BCS Rankings 2011: How Will They Impact the Heisman Trophy Race?

With the BCS rankings being released in less than a day, fans can't wait to see where their favorite team is ranked. While there shouldn't be much surprises with the rankings this week, it should have some impact on where the Heisman candidates are ranked.

Everybody expects Oklahoma, Alabama and LSU to be the top three teams, but there really aren't any true Heisman candidates on any of those teams.

Sure, you can consider Trent Richardson and Tyrann Mathieu Heisman candidates, but what are the chances they actually win it? Richardson doesn't get the ball enough to put up sexy numbers, and Mathieu is a defensive player who makes little to no impact on offense or special teams like Charles Woodson did. 

This season the Hiesman race is driven by the quarterbacks. It's all about Kellen Moore, Robert Griffin,  Russell Wilson and Andrew Luck.

The Baylor Bears are going to be ranked outside of the top 15. Although that is below every other team, the Bears still have a great chance to improve their ranking with games against Texas A&M, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and Texas. If Griffin can lead the Bears to victories over those teams, not only will it improve Baylor's ranking, it will also increase his chances of winning the award.

Boise State's Kellen Moore is probably in the worst position because his team doesn't play anybody for the rest of the year. Sure, his numbers are there to win the award, but every other player has great numbers as well. Moore is going to have to do something special to stand out, but I don't think he has the schedule to impress anybody.

Russell Wilson is one of the favorites to win the award, but much like Moore he doesn't quite have the impressive schedule. The Badgers have already beaten Nebraska and still play Michigan State and Illinois, but is that enough to impress the voters? The schedule is more impressive than Moore's, but still in the same ballpark.

Andrew Luck is the favorite but doesn't play anybody until the end of October. The Cardinal play USC and then finish their schedule with Oregon, California and Notre Dame. Once again, it's another schedule that could be a lot stronger, but three quality opponents to end the season will be fresh in the voters' minds.

Overall, every player has his advantages and disadvantages. Whether it's the schedule or the ranking, the players still have to perform and impress the voters by leading their respective teams.

The BCS rankings should play little part in who wins the Heisman trophy.