Our Heisman Trophy poll debuted last week with Louisville Cardinals quarterback Lamar Jackson at the head of the class. Jackson garnered six of nine first place votes and had a sizable lead over the rest of the pack.
At this point of the season, the Heisman race is really just getting started. There are still big games to be played down the stretch including rivalry games that don’t always turn out as expected. Heisman moments will still be had in the weeks leading up to the end of the season.
The 2016 Heisman Trophy is far from decided. Let’s take a look at where we stand after nine weeks of college football…
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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 TSS Roll Call of voters, with links to their respective blogs and twitter accounts
Without any further ado, the first 2016 installment of the TSS Heisman Poll:
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1) Lamar Jackson (QB – Louisville): 20 points, 37.04% of votes, 6 first-place votes
Last week ranking: No. 1
Last week: Beat Virginia 32-25; 24 of 41 passing for 361 yards with 1 TD vs 1 INT and 88 yards rushing.
Season: 158 of 271 passing for 2522 yards with 22 TD against 5 INT and 996 yards rushing, 6.7 ypc, 16 rushing TD
This week: at Boston College (4-4)
COMMENTS
Lamar Jackson is the difference between Louisville being a pretty good team to a possible playoff contender entering November. Against Virginia, when his team needed it the most, Jackson put the team on his back and delivered a win on the road with what some might refer to as a Heisman moment.
– Kevin McGuire, The Comeback
It’s Jackson’s to lose at this point unless one of the other top contenders can string together a run of outlandish play in spotlight games. We’ve become calloused over by the numbers he’s putting up..
– Phil Harrison, The Student Section
Absolutely the best … Still. The country’s No. 7 rusher and No. 12 passer as far as yards go. Beat that.
– Scott Halasz, Buckeye Battle Cry
Unless he stops scoring points the rest of the season, and you know he’ll have fun this weekend at BC, the trophy should be his.
– Michael Abelson, The Student Section
I mean, can we just put that pass against Virginia on constant replay? There also hasn’t been a Heisman Trophy race this over this quick in some time.
– Andrew Coppens, The Comeback
2) Deshaun Watson (QB – Clemson): 11 points, 20.37% of votes, 0 first-place votes
Last week ranking: No. 3 (tied)
Last week: Beat Florida State 37-34; 27 of 43 passing (62%) for 378 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT, 52 yards rushing
Season: 191 of 301 passing (63.5%) for 2,328 yards, 22 TD vs 10 INT, 331 yards and 1 rushing TD
This week: vs Syracuse (4-4)
3) Jake Browning (QB – Washington): 9 points, 16.67% of votes, 2 first-place votes
Last week ranking: No. 3 (tied)
Last week: Beat Utah 31-24; 12 of 20 passing for 186 yards, 2 TD vs 1 INT
Season: 130 of 192 passing (67.7%) for 1,895 yards, 28 TD vs 3 INT, 4 rushing TD
This week: at Cal (4-4)
COMMENTS
Browning doesn’t get the hype or air time that his East Coast competitors do, but his stats are as impressive as anyone’s in the country and he’s still undefeated.
– Yesh Ginsburg, The Student Section
4) Jabrill Peppers (DB/LB – Michigan): 8 points, 14.81% of votes, 1 first-place vote
Last week ranking: No. 2
Last week: Beat Michigan State 32-23; 24 yards rushing, 1 rushing TD, 7 total tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 1 reception, also scored on 2 point conversion after recovering fumble
Season: 48 total tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, 5 QB hurries, 1 forced fumble, 1 punt return for TD, 131 yards rushing, 3 rushing TD, 2 receptions, 1 2 pt conversion
This week: vs Maryland (5-3)
COMMENTS
The best of Peppers was on display at the end of a game this weekend where he ran for a touchdown, played his usual battery of 9 different positions, and ran back a 2-point conversion. There he was, screaming at teammates in jovial fashion, hyped up as he’d been from the coin toss, non stop. He’s not only the most talented player on one of the best teams, he’s the heart and soul of that team.
– Bart Doan, The Student Section
Also receiving votes: Donnel Pumphrey (RB- San Diego State)- 2 points; Austin Carr (WR- Northwestern) 1 point; Logan Woodside (QB- Toledo) 1 point; Curtis Samuel (RB- Ohio State) 1 point; Leonard Fournette (RB- LSU) 1 point
Dropped Out: JT Barrett (QB- Ohio State); Baker Mayfield (QB- Oklahoma); Jalen Hurts (QB- Alabama)
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Poll Notes:
– Leaders from the past: At this point in our past polls, it was all about the quarterbacks (and one running back). After nine weeks here’s who led our Heisman polls in recent years:
2011: Andrew Luck
2012: Collin Klein
2013: Jameis Winston
2014: Dak Prescott
2015: Leonard Fournette
– It’s easy to believe that Lamar Jackson has the Heisman wrapped up this season. He doesn’t. Looking back at our past polls, only 1 of 5 leaders at this point of the season (Winston) went on to win the Heisman. There is still a ton of football to be played.
– The winner this week in the poll was Deshaun Watson as he moved from a tie for third to second place. His prime time victory over Florida State helped him narrow the gap between himself and Lamar Jackson. Out of our top four vote getters, Watson is the only player without a first place vote. None of our voters are sold on Watson winning the Heisman but 5 of 9 have him as the number two player on their ballots.
– Speaking of Lamar Jackson, all of the voters that had him number one last week kept him in the number one spot this week. The reason for his decline in points was that he was on every ballot last week but this week he was dropped off two ballots. Despite his late game heroics, we had a couple of voters that were more impressed with other players.
– The curious case of Jabrill Peppers. Peppers fell from second place this week to fourth place. Before you dig too much into that, he only lost one vote (a voter who had him third last week, dropped him off their ballot). As long as Michigan keeps winning, Peppers candidacy will likely come down to how he plays against Ohio State in the Wolverines finale.
– Right now, this is a four player race. Only four players (Jackson, Watson, Browning, Peppers) appear on multiple ballots. Jackson is on 7 of 9 ballots, Watson is on 6 ballots, Browning is on 5 ballots and Peppers is on 4 ballots. It will be interesting to see who pops up on the radar in the next few weeks (it was almost Dalvin Cook last week).
– Keep an eye on: Alabama defensive lineman Jonathan Allen. Heisman voters like to reward the best teams in the country by putting their best players up for the Heisman. Allen is a dynamic defensive player and if the Tide keep winning, he could see some votes swing his way. He currently has 6 sacks and has scored 2 defensive touchdowns. The Tide have a big game at LSU this weekend and it’s another chance for him to show the voters what he can do in a week where there aren’t many marquee match-ups.
The Comeback Heisman Poll Roll Call
Andrew Coppens – The Comeback/Madtown Badgers (@andyonfootball)
Bart Doan – The Student Section (@TheCoachBart)
Kevin Causey – The Student Section (@CFBZ)
Kevin McGuire – The Comeback/Nittany Lions Den (@kevinoncfb)
Mike Abelson – The Student Section (@ABELSON)
Yesh Ginsburg- The Student Section (@yesh222)
Phil Harrison – The Student Section (@PhilHarrisonCFB)
Scott Halasz – Buckeye Battle Cry (@ohiostatescott)
Terry Johnson – The Student Section (@SectionTPJ)
