Heisman Trophy 2014 Stock Watch: Who Is Rising and Falling Post-Week 11?
The new playoff system in college football has led to almost non-stop debate since the first rankings were released, though ultimately the decision of who will play in the semifinals rests in a selection committee. That means all of the talk of who is most deserving is just that, talk.
Not the case with the Heisman Trophy, which is decided based on votes from 929 media members, former Heisman winners and a single fan-fueled ballot. It's a public award and, therefore, very influenced by public opinion.
That means when a contender has a good game, or a bad one, it's talked about all over the country. Get enough people talking in one direction or another, and a player's stock either shoots through the roof or falls off the cliff.
Where do the top candidates stand right now? Check out our updated stock watch, then give us your thoughts in the comments section.
J.T. Barrett, QB, Ohio State
1 of 10
Rising
The past two seasons, the eventual Heisman Trophy winner entered the year without having ever taken a college snap. No one knew what to expect from Johnny Manziel or Jameis Winston, but by season's end they were no doubt the best in the land.
Is that what's happening again this season, with redshirt freshman quarterback J.T. Barrett?
Barrett was thrust into action late in the preseason when Braxton Miller went down with a season-ending shoulder injury. Barrett's early results weren't impressive, particularly his 9-of-29, three-interception performance in Ohio State's loss to Virginia Tech.
But since then, he has arguably been the hottest quarterback in the country, with 23 touchdowns and three interceptions in the past seven games. Even when he had a bad passing game two weeks ago at Penn State, Barrett made up for it by scoring two of his eight rushing TDs on the season.
Barrett's 25 TD passes are second-most among Heisman contenders, behind only Oregon's Marcus Mariota.
"With the way this year's Heisman race is playing out, the Scarlet and Gray likely won't add an eighth award to their trophy case, but the truth of the matter is that Buckeyes quarterback J.T. Barrett is having a season that should be giving him a lot more consideration for the award than he is currently receiving," wrote ESPN.com's KC Joyner.
The late start to his rise might keep Barrett from getting an invite to New York, but he's certainly on the radar and, if he continues at this pace, will be a frontrunner in 2015.
Trevone Boykin, QB, TCU
2 of 10
Rising
As the most improved player on a vastly upgraded offense, Trevone Boykin is becoming a serious Heisman candidate as he pushes TCU toward a spot in the playoffs. And coming off his best all-around performance of the season, the junior quarterback is riding a huge wave of momentum.
Boykin threw for 219 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 123 yards and three scores in the Horned Frogs' 41-20 win over Kansas State in a battle of one-loss teams last Saturday. With TCU missing top running back B.J. Catalon, Boykin showed off his wheels more than in any other game this season, while also completing more than two-thirds of his passes in a game for the third time in 2014.
He moved up to fourth in CBS Sports' Heisman poll after that game, but Boykin isn't buying into the hype.
"I'm canceling the Heisman talk," Boykin told Max Olson of ESPN.com. "It's an honor and a blessing to be in it, and if I win it, I'm truly blessed if I do. It's not something I'm really focused on right now. Our team is progressing in the way we wanted. That's just my main focus."
Unfortunately, Boykin doesn't have any great chances to showcase his unwanted candidacy, as TCU's remaining three games are against teams with a combined record of 10-18. The most notable game left would be a Thanksgiving Day road matchup against 5-5 Texas.
Everett Golson, QB, Notre Dame
3 of 10
Falling
Everett Golson's Heisman candidacy was already on shaky ground before last week's game at Arizona State. But with each of his five—five!—turnovers against the Sun Devils, that already-dwindling campaign fizzled even more.
You could almost say Golson's last hope for getting onto the final list of contenders, much like Notre Dame's chances of being in the playoffs, ran the opposite direction when ASU's Lloyd Carrington returned an interception for a touchdown during the fourth quarter of that 55-31 loss. It was Golson's fifth giveaway and second pick-six of the day, but it came after he'd gotten the Fighting Irish back into a game that they were trailing by 31 points at halftime.
