Heisman Front Runners 2023: Top 5 contenders going into college football Week 5 feat. Michael Penix Jr., Caleb Williams and more
The 2023 Heisman Trophy candidates have been excelling throughout the first four weeks of the college football season. Although this list will probably shift around as the season goes on, the top five currently comprise quarterbacks. Let's take a look at the ranking going into Week 5 of the season for the most prestigious individual award in college football.
5. Jordan Travis
Senior quarterback Jordan Travis has made a name for himself with the Florida State Seminoles after winning the Heisman Trophy this season. He is currently 74-of-121 (61.2 completion percentage) for 1,028 yards with 10 touchdown throws to a single interception while running 23 times for 94 (4.1 yards per carry) with a pair of rushing touchdowns. Travis needs to continue putting up numbers to compete with some of the other guys on this list
4. Bo Nix
Senior quarterback Bo Nix has been doing wonders for the Oregon Ducks this season. He has thrown 131 passes and completed 104 of them (79.4 completion percentage) for 1,169 yards with 11 touchdowns and one interception up to this point. Nix even adds a sliver of a running game to his Heisman audition tape, as he has run 16 times for 69 yards (4.3 yards per attempt) with a rushing touchdown.
3. Quinn Ewers
Quinn Ewers has been playing very well for the Texas Longhorns but does not have the incredible numbers as the two players ahead of him on this list. He is currently 72-of-112 (64.3 completion percentage) for 1,033 yards with nine touchdowns and zero interceptions while running 18 times for 34 yards (1.9 yards per attempt) with three rushing touchdowns. He has done well in a Texas system that questioned if he would even win the starting quarterback job.
2. Michael Penix Jr.
Washington Huskies quarterback Michael Penix Jr. has been doing extremely well this season and could be first on this list very soon. He currently leads college football with a 93.7 QBR (scale of 1-100) and is dominating the counting stats. He is currently 103-of-139 (74.6 completion percentage) for 1,636 yards with 16 touchdown passes to two interceptions. His yardage and accuracy make it tough to count him out.
Top Heisman candidate: Caleb Williams
This should not come as a surprise to anyone as Caleb Williams is the reigning Heisman Trophy winner dominating for the USC Trojans once again. So far, he is 75-of-101 (74.3 completion percentage) for 1,200 yards with 15 touchdown passes and zero interceptions. It will be difficult to surpass him but Penix Jr is definitely on his tail at the moment.