Top Picks for Heisman Trophy | Week 13 of the 2024 NCAA football season was historic in the chaos that ensued. Such big favorites as Alabama, Ole Miss, BYU, Colorado, and Texas A&M all went down to defeat, leaving the College Football Playoff and several conference races in limbo.
Going into Week 14, there are nine different teams that could win the Big 12.
The ACC only has one team that remains unbeaten in conference play – the SMU Mustangs, now in the AP top ten for the first time in over 40 years.
If you look at the latest sports betting odds for the Heisman Trophy winner for this season, there is considerable variance from one book to another.
Let’s take a look at the updated odds that are the closest to what you could call a consensus, as well as some of the top contenders for the award given to the player that the Downtown Athletic Club in New York City determines was the nation’s best on the college gridiron.
Top Picks for Heisman Trophy: Candidates for 2024/25 Season | NCAA Football Odds provided by Xbet Sportsbook
Check out top players, position and college odds
- Travis Hunter, WR/CB Colorado -2000
- Ashton Jeanty, RB Boise State +165
- Cam Ward, QB Miami (FL) +440
- Dillon Gabriel, QB Oregon +1400
- Carson Beck, QB Georgia +8000
- Jaxson Dart, QB Ole Miss +8000
- Jalen Milroe, QB Alabama +8000
- Malachi Nelson, QB Boise State +9000
- Cade Klubnik, QB Clemson +9500
- Drew Allar, QB Penn State +9500
- Quinn Ewers, QB Texas +10000
- Will Howard, QB Ohio State +10000
- Shedeur Sanders, QB Colorado +12000
Firstly, having two non-quarterbacks atop the odds list is a unique feature this year. The Heisman Trophy goes to quarterbacks at a rate only slightly behind the regular-season and Super Bowl MVP trophies are given out.
Football right now is a passing game, and the quarterback touches the ball on just about every offensive play.
Six of the last seven Heisman Trophy winners have been quarterbacks, with Alabama’s De’Vonta Smith the lone exception in 2020, when he won as a wide receiver.
Five of the six winners prior to that run were also quarterbacks, with Alabama tailback Derrick Henry serving as the outlier in 2015.
^Top Picks for Heisman Trophy: Travis Hunter
So having Hunter, a two-way player at Colorado, atop this list as such a heavy favorite is definitely different. Does it help that Hunter plays for Coach Deion Sanders and gets that exposure? Yes, but to say that Hunter and Shedeur Sanders appear on this only because of the hype from Coach Prime is to overlook their excellence.
Against Kansas, Colorado suffered a loss that may well keep them out of the Big 12 Championship, but Hunter caught two touchdown passes, including the score that made it just a 23-20 Kansas lead. Hunter followed up that score with the iconic Heisman Trophy pose. On the day, Hunter caught eight passes for 125 yards. On defense, he had three solo tackles, seven total tackles, and one pass defended. His ability to excel on both sides of the ball sets him apart from the rest of the competition – even though just about no NFL team would consider using him in this way.
^Top Picks for Heisman Trophy: Ashton Jeanty
Boise State’s Jeanty is an outlier in a number of ways. His productivity as a tailback is beyond question, but playing outside the Power 4 conferences makes his candidacy unique. The last time a non-power conference team had a Heisman Trophy winner was 1992, when Gino Torretta won with the Miami Hurricanes, who were then an independent team.
Two years prior, Ty Detmer won the Heisman with BYU, who were also independent. But you’d have to go all the way back to 1951, when halfback Dick Kazmaier of Princeton won the coveted award, to find a school from a smaller conference (in that case, the Ivy League) with a Heisman winner. Between 1951 and 2023, every winner either played for a power conference team or one of the major independents.
The downside of playing in a major conference is that it taints a player’s achievements. Yes, Jeanty ripped off a 61-yard touchdown run in the first quarter last week against Wyoming. But would he have been able to do that against Georgia? The Broncos only beat Wyoming, 17-13, and Jeanty had 169 yards and that touchdown on 19 carries. The numbers are impressive, but do they carry over to power conference play?
