Contender or Pretender?: Heisman Stock Watch Week 4
Brendan Smith
It’s just not fair anymore. Lamar Jackson does things that most people can only dream of. In case you didn’t bother to watch Louisville beat up on Marshall, you missed another episode of the Lamar Jackson show. This one was just as exciting as the other three. As for the rest of college football, Michigan State was embarrassed at home by Wisconsin, Georgia was obliterated by Ole Miss, and may have lost Nick Chubb for some time, and “The Mad Hatter” will no longer patrol the sidelines for LSU. Not much of a shake-up in my Heisman top 5 but here they are:
Lamar Jackson, QB, Louisville
Let’s get one thing straight. Lamar Jackson is on another planet as far as play-making abilities go. 25 touchdowns in just 4 games this season. I don’t think I could do that in NCAA Football 14 on my old Xbox 360. In his latest performance, Jackson torched the Marshall defense for 417 passing yards, 62 rushing yards, 5 passing touchdowns and 2 rushing touchdowns. Unreal production. 469 yards and 7 touchdowns. On the season, that’s 1330 yards through the air, with 13 touchdowns, and 526 rushing yards with 12 touchdowns. For those doing the math, that is 1856 total yards and 25 touchdowns through 4 games. If he continues at this pace, in a 15 game season, that is almost 7,000 total yards and just under 100 total touchdowns. Uh, let’s check in on that again when the season is over. Louisville faces a huge test when they travel to Clemson this Friday. Lamar Jackson has a chance to once again prove that he is not a fluke. Side note, Sports Illustrated ran an awesome story on Jackson in their latest issue.
Stock: Rising.
Christian McCaffrey, RB, Stanford
In an underwhelming performance by his team, McCaffrey did nothing to improve his stock, but also did not do anything to diminish his chances of winning the award either. In a narrow, 22-13 come-from-behind victory over UCLA. McCaffrey gained 138 yards on the ground, caught 2 passes for 13 yards, and returned a punt 14 yards as well. The only disappointing piece from his stat line is the absence of a touchdown. Still, 165 all-purpose yards is nothing to scoff at, especially when it comes from a player that runs the ball, catches the ball, returns kicks, and sometimes even throws the ball. By far and beyond, Christian McCaffrey is the most versatile player in college football, but will it be enough to beat out Lamar Jackson?
Stock: Holding steady
Greg Ward, Jr., QB, Houston
Greg Ward, Jr. continues his ascension up my Heisman board, this time gashing the Texas State defense for 289 passing yards, 39 rushing yards, and 3 (2 passing, 1 rushing) total touchdowns. That performance earned him an almost perfect 98.9 QBR. Despite missing one game due to a shoulder injury, Ward, Jr. has put together an impressive stat line on the season, racking up 936 yards through the air, and 113 rushing yards, to go with 5 passing and 3 rushing touchdowns. More importantly, Houston is 4-0, with an opening-game defeat of Oklahoma on their playoff résumé, and good enough for a number 6 ranking in the AP Top 25. At the center of this is Greg Ward, Jr.
Stock: Slowly rising
Deshaun Watson, QB, Clemson
Finally, a vintage game for Deshaun Watson. He looked sharp in the convincing 26-7 victory over Georgia Tech in a Thursday night match-up this week. Watson threw for 304 yards and 2 touchdowns, and also added 36 yards on the ground, showing the play-making ability that has him in the conversation for best QB prospect in the upcoming draft. The only blemish on the evening for Watson was an interception, which ended in a safety for Clemson (see the craziness here), his third game with an interception this season. Watson and Clemson seem to be rolling ahead of their biggest match-up of the year, against Louisville and star QB Lamar Jackson.
Stock: Slowly rising
Dalvin Cook, RB, Florida State
Dalvin Cook, it’s good to have you back. 267 rushing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 62 receiving yards is the kind of stat line we came to expect from Cook last year. So far this year, he wasn’t able to duplicate last year’s production. Coming into the game, Cook had managed just 228 yards and 2 touchdowns on the ground, and did not have one game where he rushed for more than 91 yards, and only gained over 100 all-purpose yards in the season opener. For Jimbo Fisher, Cook’s reemergence could not have come at a better time, as his defense is currently ranked 108th in the nation in scoring defense. The defense has struggled against up-tempo teams, so if Fisher can rely on Cook to touch the ball 25-35 times a game and slow down the clock, his defense can continue to make improvements and adjustments so Florida State can meet preseason expectations.
Stock: Rising
My Top 5:
Lamar Jackson
Christian McCaffrey
Greg Ward, Jr.
Deshaun Watson
Dalvin Cook
Outside looking in: Baker Mayfield, J.T. Barrett, Leonard Fournette
