College Football Underclassmen with Best Shots to Win Heisman Before Graduating
It wasn't that long ago that the Heisman Trophy was almost exclusively an award given to college football veterans, an honor meant to highlight not just the top player in the game but one who has put together a stellar overall career. From 1935 to 2006, all but 15 of the winners were seniors, with the rest from the junior class.
But since Florida's Tim Tebow won the Heisman in 2007 as a sophomore, the first of three straight winners from that class, the award pool has become decidedly younger. In 2006, Ohio State's Troy Smith was the last senior to be honored, and in 2012-13 we saw our first freshman winners.
Now we have to consider basically every player in college football when handicapping the Heisman race prior to a season. Odds Shark only has three seniors among its top 15 early candidates, one more than the number of sophomores on the list.
Focusing just on college football's current underclassmen—freshmen and sophomores, for those scoring at home—there's no shortage of potential future winners to consider. They might not hoist the trophy this winter or even be invited to the awards show in New York, but before they're done with school they'll get great shots to win.
Here's our list of the 12 current underclassmen with the best chances to win the Heisman by the time they're done with college football.
Jake Browning, QB, Washington
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Jake Browning had to settle for being only the second-best freshman quarterback in the Pac-12 last season, behind UCLA's Josh Rosen. But Browning has a great chance to match or surpass Rosen's notoriety by the time his career is over, being part of a rising young team that head coach Chris Petersen has poised for big things.
A national record-holder from the prep level, Browning came along slowly in 2015 but finished very strong. He threw for 2,955 yards and 16 touchdowns with a pair of four-TD games in the second half of the season, and in his final three starts he completed 74.3 percent of his passes, going 23-for-34 for 284 yards in the Heart of Dallas Bowl.
Browning and running back Myles Gaskin formed the top freshman skill duo in FBS last year, and more of that is expected in 2016 and beyond. Gaskin could be on this list, too, but we went with the passer since the rusher is more likely to turn pro after three seasons if he's still trending up, which would leave Browning on his own to shine as a senior in 2018.
Jacob Eason, QB, Georgia
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All we've seen of him so far is half of a spring game, but in this age of instant stardom in college sports it's more than enough to indicate Jacob Eason has the chance for greatness. When or if that includes a shot at being Georgia's first Heisman winner since Herschel Walker in 1982 depends on his progress.
Eason was 19-for-29 with 244 yards and a touchdown in his unofficial debut in April, wowing fans and impressing the media. Bleacher Report's Barrett Sallee simply wrote, "Eason will be a superstar" afterward, though he's still not assured of beating out Greyson Lambert or Brice Ramsey for the starting job in the season opener.
Eventually he'll become the starter, though, and once that happens his Heisman chances are likely to rise with each and every performance. Sallee noted new Georgia coach Kirby Smart could take the same approach that predecessor Mark Richt did in 2006, when then-freshman Matthew Stafford split time with others for half a season before taking over the job and holding it for the rest of his career.
Stafford never garnered any Heisman buzz, though. The same isn't likely to be said for Eason.
Malik Henry, QB, Florida State
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Florida State's lineup of underclassmen is as good as any in college football, what with defensive end Josh Sweat and safety Derwin James among the top sophomores in the country, and the Seminoles have pulled in consecutive top-3 recruiting classes.
Junior Dalvin Cook is the team's best shot at a Heisman in 2016, currently sitting at 12-1 odds, per Odds Shark, but this year and in the near future those from the younger classes should earn buzz as well.
Malik Henry figures to eventually stand out from that FSU crowd, assuming he is able to surpass redshirt freshman Deondre Francois and others for the starting quarterback job. He impressed during the spring game, keeping him in the hunt to contribute this year, but in 2017 and beyond the stage could belong solely to him.
Henry's path to get to FSU was well-chronicled and quite circuitous, both of which will enhance his Heisman profile. A native Californian, he attended two high schools out West before transferring to IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. He never played there, though, moving back to California (and a third school) before his senior year began.
To this point, Henry's tale is one of movement and instability. If he becomes FSU's go-to player, it will include just as much Heisman talk.
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Lamar Jackson, QB, Louisville
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Not all Heisman winners' careers start out like gangbusters. Three of the last four recipients were redshirted as freshmen, while reigning winner Derrick Henry had all of 35 carries in his first season.
Not many have likely had as inauspicious a start as Lamar Jackson, either, but that could be what sets him apart in the future.
