This past weekend the Heisman Trophy race exploded. Or, maybe a proper term to use is imploded. Front-runner Leonard Fournette got shut down by the Alabama defense. Trevone Boykin got lassoed by the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Paxton Lynch got torpedoed by Navy. Our top three vote getters from last week all lost.
What does this mean for the Heisman Trophy race? It means that we are back to square one. The race was once thought of as Leonard Fournette and everybody else. Now, it’s anybody’s ballgame.
After the chaos of this past weekend, let’s take a look at how our voters cast their ballots.
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What you’ll see each week in the TSS Heisman Poll:
* The top 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 TSSHP Roll Call of voters, with links to their respective blogs and twitter accounts
Without any further ado, the third 2015 installment of the TSS Heisman Poll:
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1) Leonard Fournette (RB – LSU): 16 points, 26.6% of votes, 4 first-place votes
Last week ranking: No. 1
Last week: Lost to Alabama 30-16
Game stats: 19 carries for 31 yards, 1.63 ypc, 1 TD
Season stats: 195 carries for 1,383 yards, 7.09 ypc, 16 rushing TD, 7 receptions
This week: vs Arkansas (5-4)
COMMENTS
– Kevin McGuire, The Student Section
There seems to be a willingness to ignore all of Fournette’s success after his struggles against Alabama. 31 yards on 19 yards withstanding, his numbers are still crazy stupid. The overreaction will be real, but few Heisman winners go through an entire season without an iffy performance. That said, I can admit that the gap between Fournette being guaranteed the trophy and the rest of the contenders has closed.
– Joseph Nardone, The Student Section
Not ready to make a switch after one subpar game. He’s still the best college football has to offer. The fact that Alabama focused all its attention on him speaks volumes.
– Scott Halasz, Buckeye Battle Cry
2) Derrick Henry (RB – Alabama): 13 points, 21.67% of votes, 2 first-place votes
Last week ranking: not ranked
Last week: Beat LSU 30-16
Game stats: 38 carries for 210 yards, 5.53 ypc, 3 TD
Season stats: 218 carries, 1254 yds rushing, 5.75 ypc, 17 rushing TD, 8 receptions
This week: at Mississippi State (7-2)
Make no mistake about it: Henry was the best running back on the field on Saturday night, running for 210 yards against an LSU D that came into the game as the nation’s sixth best run defense. He’s been especially impressive in big games this year, averaging 178.5 yards per game against ranked opponents.
– Terry Johnson, The Student Section
Leonard Fournette has had a fantastic year. After a 31-yard performance in his team’s biggest game of the year, I just simply can’t put him first on my ballot. After Derrick Henry’s performance against LSU and the Tide’s drubbing of the Tigers, he takes pole position for me. Over the last three games, he is averaging 196 yards per game. Can he keep up this type of pace?
– Kevin Causey, The Student Section
3) Deshaun Watson (QB – Clemson): 10 points, 16.6% of votes, 2 first-place votes
Last week ranking: No. 5
Last week: Beat Florida State 23-13
Game stats: 28 of 42 passing (66.7%) for 297 yards and 1 TD vs 0 INT, 107 yds rushing
Season stats: 182 of 261 passing (69.7%) for 1,936 yards with 21 TD vs 7 INT, 493 yds rushing, 4 rushing TD
This week: at Syracuse (3-6)
While the Florida State game Saturday was not his most accurate showing, Watson did enough to make Clemson the front runner for the college football playoff to date. He did it with his arm and legs against Florida State and without one, it easily could have been a loss. The versatility takes Watson to the top of the list.
– Ryan Palencer, The Student Section
Watson has torn the ACC apart over the last five weeks, capped off by his huge national spotlight game against Florida State. While Watson’s numbers aren’t the most eye popping, I’m kind of copping out by picking the best player on (who in my opinion is) the best team. Watson had a monster week, and it seems there should be some sort of shakeup at the top.