Golson's overall numbers are strong, with 2,757 passing yards and 24 touchdowns (as well as seven rushing TDs), but what can't be ignored are his 17 turnovers in the past six games. Even had Notre Dame managed to win at ASU, it would be hard to keep in the Heisman conversation a quarterback who has made so many mistakes.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Todd Gurley, Georgia
4 of 10
Falling
Much like Nebraska found itself dropping in the College Football Playoff poll despite being on a bye, Georgia running back Todd Gurley has fallen out of the Heisman race because of his inactivity.
The reasons are twofold. First, Gurley's absence was due to a four-game NCAA suspension for accepting money in exchange for autographs, so being off the field and unable to add to his impressive stats (773 yards and eight touchdowns in five games) has by default made his stock fall. Assuming he had been able to maintain that pace during those four missed games, Gurley would rank behind only Wisconsin's Melvin Gordon in yards per game.
The other argument against Gurley lies in what Georgia did without him. More specifically, what freshman Nick Chubb accomplished in four games as a fill-in.
Chubb ran for 671 yards and five TDs as the feature back, a better rate than Gurley. This isn't as much about how good Chubb is as it is an example of Georgia's system being favorable to running backs. Offensive coordinator Mike Bobo, when devoting to the run, has seen the Bulldogs average 256.3 yards per game, and that's been possible with or without Gurley.
Had Georgia struggled (beyond losing to Florida, but that was more a defensive issue than anything to do with an ineffective running game), Gurley could jump back into the race. But with Chubb running so well, Gurley's candidacy is effectively over.
Gerod Holliman, S, Louisville
5 of 10
Rising
Let's get this out of the way, first: There's no way a defensive back from a team that will finish no better than third in its division is going to win the Heisman.
That being said, Louisville's Gerod Holliman is going to get some votes, particularly from Heisman voters who like to be diverse with their ballots, and considering the run the sophomore is on, this shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. Being one interception shy of the FBS single-season record with three games left is definitely worthy of some praise.
Holliman had flown mostly under the radar for the Cardinals until he showed off his talents against defending national champion Florida State, when he intercepted two Jameis Winston passes (though he ended up coughing one of them up on the runback). Then, last Saturday, Holliman picked off Boston College's Tyler Murphy three times in a 38-19 road win, giving him 13 INTS in 10 games.
The FBS record is 14, set in 1968 by Washington's Al Worley.
Brett Hundley, QB, UCLA
6 of 10
Rising
UCLA was one of the trendy dark-horse picks for the national title before the season began, and by rule that meant quarterback Brett Hundley was considered an early contender for the Heisman. The Bruins' championship hopes are gone, compliments of an uneven start to the season and back-to-back home losses to Utah and Oregon.
Hundley, though, remains in the conversation for the Heisman, and his stock is on its way up as he's gotten UCLA back on track and still in the hunt for the Pac-12's South Division title. Though a half-game behind leader Arizona State, the Bruins hold the tiebreaker for winning at ASU in September.
Hundley had a huge game that night, then UCLA's inability to protect him caught up in the ensuing losses to Utah and Oregon. The junior has been sacked 29 times this season, a good portion coming in those two games, and since then he's had to work extra hard to elude pass-rushers, while still managing to put up big numbers.
Last week's 44-30 win at UCLA saw Hundley at his very best. He completed 29 of 36 passes for 302 yards and two touchdowns, adding a pair of rushing scores. He ran for only 18 yards (compared to 241 in the previous two games) but made those yards count.
UCLA's remaining regular-season games are both matchups that could keep Hundley's stock on the rise. First up is the Nov. 22 game against rival USC, then the following week UCLA is at home against Stanford and its talented defense.
Marcus Mariota, QB, Oregon
7 of 10
Rising
With 29 touchdowns against only two interceptions, a 67.1 percent completion rate and an FBS-leading 10 yards per pass attempt, Oregon's Marcus Mariota is statistically the best quarterback in the country. And with the Ducks moving up to second in the playoff rankings, his stock continues to fly high.
Mariota hasn't had a bad game, the closest being when he lost two fumbles in the loss to Arizona—the same game he threw for 276 yards and two touchdowns and also caught a TD pass, while trucking a defender along the way. The Ducks have won five in a row, and he's contributed 19 touchdowns through the air or on the ground during that winning streak.
