This year’s Heisman Trophy race is as wide open as it’s been in decades. Even the leader—Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza is the current betting favorite—is not even a lock to finish in the top three depending on what happens in the next few weeks.
With the regular season concluding Saturday and not every top-tier candidate participating in a conference title game, Week 14 could leave a massive final impression on Heisman voters. Here’s the outlook for 10 of the top candidates with the most at stake.
QB Marcel Reed, Texas A&M (at Texas, 7:30 p.m. ET Friday)
Reed might have more to gain over the next two weeks than anybody on this list. The Aggies have been a regular in those well-watched TV windows on ABC and part of the College Football Playoff discussion within the top three. However, the lack of marquee opponents has not allowed for the dynamic dual-threat QB to really have a Heisman moment. That can come on Friday night in Austin however, where he could deliver A&M’s first win over Texas in 15 years and lock up the program’s first berth in the SEC title game.
QB Trinidad Chambliss, Mississippi (at Mississippi State, noon ET Friday)
Nobody has a better opportunity to turn into a household name than Chambliss does on Friday given that all of college football will be turning into the Egg Bowl to see what’s going on with his head coach. Mississippi State’s pass defense is middle of the pack in the SEC and has given up 17 touchdown passes, so it’s all there for the taking on the field before you even get into the terrific story the QB is off it.
QB Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt (at Tennessee, 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday)
You cannot write the story of this season without mentioning the king of Broadway’s contributions to one of, if not the, best years in Vandy football history. He has a decent shot at being able to share his story as a Heisman finalist as is, but a victory over a ranked Tennessee team to win 10 games at the school for the first time ever could be enough to vault Pavia into being the favorite for the famous stiff-arm. He won’t have quite the stage of others, but beating the Vols at a raucous Neyland Stadium during a pretty snoozy Saturday afternoon slate could be massive for his chances.
QB Julian Sayin, Ohio State (at Michigan, noon ET Saturday)
There are so many narratives surrounding this season’s The Game between the Buckeyes and Michigan that it wouldn’t be absurd to see Sayin put all of them to rest. He could leave everybody talking about his own performance if they thump the Wolverines at the Big House. This is almost always one of the highest-rated college football games, so there will be plenty of eyeballs on the young signal-caller. That stage offers up the opportunity to show everybody outside the Big Ten what he’s about and why he should earn the lion’s share of the vote over his star-studded receivers.
RB Jeremiyah Love, Notre Dame (at Stanford, 10:30 p.m. ET Saturday)
Since Love will be sitting at home during the conference championship weekend, his late-night affair on the Farm is the last chance to make a statement. The Cardinal have actually been pretty stout against the run (No. 25 rush defense in FBS), but if the Irish star can cobble together a few of his trademark long runs, it’s possible he could finish as the nation’s leading rusher in the regular season (he’s 138 yards behind coming into Saturday).
QB Gunner Stockton, Georgia (vs. Georgia Tech, in Atlanta, 3:30 p.m. ET Friday)
Stockton has an underrated window to impress voters on Black Friday as that 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff at Mercedes-Benz Stadium is the only Power 4 game in that TV window and the only real competition will come from the NFL on a streaming platform. The Yellow Jackets defense has been porous lately so if he has a big afternoon, it could put him in position to make it to New York in December.
QB Ty Simpson, Alabama (at Auburn, 7:30 p.m. ET Saturday)
Three interceptions in two weeks to go along with that loss to Oklahoma has put Simpson on the outside looking in of the Heisman race but he can get right back into it in the Iron Bowl and, winning that, in the SEC title game. However, he needs to lay the groundwork on Saturday evening on the Plains and will have a chance to earn plenty of attention given the lack of big-time games in prime time this weekend.
QB Dante Moore, Oregon (at Washington, 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday)
Moore’s candidacy has been a bit of a roller coaster this season as the Ducks have come into and out of the national consciousness with their biggest games early in the season and in the last two weeks. With a CBS window at 3:30 p.m. ET and a phenomenal setting in Seattle against a rival, if the young quarterback can put up big numbers with that banged-up receiving corps, then he should be able to earn plenty of praise from Heisman voters.
WR Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State (at Michigan, noon ET Saturday)
Smith may be aiming to make it to New York for the Heisman against Michigan just as much as he’ll be trying to overcome USC’s Makai Lemon in the Biletnikoff Award race as the nation’s best receiver. Despite missing time, he’s one of 11 guys in FBS in double digits for touchdown receptions and adding two or three more to his total gives him a shot at the national lead, lots of momentum going into the Big Ten title game and a decent chance at the Heisman itself.
QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana (at Purdue, 7:30 p.m. ET Friday)
It’s a pure numbers play for Mendoza this weekend at rival Purdue. Yes, the Hoosiers can’t overlook their rivals given that a trip to Indianapolis is on the line, but the Boilermakers have allowed enough teams to roll right over them that this is a great time for Mendoza to pad some of his stats going into the big stage that the league title game offers next weekend.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as What’s at Stake for the Top 10 Heisman Trophy Contenders in Week 14.