Jackson's first career pass, in the 2015 opener against Auburn, was horribly overthrown and resulted in an interception. He'd go on to throw eight picks and complete only 54.7 percent of his throws, but he did manage 12 touchdowns and five 200-yard games. He also had a 200-yard rushing effort, one of five games in which he ran for at least 100 yards as Louisville's leading rusher.
That first year saw Jackson learn on the fly, showing plenty of missteps as freshmen are wont to do. But with a full offseason to improve, knowing he's the starter, the 2016 campaign is looking quite promising for him and the Cardinals. ESPN named him the ACC's best “sleeper” Heisman candidate, given his high-profile opportunities this fall against Clemson, Florida State and Houston.
"What should scare the rest of the ACC is that Jackson remains relatively raw," Sports Illustrated's Zac Ellis wrote.
Ronald Jones II, RB, USC
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Officially, USC is third all-time with six Heisman Trophy winners but would be elevated into a tie for first if we counted the 2005 Heisman vacated by Reggie Bush. Five of those winners were running backs, including O.J. Simpson and Marcus Allen, but Ronald Jones II already has a leg up on his predecessors.
Jones wasn't the Trojans' primary starter in the backfield yet still led the team in rushing with 987 yards. That made him just the second freshman to top that category in USC history, along with LenDale White in 2003, and he gained 129 more yards than previous school freshman record-holder Charles White.
Bush ran for 521 yards as a freshman in 2003 (though he added 900 yards as a receiver and return man) while Allen had only 171 rushing yards in 1978 and Simpson started out at junior college.
Jones' breakout game in 2015 was against Arizona, when he ran for 177 yards and a TD on just 19 carries. That equaled his most rushes in a game, and if he becomes more of a featured back it will ramp up his Heisman hopes.
DeShone Kizer, QB, Notre Dame
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As far as performing under pressure is concerned, DeShone Kizer couldn't have asked for a better college debut. Being able to produce like that on a full-time basis, and not just as an injury fill-in, is what could make him Notre Dame's first Heisman winner since 1987 and its first quarterback Heisman since 1964.
Kizer redshirted in 2014 and only saw a few snaps in the Fighting Irish's opener last year against Texas. In Week 2 he was forced into action when Malik Zaire broke his ankle in the first half at Virginia, and Kizer promptly threw a touchdown pass to break the ice. He later threw the game-winning score in the final seconds.
He finished with 2,880 yards and 21 touchdowns, adding 520 rushing yards and 10 scores. His 3,400 yards of total offense and 31 total TDs dwarfed the numbers Everett Golson had as a redshirt freshman in 2012 during Notre Dame's run to the BCS title game.
Kizer has been battling Zaire for the starting job this offseason, a competition that may run into the season. His Heisman chances first hinge on winning the gig and then making the most of that opportunity, if not this season then in 2017 or 2018.
Christian Kirk, WR, Texas A&M
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An all-purpose threat named Christian is among the top Heisman contenders heading into 2016. In reality there should be two of them, though Christian Kirk will have at least one more season after this one and thus could just step aside and let Stanford's Christian McCaffrey have the glory this year.
Kirk was arguably Texas A&M's only reliable offensive weapon last year, when as a true freshman he caught 80 passes for 1,009 yards and seven touchdowns. Throw in a handful of rushes as well as his work as a punt and kickoff returner, where he returned a pair of punts for TDs, and Kirk finished with 1,789 all-purpose yards.
That's more than 2,000 fewer than McCaffrey had in setting the FBS single-season record, but it was 114 more than any other freshman in 2015. And McCaffrey only had 796 all-purpose yards as a freshman, so the ceiling could be much higher for Kirk if he continues to progress.
Kirk has "the chance to be become the focal point of a new-look offense under offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone that could feature him in a variety of ways," Bleacher Report's Barrett Sallee wrote.
Tanner Mangum, QB, BYU
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Tanner Mangum has the late-game heroics and highlight-reel plays needed for the Heisman resume down pat. Being able to put together a wire-to-wire season of impressive play is the next step and could bring BYU only its second Heisman winner.
A former prep standout—Mangum's sharing of 2011 Elite 11 MVP honors with Jameis Winston will get plenty of run if he garners Heisman buzz—who was out of football for two years while on his Latter-day Saints mission, Mangum had a Hollywood-like debut last September when he came off the bench for an injured Taysom Hill and led the Cougars to a comeback win at Nebraska. That was capped by his Hail Mary touchdown pass to end the game, and a week later he made another late TD pass to knock off rival Boise State.