Last time out, Mariota threw three TD passes and ran for a season-high 114 yards and a TD at Utah, negating the Utes' talented sack-heavy front seven en route to a 51-27 victory.
"Mariota's fourth-quarter play against Utah last week was simply marvelous," wrote Yahoo Sports' Graham Watson. "When the Utes crawled within a score heading into the fourth, Mariota went on to lead four scoring drives and throw a touchdown pass and rush for another score."
Mariota's stock was high at the beginning of the season, yet it's managed to keep going up after every game. Colorado and Oregon State won't be the toughest foes for him down the stretch, so don't expect him to lose any momentum as the season winds down.
Dak Prescott, Mississippi State
8 of 10
Rising
Only a select few preseason Heisman predictions featured Dak Prescott's name, and it usually included "dark horse" or "long shot" next to it. But with each game he's played this year, the Mississippi State quarterback has taken himself off those ancillary lists and rapidly toward the top of the true contender ranks.
Prescott has become a complete quarterback this season after being more of a run-first guy in 2013. He's thrown for 2,231 yards and 18 touchdowns—he had 1,940 with 10 TDs in 11 games last year—while he continues to be one of the most dangerous dual-threat quarterbacks in the game. Prescott has run for 779 yards and 11 TDs, a rushing tally that ranks behind only option and run-first QBs Tyler Murphy of Boston College, Kevin Ellison of Georgia Southern and Justin Thomas of Georgia Tech.
While Mississippi State's rise to No. 1 has been a product of many different factors, none have been more important than what Prescott has done. This past game against FCS UT-Martin didn't do much to help his stock, but it's been on the rise throughout the season and will get a huge boost with a strong performance at Alabama.
Being the quarterback on the top-ranked team traditionally has been a good barometer for Heisman success, particularly if the numbers are good, as Jameis Winston was in that position last season and Cam Newton fit that bill in 2010.
Shaq Thompson, RB/LB, Washington
9 of 10
Rising
Again, we need to start with a caveat: just like with Gerod Holliman, Shaq Thompson doesn't really have a legitimate chance to win the Heisman. His Washington team has lost four games and, because of a 13-game regular-season schedule, needs another win just to be bowl-eligible.
But even with the deck stacked against him, Thompson's stock will continue to go up as long as he serves as the Huskies' most valuable and dynamic player and he keeps finding new ways to make contributions.
The junior is coming off his second straight 100-yard game, starting at running back for Washington for the third game in a row in hopes of sparking the offense. This Saturday against Arizona, he's headed back to linebacker, where he's made 57 tackles, recovered three fumbles and intercepted a pass.
Oh, and scored touchdowns on all four of those takeaways.
Thompson played on both sides of the ball last week against UCLA, and very likely will again this week. With a better overall team, possibly in 2015, he'd be a more legitimate candidate, though Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez is hoping that never happens.
"Rodriguez says Shaq Thompson needs to declare for the Draft before he goes on the plane..." tweeted Jason Scheer of WildcatAuthority.com.
Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State
10 of 10
Falling
His various off-the-field incidents have likely soured a lot of Heisman voters, despite "integrity" getting briefly omitted from the award's Web site earlier this season. But even if voters were able to focus only on Jameis Winston's on-field performance, there's been too many mistakes of late to keep him in the running for a repeat performance.
Winston has thrown five interceptions in the past two games, including his first three-pick game in the Seminoles' comeback win at Louisville on Oct. 30. He's been intercepted 11 times this season, compared to 10 in 14 games during his Heisman-winning season of 2013.
The sophomore's other numbers remain exceptional, however, and are ahead of last year's pace. He's averaging 317.5 yards per game, up from 289.8, an increase helped by the fact Florida State has had to come from behind in several contests.
But of late, Winston's miscues have been a big part of why the Seminoles need to rally. This is tantamount to a basketball player one rebound short of a triple-double deliberately missing a layup so he could get the putback; putting himself and his team in a hole, only to dig them out of it, isn't helping Winston's chances of being a two-time Heisman winner.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
