Tag: 2021 Heisman Trophy

Where does Spencer Rattler rank among Heisman contenders after week 1?

It wasn’t the start that anyone hoped for, especially Spencer Rattler. So, where does he rank in updated Heisman rankings?

It didn’t take long for all of the hype and preseason accolades to fade into the background. On just his second attempt of the season Spencer Rattler attempted to hit his receiver down the left sideline only to have the ball undercut by the trailing defender and be intercepted.

It was a deflating start to the season for the Oklahoma Sooners, who have as high of expectations as they’ve had in quite some time. Following in the long lineage of great quarterbacks at Oklahoma, Rattler bears the weight of lofty expectations every time he steps on the football field.

On Saturday, in Oklahoma’s 40-35 win to the Tulane Green Wave, Rattler was solid. But that’s about it after two interceptions and a third that was called back on a questionable pass interference call.

Though the stat line will show a nice completion percentage and a 300 yard passing day, it wasn’t as good as he or the Sooners would have liked.

And like the shine that has faded off the high expectations surrounding the Sooners, Spencer Rattler’s Heisman candidacy has taken a hit as well.

David Kenyon of Bleacher Report ranked Rattler fourth in his latest Heisman Trophy rankings.

But Rattler doesn’t see any reason to panic.

“We just gotta be cleaner, gotta be sharper,” he said, according to Austin Curtright of the Oklahoma Daily. “I gotta be better. Everybody’s gotta be better.”

If the 2020 season didn’t exist, the statement might feel empty. But we’re inclined to trust a quarterback who tallied 9.6 yards per pass attempt, totaled 3,191 yards, accounted for 34 touchdowns and led his team to a conference title last year in an offense that has produced two Heisman winners and a runner-up since 2017. – Kenyon

Championships aren’t won in September and neither are Heisman trophies. Though he put himself behind Alabama’s Bryce Young in the Heisman race, Rattler has plenty of time to put himself at the forefront of the discussion yet again.

It’s no longer about potential or possibility, but about production. On Saturday, Spencer Rattler produced decent numbers, but didn’t pass the eye test. He’ll get better as the season goes along and there’s no reason to panic.

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Should you bet on C.J. Stroud to win the Heisman Trophy?

Sportsbooks are releasing their Heisman Trophy odds for 2021, and Ohio State has an interesting option with quarterback C.J. Stroud.

The college football season is just around the corner and sportsbooks are slowly starting to release various odds and futures and one that should be particularly interesting is the futures placed on the 2021 Heisman Trophy winner.

After looking over a number of odds from various sportsbooks, C.J. Stroud is the consensus top Ohio State player on the board but is given anywhere from top ten odds at 20/1 to being barely in the top 15 at 33/1. In most circles, he is considered a longshot as the majority of bettors will be taking the favorites in Oklahoma’s Spencer Rattler at 9/2, Alabama’s Bryce Young at 13/2, and Clemson’s D.J. Uiagalelei at 7/1.

I typically wouldn’t suggest betting on a freshman quarterback who has taken zero in-game snaps, but noted college football gambling expert, Brad Powers has me thinking differently. Powers recently tweeted out his ticket with Stroud’s name at the top and he mentions that the Ohio State quarterback is his favorite longshot bet.

After seeing this ticket, I reevaluated the situation and have faith that this is a solid bet. It seems risky, but besides Oklahoma, the top powerhouses in college football are all breaking in new starters. Ohio State has arguably the best receivers in college football, three starters returning on a strong offensive line, and a quarterback-friendly offense. I say it’s time to empty the wallet!

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CBS Sports predicts Texas RB Bijan Robinson to win the Heisman Trophy in 2021

Chip Patterson of CBS Sports made several bold predictions for the 2021 season, including Bijan Robinson winning the Heisman Trophy.

