The Heisman Trophy is awarded to the best player in college football. This year of college football has been insane and has flipped the race for the trophy upside down. Coming into this season, the favorites for the award were Jeremiah Smith and Julian Sayin, whose year was wrecked by Sayin’s season-ending injury against Indiana. Arch Manning, who hasn't taken the big step forward he was expected to. And finally, CJ Carr, who has seemingly been the only favorite to still currently be in the race for the award.
The current favorites for the award are Carr, Darian Mensah, Smith, and Drew Mestemaker. But there are some players who currently are being overlooked for the award.
LaNorris Sellers is propelling South Carolina to win after win, seemingly turning South Carolina's season around; at one point it seemed as if Shane Beamer would be fired, but now they're 6-3 with Georgia coming to town next week and in the hunt for an at-large bid in the College Football Playoff.
Sellers has 2,100 Passing yards with 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions, and nearly 670 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground. LaNorris is having a Heisman-caliber season, and if you turn on a South Carolina game this year, don't be surprised if you see an alien-type play made by Sellers this year.
Keelon Russell is quietly becoming an absolute weapon for Alabama's offense and is showing why he won the starting job in August. Russell has totaled over 2,200 yards through the air with 18 touchdowns and five interceptions; he also has 270 rushing yards along with five touchdowns. Some of Russell’s throws just make your eyes pop, and his poise kind of reminds you of a former Heisman Trophy winner who represented the Script A as well. If Russell keeps playing at the same level he did against LSU, don't be surprised if he's taking a trip to New York come December.
Nate Sheppard is an absolute bell cow for Duke right now, putting up monster performances one week after another. Against NC State, Sheppard totaled 217 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns off of 18 carries. Sheppard on the season has 191 carries for 1,189 yards and 17 touchdowns, all of which are top six in their respective categories. Sheppard is one of the best playmakers in the country, and this weekend he plays two of his former teammates, Mensah and Cooper Barkate, whenever Duke faces off against Miami. If the Blue Devils want to pull off the upset, Sheppard will have to have a Heisman-caliber performance.
Gio Lopez has bounced around different schools left and right, from a promising year at South Alabama to a disappointing year at North Carolina to now being a Heisman sleeper on one of the most red-hot teams in the country-being Wake Forest. Lopez has the Demon Deacons at an 8-1 record right now, right on the brink of a College Football Playoff bid and the second favorite to make the ACC title game.
Lopez has 2,176 passing yards with 18 touchdowns and one interception through the year. Lopez's dual-threat ability is astounding; the way that he sees the field very few quarterbacks do in college football from delivering lasers to Carlos Hernandez to creating space and time with his legs. Lopez has made a giant leap this year and is a big name to look out for in the following weeks.
And lastly, although he is being tied to the award, Devon Dampier. Dampier, along with newly touted head coach Morgan Scalley, has Utah sitting at a 9-0 record coming off of an emphatic 28-20 win over their rival BYU.
Dampier has thrown for a little over 2,000 yards along with 20 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Dampier also has 400 yards on the ground with 7 rushing touchdowns. Dampier isn't the biggest athlete on the field, but he's one of the best athletes on the field, and that's for sure.
Dampier elevates his team by his sheer playmaking ability. Dampier's ability to create space and buy time during a play is mind-boggling, from turning a sack into a 10-yard gain to dancing around with his feet, then fitting a ball into one of the tightest windows you've seen this season. If Dampier can lead the Utes to a 12-0 record and a BIG 12 title, he should be expecting a call for a trip to New York.