^Top Picks for Heisman Trophy: Cam Ward
Then there’s Miami’s Ward. The Hurricanes still have an excellent shot to make the ACC Championship game, and Ward’s quarterback play has been a major factor. Against Wake Forest last week, things were much closer than observers had anticipated, but Ward and the offense took off in the second half, turning a 20-14 lead after three quarters into a 42-14 win. Ward finished with 280 yards on 27 of 38 passing. He threw two touchdown passes (and a pick) and also ran for a touchdown.
However, it was the Hurricanes’ loss to Georgia Tech that could seal Ward’s fate in the voters’ hands. Late in the fourth quarter, Miami was down, 28-23, but the Hurricanes had the ball and a chance to win with the two-minute drill. A late strip-sack put the win in the Yellow Jackets’ hands – so even though Ward threw for 348 yards and three scores, social media ripped into his candidacy, with one X post concluding that Ward “just fumbled the Heisman Trophy away.” We’ll see, but Ward is a distant value pick at this point – and he’s in third!
^Top Picks for Heisman Trophy: Dillon Gabriel
If it seems like Gabriel has been playing college football for a decade, you’re off base – but not by much. This is his sixth year of college eligibility (and his last). He played at UCF from 2019-21, Oklahoma from 2022-23, and now he finishes with Oregon. The Ducks were idle in Week 13, but Gabriel’s numbers are still elite: 73.8% pass completion rate, 3,066 passing yards, 22 touchdown passes, 6 interceptions. On the ground, he has carried the ball 54 times for 155 yards and six scores.
If you’re a fan of NFL history, you might wonder if Gabriel is related to NFL quarterback Roman Gabriel (who remains the only Asian-American to win the NFL’s regular-season MVP trophy), the answer would be “No.” However, Dillon’s younger brother is named Roman. Dillon Gabriel sits where he does in the Heisman race in large part because of the Ducks’ offensive struggles at Camp Randall two weeks ago. Against the unranked Wisconsin Badgers, Gabriel didn’t produce an offensive touchdown for the first time this season.
He did go 22 of 31 for 218 yards, but he made some iffy decisions on medium and deep range passes and threw a pick in the first half. On attempts with at least 15 air yards, he only completed 43% of his passes. On third downs, the Ducks went just 5 of 15 on the day. He did have a crucial completion to tight end Terrance Ferguson on a fourth down early in the fourth quarter, extending a drive long enough to get Jordan James into the end zone for the Ducks’ only touchdown. Next up for Gabriel is a home date with Washington, and he will need to sizzle against the Huskies to shorten his Heisman Trophy odds.
^Top Picks for Heisman Trophy: Shedeur Sanders
Finally, let’s talk about Sanders. He ran into that buzzsaw known as the Kansas Jayhawks, who have beaten BYU and Colorado the last two weeks. The Kansas pass rush was ruthless, and Sanders took a beating all game long. Even so, he went 23 of 29 for 266 yards and three touchdowns. Why did the Buffaloes lose? Their defense could not get a stop. Jayhawks tailback Devin Neal ran for 207 yards and three scores on 37 attempts in a 37-21 Kansas win. Sanders represented himself well, but optics matter a lot in this race, and losing by 16 is never a good look.
^Every quarterback that won the Heisman Trophy naturally earned the award by having an amazing season. But some seasons are more amazing than others. Today's #TuesdayTrivia question is this: Which Heisman winner in their senior season won EVERY award he was eligible for as… pic.twitter.com/1y0CwZqKL6
— The Heisman Trophy (@HeismanTrophy) November 19, 2024
Xbet NCAA Football Odds for the Game
Top Picks for Heisman Trophy, Week 14
Love betting Football? | Xbet Sportsbook offers up to date NCAAF Odds for 2024/25 Season