The hype and expectations surrounding former five-star running back Bijan Robinson have been high since he stepped foot on campus. Continue reading “CBS Sports predicts Texas RB Bijan Robinson to win the Heisman Trophy in 2021”

Bijan Robinson among the names for 2021 Heisman Trophy watch

Texas running back Bijan Robinson is being mentioned for one of the most coveted college football awards.

On Tuesday night, the college football world witnessed a non-quarterback win the Heisman Memorial Trophy for the first time since Derrick Henry pulled it off in 2015. Wide receiver Devonta Smith became the third non-quarterback to pull this off since 2009. Each of the trio played at Alabama. Could a Texas Longhorn be the next?

Texas running back Bijan Robinson is atop the list for the early 2021 contenders. It should come as no surprise given his performances down the stretch. In the final two games alone, Robinson accumulated 443 yards of offense and six touchdowns.

Robinson exploded in the last month of his true freshman season as the centerpiece of the Longhorns’ offense, running for 542 yards (11.1 yards per carry) and four touchdowns. The chance to get more touches as a sophomore and be part of new Texas coach Steve Sarkisian’s offensive system makes Robinson an interesting Heisman contender. – Paul Myerberg, USA TODAY Sports

With the new head coach in Sarkisian, Robinson should have ample opportunities to showcase his skills. Of the top five Heisman finalists, three were playing in Sarkisian’s system at Alabama. You can also look at how running backs have performed for him.

One should fully expect that Robinson will be the feature back and run wild for his new head coach. As Sarkisian would say, “All gas, no brakes.” If Robinson were to pull it off he would be the third Longhorns to achieve this feat and the three would each be running backs. Ricky Williams won it in 1998 and Earl Campbell in 1977.

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2021 Heisman Trophy Candidates: Early Top Ten Prediction, Watch List

To start speculating early, who should be the top candidates for the 2021 Heisman Trophy? 

To start speculating early, who should be the top candidates for the 2021 Heisman Trophy? 

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– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak

This piece was solid four years ago when the Baker Mayfield Would Win call connected, and three years ago it was full of right ideas, wrong applications, and a whole slew of whiffs.

Let’s just say the 2019 Early Top Ten Heisman Trophy Prediction piece had … issues. No one – NO ONE – saw Joe Burrow coming.

And no, no one had DeVonta Smith in mix for the 2020 Heisman. However, we at least had Trevor Lawrence, Kyle Trask, and random Alabama quarterback in last year’s preseason mix.

Predicting the 2021 Heisman race? Assume this is all typed in pencil.

More than ever, we don’t know what we don’t know.

1. Transfers, transfers, transfers. With this year’s free pass to transfer, don’t get comfortable in any way with your current starting quarterback or top running back. It’s going to be a crazy next several months.

2. Draft, draft, draft. There are still several key guys who might opt-out, get out, or just decided they want to preserve themselves for the NFL. It’s going to be a crazy next several months.

3. Seniors, seniors, seniors. It’s possible this year for some seniors to decide they don’t want to face the real world quite yet – and why would they? In the COVID season, everyone gets an extra year of eligibility if it’s wanted. It’s going to be a crazy next several months.

And finally …

4. The real world. We’re all assuming things will be better and 2021 will see a more normal type of football season. You want to bet the house on that? We can hope for something better, but …

It’s going to be a crazy next several months.

The goal is getting the early 2021 Heisman call close to the pin, so we start with this.

2021 Heisman Trophy Watch List: Names On A List As Fliers … Just In Case

Every name in this group seems like a crazy call that has no business working in the discussion of the 2021 Heisman Trophy. Call it the Joe Burrow and DeVonta Smith curveball list.

It’s in alphabetical order after beginning with …

The Field
It’s the wimp way out, but do you really want to pick the 2021 Heisman Trophy winner a year in advance? Take The Field – not Justin Fields – over everyone else, and you’re likely to be right. But that’s no fun, so we press on.