Mangum finished with 3,377 yards and 23 TDs, his yardage the most for a BYU quarterback since Max Hall had 3,560 yards as a senior in 2009.
When Ty Detmer won the award for BYU in 1990 as a junior, he was coming off a monster season in which he threw for 4,560 yards and led the nation in passer rating. He somehow topped that by becoming the first player in FBS history to top the 5,000-yard mark in a season.
Brandon McIlwain, QB, South Carolina
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True freshmen could end up starting at a number of FBS schools this season, and while Georgia's Jacob Eason might be the most high-profile (thanks to his No. 5 overall ranking in the 2016 recruiting ranks) he's not as critical to his program's future as Brandon McIlwain is to his.
New South Carolina coach Will Muschamp, himself in need of a career boost after a failed gig in charge of Florida and an underachieving season as Auburn's defensive coordinator, could hitch his wagon to McIlwain this fall. That process began in the spring, when injuries thinned out the Gamecocks' quarterback competition and allowed McIlwain to get valuable practice snaps.
"One man's misfortune is another man's opportunity," Muschamp told Bleacher Report's Barrett Sallee. "He took advantage of the opportunity, and he took advantage of the reps and did an outstanding job."
McIlwain is all hype and hope right now, but if he can produce on the field he'll have his name mentioned for Heisman consideration down the line. Helping his cause will be his status as a two-sport athlete at South Carolina, playing outfield for the baseball team.
Jabrill Peppers, LB/DB, Michigan
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It's been 19 years since a player who spent the majority of his snaps on defense won the Heisman Trophy. The fact that he was a Michigan standout, Charles Woodson, is only a coincidence.
Jabrill Peppers remains an integral part of the Wolverines defense, where he has played cornerback and safety and is set to be a linebacker this season as a redshirt sophomore. But he also saw quite a bit of time as a running back and receiver in 2015, as well as handling some return duties, and more of all that would make him a Heisman contender during his career.
That's the same route that Woodson took in 1997, when he made seven regular-season interceptions, had two receiving touchdowns and a rushing score and clinched the award with a punt return TD against rival Ohio State in the finale.
Had Notre Dame's Manti Te'o had some offensive or special teams numbers to go with his seven interceptions and 113 tackles for Notre Dame in 2012, he might have surpassed Johnny Manziel in Heisman voting instead of finishing a close second.
Calvin Ridley, WR, Alabama
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There are several underclassmen on Alabama's roster with decent shots to win the Heisman before their careers end, most notably in the backfield. In an effort to spread the wealth, though, we limited this list to just one player per team.
Calvin Ridley gets the nod over the likes of running back Bo Scarbrough or any of the Crimson Tide's young passers, mostly due to what he's already done. His freshman year was as good (if not better) than what 2014 Heisman third-place finisher Amari Cooper did in 2012, which bodes well for Ridley if he's able to continue progressing, since Cooper had 124 catches for 1,727 yards and 16 touchdowns that year.
Ridley had 89 receptions for 1,045 yards and seven TDs in 2015, including eight receptions for 138 yards and two scores in the Cotton Bowl win over Michigan State. That was one of his four 100-yard receiving games, but this season he figures to have plenty more, since Alabama won't have a 2,000-yard Heisman winner (Derrick Henry) carrying the ball 20 or 30 times per game.
Josh Rosen, QB, UCLA
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If you're looking for an underclassmen Heisman “front-runner” in 2016, look no further than Josh Rosen. At 16-1 odds, per Odds Shark, he's got the ninth-best odds to win the award and the best of any non-junior or senior.
So it goes for a quarterback who entered college in 2015 with an inordinate amount of hype and managed to meet nearly every expectation. He threw for 350 yards and three touchdowns in his collegiate debut, the first of six 300-yard passing games en route to 3,669 yards with 23 TDs.
Rosen had the requisite number of freshman miscues as well, with 11 interceptions including four games with at least two picks, though he still showed improvement over the course of the season. Now comes the big test: being able to improve on those numbers in 2016 without the veterans he had to work with on offense a year ago.
Rosen also has a new offensive coordinator, with former Washington quarterback Marques Tuiasosopo (who finished eighth in the Heisman in 2000) replacing Noel Mazzone.
"I've learned more this spring than I have in a while," Rosen said, per Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports.
All recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports, unless otherwise noted. All statistics provided by CFBStats, unless otherwise noted.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
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