Spencer Rattler weighs in on positioning in 2022 Heisman Trophy race

South Carolina Gamecocks quarterback Spencer Rattler showed much promise and ability in his redshirt freshman season at Oklahoma. So much so that before the 2021 season, Rattler was a preseason frontrunner for the Heisman Trophy award. Unfortunately, the former Sooners quarterback never came close to winning the award after struggling in the first half of the season and being replaced by Caleb Williams.

Now that he has transferred to South Carolina, Rattler has a chance to shoot for the Heisman Trophy once more. And during an interview with 247Sports, he weighed in on his current positioning in the 2022 Heisman Trophy race.

“Personally, me, yes, I have all belief in myself but that’ll take care of itself if I just work every day. And that’s what I’m doing. I’m not focused on any individual award. There was enough hype of that last year, and it’s just not good to set yourself up like that. I’m striving to get better every day and with the work the outcomes will come.”

Rattler had an impressive first year leading the Oklahoma Sooners. he completed 214 of his 317 pass attempts for a 67.5 completion percentage. Rattler also threw for 3031 yards, 28 touchdowns, seven interceptions, and had a passer rating of 172.6. If he can get back to his redshirted freshman form in South Carolina, fans should not be surprised if he comes up in Heisman talk this season.

Rattler talks lessons learned from time at Oklahoma

Quarterback Spencer Rattler was once believed to be the face of Oklahoma Sooners football. However, after a tumultuous 2021 season, Rattler has parted ways with the Sooners and is now the starting quarterback for the South Carolina Gamecocks. Recently, in a 247Sports interview, the Gamecocks signal-caller revealed the lessons he learned from his time at Oklahoma.

“There was a lot of success in Norman, and then a little adversity as well. But I think the biggest thing I learned is just fighting through adversity, even if you don’t deserve it at times. You’ve got to fight through it and you can’t you can’t get comfortable at any time. Just keep working, don’t get complacent and keep fighting adversity.”

Before getting replaced by Caleb Williams as the Oklahoma starting quarterback last season, Rattler threw for 1,483 yards, 11 touchdowns, and just five interceptions. Rattler closed out last season with just 77 yards on 43 rushing attempts. He had three touchdowns but averaged just 1.8 yards per rush.

Rattler is hoping to quickly put his time in Norman, OK, behind him while with the Gamecocks. But the South Carolina quarterback will carry the lessons he learned with the Sooners into the 2022 season. And if he can successively do that, Rattler can rewrite the narrative of his collegiate career after a rough software season in Oklahoma.