There were no major upsets in College Football during Week 4, but Auburn almost upsetting Oklahoma only boosted John Mateer‘s standing after a game-winning touchdown, while Fernando Mendoza of Indiana came out of nowhere to enter the race!
Entering Week 5, all eyes are on Dante Moore as he goes to Penn State during a white-out, while Garrett Nussmeier and LSU take on Ole Miss as underdogs. Carson Beck is on a bye week, which opens the door for Gunner Stockton, but while in the same game, can Ryan Williams enter the Heisman conversation alongside fellow star receiver Jeremiah Smith?
Be sure to check out DraftKings for all the latest game odds & team props for every matchup this week on the College Football schedule!
Vaughn Dalzell’s Heisman Trophy Week 5 Heisman Poll
Last Game: 300 total yards, 24/36 passing, 2 total TDs (24-17 win vs Auburn)
Season Stats: 1,215 passing yards, 190 rushing yards, 67.4 comp %, 11 total TDs, 3 INTs
There’s nothing like a game-winning touchdown to solidify your place atop the Heisman race. John Mateer totaled 300 yards and two touchdowns against Auburn with the dagger coming from nine yards out and 4:54 to go.
Mateer has collected wins over Michigan and Auburn, but the only road game so far was at Temple. After the bye week, Kent State visits Norman, then Oklahoma has a neutral field contest versus Texas before going to South Carolina for the first true road test.
The road to a Heisman also goes through six ranked conference opponents, so I am not running to bet Mateer, but I do believe he is deserving of the No. 1 spot this week.
Last Game: 160 passing yards on 17/30, 1 interception vs Florida (26-7 win)
Season Stats: 972 passing yards, 73.2 comp %, 8 total TDs, 3 INTs
Carson Beck now has wins over Notre Dame, South Florida, Florida and Bethune-Cookman through the first month of the season, which isn’t too shabby.
However, Beck didn’t record a touchdown in the 19-point win over Florida and threw an interception, his third over the last two games. With Florida State on deck after the bye week, Beck could surpass John Mateer in odds over the next two weeks.
Last Game: 273 passing yards on 25/31, 3 TDs vs SE Louisiana (56-10 win)
Season Stats: 962 passing yards, 68.6 comp %, 6 TDs, 2 INTs
The LSU offense finally broke the 30-point mark, but needed an FCS team to do. The Tigers punted on their opening drive then strung together eight consecutive scoring drives versus SE Louisiana.
LSU goes to Ole Miss for their first road game since Week 1 at Clemson. The Tigers are underdogs and LSU won a thriller 29-26 in OT versus Ole Miss last year. Garrett Nussmeier went 22-of-51 in that classic for 337 passing yards, three touchdowns, and two picks in a head-to-head with the New York Giants newest starting QB, Jaxson Dart.
Last Game: 305 passing yards on 21/31, 4 TDs vs Oregon State (41-7 win)
Season Stats: 962 passing yards, 74.7 comp %, 11 TDs, 1 INT
Everything is on the line when Oregon meets Penn State Saturday night in Happy Valley! Penn State has played a cupcake schedule and the Ducks enter with nation’s 7th-highest scoring offense (50.8 PPG) led by Dante Moore.
Last week, Moore threw a career-high four touchdowns to four different receivers as Oregon amassed 585 yards of offense and 41 points. That was a bit of revenge for Moore who tossed three interceptions against Oregon State in 2023 as a true freshman at UCLA.
A win at Penn State makes Moore the favorite to win the Heisman and an obvious bet at that point. Indiana, USC, Washington, and Iowa are the four best opponents remaining and Oregon can win all four.
Last Game: 267 passing yards on 21/23, 5 TDs vs Illinois (63-10 win)
Season Stats: 975 passing yards, 76.8 comp %, 16 total TDs, 0 INTs
No one was taking about or betting on Fernando Mendoza to win the Heisman, but he is in the conversation now. The AP Poll might be overreacting to putting the Hoosiers at No. 11 in my opinion, as I thought Illinois was overrated, but here we are.
I will temper expectations for Mendoza and Indiana, but he has been spectacular with 14 passing touchdowns, two rushing scores and zero turnovers through four games. The Hoosiers average the third-most rushing yards per game in the country (308.8), second in total yards (588.5), and third in points per game (54.8).
Indiana will go to Iowa with an advantageous matchup against an exposed Hawkeyes defense following a 38-28 win at Rutgers. The Hoosiers have a bye week following the Iowa matchup and have road games at Oregon and Penn State on the schedule, so like I said, I am tempering expectations.
