It’s hard to overcome the quarterback advantage in the Heisman race. Quarterbacks touch the ball on every offensive play, and challengers from other positions must be record-settingly prolific just to have a chance at the trophy. But Travis Hunter found another avenue to an edge: Never leave the field.
Colorado’s two-way sensation has pole position for the award through 11 weeks at +100, comfortably ahead of Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel, who leads a pack of four contenders who have separated from the rest of the field in the stretch run.
Hunter has been flat-out the best player in college football this season, and thanks to Colorado coalescing into a Big 12 title contender, his play has stayed in the spotlight. Hunter’s nine touchdown catches are tied for sixth-most in the country. He’s 11th in receiving yards (856) and sixth in catches (69). Then there’s the other half of his resume, where as a cornerback, he leads the Buffaloes in passes defended, has two interceptions and forced a game-ending overtime fumble in Week 4.
According to Pro Football Focus, Hunter has allowed just 125 yards receiving and no touchdowns over 519 defensive reps this season. He’s maintained top-tier numbers on both sides of the ball despite playing 1,065 of Colorado’s 1,290 snaps. That’s a one-of-one resume.
But while the award is Hunter’s to lose, the top of the board is crowded. By dint of captaining an undefeated Oregon team at the top of national polls, Gabriel has the next best odds at +350. But despite solid play and a statement game against Ohio State, Gabriel lacks the standalone stats and individual heroics that move the needle for voters. Being under center for an undefeated title run carries a case pretty far, but it isn’t enough unless the run couldn’t have happened with anyone else at quarterback.
While Gabriel is the prototypical quarterback Heisman candidate, Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty is having the type of season that gets a running back (one from the Mountain West at that) seriously considered. Backs and receivers need to break records to crack into the upper echelon of the Heisman race, and Jeanty (+400) has a shot at a big record. With 1,734 yards through nine games, the Boise State back has Barry Sanders’ single-season rushing title in his sights. It’s still a long road to 2,628, but Jeanty is averaging 192.7 yards per game, and with the Broncos’ only loss coming on a last-second Oregon field goal, it’s a safe bet that Boise State will play in the Mountain West title game and at least one playoff contest (or bowl), which would give Jeanty five more games to thrash defenses. He’d only need to average 178 yards per contest — easy work for him. Jeanty could be one game away from history by the time ballots are due. Not a bad final nudge for voters.
Miami quarterback Cam Ward is the last of the top four at +850, having taken a step back following Miami’s loss to unranked Georgia Tech. Ward has the stats plus the flash, leading the country in passing yards and touchdowns and engineering three miraculous comebacks for the Hurricanes. But while Ward has been in the Heisman mix all season, the Yellow Jackets punctured his aura of inevitability. Overtaking the other three would require a thunderous end to the season to go with an ACC title.
2024 Heisman Trophy odds
Jalen Milroe’s roller-coaster candidacy for Alabama has him right outside the mix again. A victory over LSU that featured 185 rushing yards and four rushing scores from Milroe vaulted him from +6600 to +1800 this week. After he obliterated the Georgia defense in Week 5, Milroe was the Heisman odds leader. But with two Alabama losses, he drifted down the odds board until the Crimson Tide dropped the Tigers to keep their playoff plans intact.
Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke has better odds than Milroe at +1600, but he’s being carried by the wave of a surprise Hoosiers run. Indiana is undefeated and could get a shot at the conference title, but voters will drop Rourke the second the Hoosiers stumble. A defeat against Ohio State wouldn’t necessarily bounce Indiana from the playoff, but Rourke’s Heisman chances fall when the Hoosiers do.
Jaxson Dart’s prodigious passing numbers at Ole Miss have him hanging on to longshot odds at +2200, and Shedeur Sanders and Quinn Ewers are the last contenders with a prayer at +5000. Once the favorite, Ewers would need to close the season with NFL-caliber numbers and hoist a conference trophy to get close. Sanders has played well enough to earn those odds, but they’re ceremonial. Hunter’s presence nullifies any chance for the Colorado quarterback.
It’s likely down to Hunter, Jeanty and Gabriel, leaving the age-old Heisman debate: is a great position player on a good team better than a good quarterback on the best one?
(Photo of Travis Hunter: Stephen Garcia / Avalanche-Journal / USA Today Network via Imagn Images)
