For the past two weeks, Dak Prescott has been at the top of our Heisman poll. With a win over Kentucky this weekend, would he be able to prevent Marcus Mariota and Jameis Winston from taking over the top spot? With Winston being idle, would that work against him after the momentum he gained from his victory over Notre Dame? After some impressive showings throughout the country, would we have any newcomers to the top five?
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What you’ll see each week in the Bloguin Heisman Poll:
* The top five total vote getters, with quotes from the voters in support of their candidate
* A list of all players receiving votes
* Poll notes that look at some interesting facts, figures and trends of the poll
* The BHP Roll Call of voters, with links to their respective blogs and twitter accounts
Here’s the newest Bloguin Heisman Poll:
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1) Dak Prescott (QB – Mississippi State): 19 points, 34.55% of votes, 3 first-place votes
Last week BHP ranking: No. 1
Last week: Beat Kentucky (5-3), 45-31
Game Stats: 18 of 33 passing for 216 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT, 88 yards rushing with 2 rushing TD
Season: 114 of 189 passing (60.3%) for 1,694 yards, 15 TD vs 5 INT, 124 carries for 664 yards and 10 rushing TD, 2 receptions, 1 receiving TD
This week: vs Arkansas (4-4)
COMMENTS
Through seven games last season, the Bulldogs were 4-3. This year they’ve turned the corner, and a big reason is Prescott’s play on the field, which includes his in-game leadership. Dan Mullen’s offense requires the quarterback to be the focal point of the offense and Prescott has really evolved into that focal point this season. The Bulldogs still have key games down the stretch, but right now Prescott is playing like a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback.
– Kevin Causey, The Student Section
Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott was not his sharpest on Saturday, but still had three total touchdowns, giving him 25 for the season.
– Mike Ferguson, Noled Out
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2) Marcus Mariota (QB – Oregon): 16 points, 29.09% of votes, 4 first-place votes
Last week BHP ranking: No. 2 (tie)
Last week: Beat Cal (4-4), 59-41
Game Stats: 18 of 30 passing (60%) for 326 yds with 5 TD and 1 INT; 36 yards rushing
Season: 150 of 218 passing (68.8%) for 2,283 yds with 24 TD and 1 INT, 325 yds rushing, 5 rushing TD, 1 reception
This week: vs Stanford (5-3)
COMMENTS
I keep going back and forth over who should be on top of my Heisman list each week. I could probably draw a name out of a hat and be just as happy with the result, but I will go with Mariota because he has been very accruate this season. I have more faith he makes the big play right now compared to some other viable candidates.
– Kevin McGuire, The Student Section
Are you not entertained? Marcus Mariota throws 5 touchdowns and the season’s first interception of the year (after 253 pick-less attempts) in a 59-41 win over Cal. He also eluded the rush with dazzling eyes-in-the-back-of-head-regularity and scrambled for key first downs. He’s cool, he’s efficient, and he’s 7-1.
– Dale Newton, The Duck Stops Here
After not ranking him at all this year I’m convinced he is the best in college football. It’s his to lose.
– Scott Halasz – Buckeye Battle Cry
3) Jameis Winston (QB – Florida State): 7 points, 12.73% of votes, 2 first-place votes
Last week BHP ranking: No. 2 (tie)
Last week: Idle
Season: 149 of 211 passing (70.6%) for 1,878 yards, 13 TD vs 6 INT, 3 rushing TD
This week: Thursday at Louisville (6-2)
COMMENTS
While the ‘Noles were idle this weekend, Winston is easily the favorite because he takes his play to another level when his team needs it the most. On those rare occassions when Florida State has trailed this year, Winston has responded by completing 76% of his passes for 638 yards and 6 TDs. With a strong performance against Louisville-which boasts the top defense in the nation-I like his chances to join Archie Griffin as the only man to win two Heismans.