Honorable Mentions
Last Game: 397 total yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT vs Notre Dame (41-40 win)
Season Stats: 1,011 total yards, 58.6 comp %, 10 total TDs, 1 INT
Marcel Reed and the Aggies are coming off a bye week following the upset win at Notre Dame. Texas A&M has three straight home games versus Auburn, Mississippi State, and Florida before going back on the road for three consecutive road games at Arkansas, LSU, and Missouri.
Texas A&M started 7-1 last year before losing four of the next five games to end the season. The Aggies have started off hot once again, but that three-game road stretch will tell us all we need to know about Reed and A&M.
Last Game: 9 receptions, 153 yards, 17.0 ypc, 1 TD vs Ohio (37-9 win)
Season Stats: 20 receptions, 315 yards, 15.8 ypc, 3 TDs
Jeremiah Smith and the Ohio State Buckeyes are coming off a bye week following the 37-9 win against Ohio. Smith has put up back-to-back monster games of 119 and 153 yards with three total touchdowns versus non-P4 teams.
Smith scored in six out of nine games versus Big Ten opponents last season and 100 yards in two of those. Smith has not yet had a multi touchdown game versus a conference opponent, so that could boost his Heisman odds if he does so in OSU’s first road game of the year.
Last Game: 342 total yards on 26/34, 3 total TDs vs Tennessee (44-41 OT win)
Season Stats: 845 total yards, 70.8 comp %, 7 total TDs, 0 INTs
Gunner Stockton and Georgia come off a bye week to take on Ty Simpson, Ryan Williams, and Alabama’s hot offense. Georgia is a short favorite in a coin flip of a game.
Stockton is coming off over 300 yards and three touchdowns in a 44-41 OT win at Tennessee. He’s never played Alabama or had back-to-back 300-yard performances, so all eyes will be on how legit Stockton with only 2.5 games of P4 experience under his belt.
Last Game: 205 passing yards on 10/13, 2 rushing TDs, 1 INT vs Kent State (66-10 win)
Season Stats: 594 passing yards, 139 rushing yards, 71.1 comp %, 6 Total TDs, 1 INT
Florida State walked all over Kent State jumping out to a 35-7 first quarter lead before a weather delay hampered the viewing pleasure of the Seminoles offense.
FSU leads the P4 in rushing yards per game (363.0) and is second overall (Navy 375.6 ypg) with Tommy Castellanos being a large reason why. He added two scores on the ground against Kent State and has three on the year along with three through the air.
Castellanos is 1-1 in his career against Virginia with four touchdowns and four interceptions. This is the first road game of the year for the Seminoles and another opportunity for Castellanos to quickly climb the board.
Last Game: 320 total yards, 5 total TDs vs Sam Houston (55-0 win)
Season Stats: 888 total yards, 61.3 comp %, 14 total TDs, 3 INTs
The Arch Manning experience is like a light switch, on and off. After a 165-yard and three touchdown performance against UTEP, Manning went for 320 yards and five total touchdowns in a shutout over Sam Houston, which didn’t move his odds a single cent.
Manning and Texas spend all of October away from home with three true road games and one neutral field contest. This month is where Manning makes his bread and butter or burns his toast.
Stock Up:
Last Game: 267 passing yards on 21/23, 5 TDs vs Illinois (63-10 win)
Season Stats: 975 passing yards, 76.8 comp %, 16 total TDs, 0 INTs
No one was taking about Fernando Mendoza to win the Heisman, but he is in the conversation now after a 63-10 win over ranked Illinois. Mendoza has 16 total touchdowns to zero interceptions through four games, which only Gunner Stockton can say from this list.
Stock Down:
Last Game: 162 passing yards on 25/38, 2 INTs vs Texas Tech (34-10 loss)
Season Stats: 826 total yards, 70.9 comp %, 8 Total TDs, 2 INTs
Devon Dampier was easily the biggest loser in the Heisman race after two interceptions, one fumble, and zero touchdowns against Texas Tech.
Dampier was right in the thick of the Heisman race on entering last Saturday and with Texas Tech’s QB, Beheren Morton (+7500) going down with an injury in the third quarter of a 10-3 game, the game was Utah’s for the taking. However, Dampier and the offense was held to seven second-half points at home and the Utes lost 34-10. The path may be nonexistent for Dampier now and unlikely for Morton.
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