Gabriel, Beck early favourites for Heisman Trophy

The college football season gets a full launch this week, but the discussion surrounding this year’s Heisman Trophy has been heating up for months – and has been, really, since last December, when LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels won the award for the 2023 season.

Last year at this time, all eyes were on USC quarterback Caleb Williams and his pursuit of a second straight Heisman – a distinction that would’ve put him alongside former Ohio State running back Archie Griffin as the only two-time winners in the trophy’s history. Williams threw 22 touchdowns in the first six games – all wins – before both his and the Trojans’ season went spiralling downward.

And with that, a reminder that we seem to get every year: The Heisman isn’t handed out in September, October, or even November. But it’s still fun to discuss.

Here’s a look at some players that might find themselves in the running this season:

The Favourites: Dillon Gabriel, Oregon (+500 at FanDuel) and Carson Beck, Georgia (+800)

Georgia had a smooth transition at quarterback last season, with Beck stepping in for outgoing Heisman finalist Stetson Bennett and leading the Bulldogs to 12 straight wins before a loss to Alabama in the SEC title game.

Meanwhile, at Oklahoma, Gabriel kept the Sooners in the playoff picture until late October, before losses to Kansas and Oregon State dashed any National Championship hopes.

It’s much the same in Athens this fall – Georgia returns one of the deepest rosters in college football, despite top targets Brock Bowers and Ladd McConkey moving on to the NFL. Kirby Smart restocked Beck’s weapons, adding running back Trevor Etienne from Florida and a vertical threat in Colbie Young, and has a potential star-in-waiting at wide receiver in Dillon Bell. If Georgia reaches the playoff – which is a near certainty in the new format – Beck has a direct line to the Heisman, and figures to be one of the top picks in next April’s draft.

Gabriel was one of the biggest names to enter the transfer portal last December, quickly committing to Oregon to replace Bo Nix, who threw 45 touchdowns and led the Ducks to 12 wins last season. This year, they shift conferences, and get acquainted with Ohio State – widely believed to be their biggest challenge in the Big Ten. A win over the Buckeyes in October, and another three weeks later against Michigan at the Big House, and Gabriel will be hard to deny come Heisman season.
 

The Sleeper: Nico Iamaleava, Tennessee (+1400)

Nico Iamaleava Tennessee

Tennessee likely won’t hang with Georgia, Texas and Alabama in the SEC, but there’s still a route for Iamaleava to the Heisman – just follow Daniels’ footprint from a year ago. Daniels put up eye-popping numbers last season, and outlasted Nix and Michael Penix Jr. despite LSU going 9-3 without recording a signature win. 

Iamaleava was five-star recruit in 2023, and flashed potential in his lone start last year, throwing for a touchdown and rushing for three more in the Vols’ 35-0 win over Iowa in the Citrus Bowl. Like Daniels, he’s an electrifying dual-threat quarterback, with an offensive-minded head coach in Josh Heupel who is eager to unleash him. Heupel – a Heisman finalist himself at Oklahoma in 2000 – now has a big-armed threat who can stretch the field, following a season where Tennessee’s offence dipped from fifth in passing yards in 2022 to 54th with Joe Milton III at quarterback.

Though the Vols might still be a second-tier SEC team, they’re a playoff contender in the expanded format, and a postseason berth would further bolster Iamaleava’s chances to win the Heisman. He maintained his freshman status by appearing in just four games before bowl season last year, and could end up being one of college football’s breakout stars this fall.

The Headline-Maker: Shedeur Sanders, Colorado (+4000)

Shedeur Sanders Colorado

Sanders was one of the biggest stories of last season, along with his father, Deion, and the Buffaloes, who took the college football world by storm after opening the season with three straight wins.

But it all came crashing down – seven losses in their final eight games, with Sanders taking a pounding, getting sacked more than any other quarterback in the FBS. Despite that, the numbers were still there: 3,230 yards, 27 touchdowns and just three interceptions.

Coach Prime made the offensive line his biggest priority, and made a splash by landing five-star tackle Jordan Seaton, as well as linemen Tyler Johnson and Justin Mayers via the portal. But outside of dual star Travis Hunter and wide receiver Jimmy Horn Jr., Colorado doesn't boast much in terms of offensive skill players, especially compared to what genuine Heisman candidates like Beck, Gabriel and Texas’ Quinn Ewers are working with.

A bowl berth might still be a stretch for Colorado, even with a move to the Big 12, which lost both Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC. But Sanders will still garner plenty of attention, both from fans and scouts – the latter of which are still trying to determine whether he’s worthy of being the top pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.

The True Freshman: Dylan Raiola, Nebraska (+10000)

This is a longshot, in large part to the Cornhuskers having a roster that just doesn’t stack up with the powerhouses of the revamped Big Ten, but we can dream, right? Raiola will attempt to do what only Johnny Manziel and Jameis Winston have done – that is, win the Heisman as a true freshman.

Raiola has been a viral sensation this summer, with his look, playing style and skill set all drawing comparisons to two-time NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes. Raiola has family ties to football as well – his father, Dominic, was an All-American centre at Nebraska before spending 14 years with the Detroit Lions, and he’s the godson of Matthew Stafford, who lined up behind Dominic from 2009-2014.

Raiola initially committed to Ohio State in 2022, then flipped to Georgia before eventually landing at Nebraska, which went 5-7 last season in Matt Rhule’s first year as head coach. The Cornhuskers struggled offensively in 2023, scoring fewer than 20 points in seven of their nine conference games, but added a pair of senior wide receivers via the portal (Isaiah Neyor from Texas and Jahmal Banks from Wake Forest), which should make Raiola’s life at least a little easier.

The Running Back: Ollie Gordon II, Oklahoma State (+7500)

Oklahoma State

Gordon had an eye-popping sophomore season, rushing for 1,732 and 21 touchdowns for a 10-win team, despite carrying the ball just 19 times in the first three games.

He finished by rushing for more than 100 yards in nine of the Cowboys’ 11 remaining games, including back-to-back games in October of 282 and 271 yards – the most in a two-game stretch by an Oklahoma State running back since Barry Sanders in his 1988 Heisman season, a year in which he set the still-standing FBS for single-season rushing yards (2,628).

A lot has changed since 1988 – at the time, Sanders was the 12th running back to win the Heisman in a span of 16 years. Since then, only eight have won college football’s most prestigious trophy, and none since Alabama’s Derrick Henry in 2015. Twelve of the past 14 winners have been quarterbacks, with Crimson Tide wide receiver Devonta Smith the only other exception in 2020.

Gordon will again be the focal point of Mike Gundy’s offence this year, and could pad his Heisman bid if Oklahoma State asserts itself as the best team in a Big 12 that’s wide open following the departures of Texas and Oklahoma. 

A non-quarterback winning the Heisman is a longshot in this era, but if there’s a player that breaks the trend, there’s a strong chance it will be Gordon.