– Terry Johnson, The Student Section
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4) Ameer Abdullah (RB – Nebraska): 5 points, 9.09% of votes, 0 first-place votes
Last week BHP ranking: not ranked
Last week: beat Rutgers (5-3), 42-24
Game Stats: 19 carries for 225 yards (11.84 ypc) with 3 TD; 2 receptions; 2 kickoff returns for an average of 45 yards
Season: 180 rushes for 1,249 yards (6.94 ypc) and 17 rushing TD, 13 receptions, 2 receiving TD
This week: vs Purdue (3-5)
5) Trevone Boykin (QB – TCU): 3 points, 5.45% of votes, 0 first-place votes
Last week BHP ranking: not ranked
Last week: Beat Texas Tech (3-5) 82-27
Game Stats: 22 of 39 passing for 322 yards with 7 TDs and 0 INT, 28 yards rushing
Season: 168 of 286 passing (58.7%) for 2,306 yards with 21 TD and 3 INT, 374 yards rushing with 3 rushing TD
This week: at No. 20 West Virginia (6-2)
Also receiving votes: Melvin Gordon (RB – Wisconsin), 2 points; Amari Cooper (WR – Alabama), 2 points; Tevin Coleman (RB – Indiana), 1 point
Dropped Out: Everett Golson (QB – Notre Dame); Kevin White (WR – West Virginia); J.T. Barrett (QB – Ohio State)
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Poll Notes:
– At this point in the season, Andrew Luck continued to lead the 2011 poll; the leader in the 2012 poll for the second consecutive week was Collin Klein; in the 2013 poll, Jameis Winston took over the lead for the first time
– How close were the other races at this point in the season in the past? In 2011, Luck extended his lead to 13.34 % over Trent Richardson. In 2012, Collin Klein led by 15 % over Manti Te’o. In 2013, Winston had 43.75 % of the vote, while second-place Marcus Mariota had 37.5 %.
– Out of sight, out of mind? Last week’s poll saw Dak Prescott’s lead slip a bit as his team sat idle. This week it was Jameis Winston who felt the pain. Winston saw a drop of 11.34 % as well as the loss of a first-place vote.
– Marcus Mariota saw a rise in his stock this past week after playing on Friday night against Cal. Mariota finished with four first-place votes, which is one more than Dak Prescott received this week.
– While Prescott was beaten out by Mariota for the most first-place votes, Prescott was the only candidate to place on every ballot. Mariota was left off of two ballots. Fourth-place finisher Ameer Abdullah placed on four ballots, which was one more than third-place finisher Jameis Winston.
– One game to watch with Heisman implications is TCU-West Virginia. It’s amazing how things change during the season, isn’t it? Trevone Boykin got a lot of recognition last week when TCU put up 82 points, and WVU’s Kevin White is second in the nation with 72 receptions.
– Jameis Winston and Florida State have center stage on Thursday against Louisville. They also face a Louisville defense that has been statistically impressive although, the Cardinals’ defense remains relatively untested. Mariota saw a rise in his votes after a Friday game; will Winston see the same after getting a little time to himself and being featured on Thursday night?
– The Student Section‘s managing editor, Matt Zemek, has chosen to abstain from voting until the second poll of November.
Bloguin Heisman Poll Roll Call
Andrew Coppens – Madtown Badgers (@andyonfootball)
Bart Doan – The Student Section (@TheCoachBart)
Dale Newton – The Duck Stops Here (@DSH_Newton)
Kevin Causey – The Student Section (@CFBZ)
Kevin McGuire – Nittany Lions Den/The Student Section (@kevinoncfb)
Matt Zemek – The Student Section (@SectionMZ)
Mike Ferguson – Noled Out (@Noled_Out)
Scott King – Bearcats Blog/The Student Section (@bearcatsblog)
Scott Halasz – Buckeye Battle Cry (@ohiostatescott)
Terry Johnson – The Student Section (@SectionTPJ)
