lamar Jackson
My Ballot (if I had a vote):
- Lamar Jackson
- Deshaun Watson
- Dede Westbrook
- Baker Mayfield
- Jabrill Peppers