QB Matt Corral, Jr. Ole Miss
And here we go with the parade of SEC quarterbacks. The main difference between Corral and several others is 1) experience, 2) a team with a likely bad defense to 3) once again force him to put up massive numbers. He ran for over 500 yards and four scores, and hit 71% of his throws for 3,337 yards and 29 touchdowns.

QB Max Johnson, Soph. LSU
Or, just make this spot for Insert Starting LSU QB Here. Lost in all of the problems with the Tigers in 2020 was a passing game that really did work. It wasn’t 2019, but there was hope. Now the program has to settle in on a quarterback from way too many options – and maybe a top transfer. Johnson was the star of the Florida win and closed out with a 435-yard day against Ole Miss.

QB Emory Jones, Jr. Florida
Is he really going to take over the job with Kyle Trask done? He adds more of a rushing element to the mix, provided a bit of a spark in the Oklahoma debacle, and he’s got the skills to put up huge numbers if he’s the guy.

WR John Metchie, Jr. Alabama
No, but last year at this time if someone told you that DeVonta Smith was going to be in the Heisman equation …

Metchie averaged more yards per catch than Smith (17.8 to 15.6).

QB Bo Nix, Jr. Auburn
NO NO … DON’T LEAVE! This is a covering-the-bases listing with Nix going into his third year as a starter working under a new coaching staff. He won’t have the same NFL-caliber targets he had in 2020 when he threw 12 touchdown passes, and … sorry. Okay, carrying on.

QB Brock Purdy, Sr. Iowa State
It only seems like he’s been around for 15 years, but yeah, he’s a senior. Assuming he doesn’t turn pro early, he’s a terrific veteran who should be able to put up even better numbers as the expectations are reasonably higher now.

RB Bijan Robinson, Soph. Texas
The superstar recruit of last year led the team with over 700 yards and four scores – to go along with two receiving touchdowns – averaging over eight yards per carry. He closed out the season with 172 yards and three scores against Kansas State, and 183 yards and a score in the bowl win over Colorado – averaging close to 19 yards per carry in those two games. Now he’s Steve Sarkisian’s running back to work with.

RB Isaiah Spiller, Jr. Texas A&M
The raw numbers probably won’t be there, but he might get a long look in the race in a Great Player, Top Team sort of way. He only ran for 1,036 yards and nine scores, and there are more explosive players in the backfield, but he’s going to be the main man for the Aggie O.

NEXT: Top Ten 2021 Early Heisman Candidates

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Georgia football QB Jamie Newman projected top 5 in the 2021 Heisman Trophy odds

Georgia football’s new graduate transfer QB Jamie Newman is projected in the top 5 of the 2021 Heisman Trophy finalist odds.

Jamie Newman, the Georgia Bulldog’s graduate transfer quarterback from Wake Forest, has yet to throw a pass in a Dawgs uniform, but is already in talks of being a Heisman Trophy finalist.

Newman is the fifth ranked QB to win the 2021 Heisman Trophy with 16-1 odds (+1600), per FanDuel.  He trails only Clemson’s QB Trevor Lawrence, Ohio State’s Justin Fields (both at 4-1 odds to win) as well as Oklahoma QB Spencer Rattler (12-1 odds) and Miami QB D’Eriq King (14-1 odds).

Newman had an impressive year this past season with the Demon Deacons throwing for 2,868 yards, 26 touchdowns and 11 interceptions hitting his targets 60.9% of the time.

Georgia will need someone big to fill the shoes of former Dawgs QB Jake Fromm, who had one of the most illustrious careers ever at UGA and is leaving for the 2020 NFL Draft.  Kirby smart, as well as America believes Newman is that guy.

The addition of Todd Monken, former Cleveland Browns offensive coordinator, is massive for the Dawgs and Newman.  Monken coached some of the NFL’s top receivers last year and will add a high flying passing scheme to an already beefy Georgia running back corps.

Click here for the full list of 2021 Heisman Trophy odds from FanDuel sports book.