– Scott King, Bearcats Blog
4) Ezekiel Elliott (RB – Ohio State): 6 points, 10.0% of votes, 0 first-place votes
Last week ranking: No. 4
Last week: Beat Minnesota 28-14
Game stats: 26 rushes for 114 yards with 1 TD, 1 reception
Season stats: 193 rushes for 1,244 yards with 14 TD, 6.45 ypc, 24 receptions
This week: at Illinois (5-4)
Also receiving votes: Will Fuller (WR- Notre Dame), 3 points; Dalvin Cook (RB- Florida State), 3 points; Corey Coleman (WR- Baylor) 3 points; Keenan Reynolds (QB- Navy) 2 points; Christian McCaffrey (RB – Stanford), 2 points; Trevone Boykin (QB- TCU) 1 point; Greg Ward Jr. (QB – Houston), 1 point;
Dropped Out: Connor Cook (QB- Michigan State), Paxton Lynch (QB- Memphis)
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Poll Notes:
– Leaders from the past: At this point in the 2011 season, Andrew Luck was once again at the top of our poll and seemed destined for the Heisman. In 2012, Collin Klein remained in first place for the third straight week. In 2013, Jameis Winston held onto a close lead over Marcus Mariota. Last season, a dominant win over Stanford moved Mariota into the lead.
– After dominating the poll, a poor performance against Alabama has put Leonard Fournette’s Heisman run into question. Fournette still has his fans as he continues to lead the poll but he was left completely off four ballots. As a comparison, Derrick Henry was left off of only two ballots.
– Despite us adding a voter this week (The Student Section‘s managing editor, Matt Zemek, cast his first ballot this week), Fournette lost six points. However, he fared much better than Trevone Boykin and Paxton Lynch. Boykin went from 13 points to just 1 and Paxton went from 6 points to 0.
– A big head-to-head victory by Alabama over LSU has put Derrick Henry into the Heisman mix. Henry had only three voters put him into the top two but he was on all ballots except two. This shows that voters are interested in Henry but need to see more.
– Deshaun Watson benefited greatly from the fall of Lynch and Boykin. Watson placed on only four ballots but those four voters all had him first or second on their ballots.
– 11 players recievers votes this week versus 8 from last week. A sign that the race has opened up after Fournette, Boykin and Paxton’s poor outings.
– A case for Florida State RB Dalvin Cook by Matt Zemek:
– A case for Notre Dame WR Will Fuller by Bart Doan:
I probably won’t get any agreement on this so you’ll never read it, faithful reader, but Fuller is a bad, bad man. He has at least one touchdown in every game but one, and multiple touchdowns in three, including three this past weekend against Pitt. Wide receivers are becoming more and more important in both the NFL and college football, and Fuller is the best at this moment at the NCAA level. Fuller has helped make Deshone Kizer’s transition from backup to surprise starter filling in for a would-be Heisman candidate a smooth one.
Keep an eye on: Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma. The Oklahoma Sooners travel to face the Baylor Bears in a key Big 12 match up this weekend. All eyes will be on Baylor WR Corey Coleman and QB Jarrett Stidham but it could be Mayfield that comes out of this game looking the best.
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TSS Heisman Poll Roll Call
Andrew Coppens – Madtown Badgers (@andyonfootball)
Bart Doan – The Student Section (@TheCoachBart)
Joseph Nardone- The Student Section (@JosephNardone)
Kevin Causey – The Student Section (@CFBZ)
Kevin McGuire – Nittany Lions Den/The Student Section (@kevinoncfb)
Matt Zemek – The Student Section (@SectionMZ)
Ryan Palencer- The Student Section (@RyanPalencer)
Scott King – Bearcats Blog/The Student Section (@bearcatsblog)
Scott Halasz – Buckeye Battle Cry (@ohiostatescott)
Terry Johnson – The Student Section (@SectionTPJ)
