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Heisman Trophy Odds: Betting favorites see shakeup after Week 1 of college football season

FaceProfileby:Thomas Goldkamp09/03/24
Heisman Trophy
Brad Penner | USA TODAY Sports

Following the opening weekend of action in college football most teams have gotten in at least one game, if not two. And that means it’s no longer too early for a legitimate Heisman Trophy watch.

Today, On3 stops to take a look at some of the new betting favorites for college football’s biggest award, with the odds shifting for several players after the weekend’s action.

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Let’s take a look at the top 20 in the current Heisman Trophy odds, according to odds listed by FanDuel. We begin with the top 10 below.

+850 – QB Dillon Gabriel, Oregon

Dillon Gabriel, Oregon
Dillon Gabriel, Oregon – © Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK

It probably wasn’t the best day overall for Oregon, which found itself locked in a fight with Idaho for longer than it would have cared for. Still, it was the kind of day that allowed Gabriel to put up big numbers.

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He didn’t have a whole lot of success running the football, officially tallying three carries for a loss of 23 yards. But Gabriel went 41-of-49 passing for 380 yards and two touchdowns, without throwing an interception. Those are the kind of numbers that get you into the Heisman Trophy conversation.

+850 – QB Jaxson Dart, Ole Miss

(Photo credit: USA Today Images)

As far as debuts that put you firmly on the radar, look no further than Jaxson Dart’s day against Furman in a 76-0 season-opening romp. Dart did it all in the win, much as you might expect.

He finished his day 22-of-27 passing for 418 yards and five touchdowns passing. He didn’t throw an interception. He also rushed for 27 yards and a sixth score. A pretty productive day, all told.

+850 – QB Cam Ward, Miami

Cam Ward UF
[Doug Engle/Gainesville Sun]

Week 1 doesn’t often afford many chances to make statements, but a 41-17 romp in the Swamp against rival Florida certainly qualifies. And Cam Ward had a whole lot to do with that.

From his ability to scramble early to extend drives to his calm, cool demeanor throughout the contest, Ward was on point. He finished the day with 385 yards passing and three touchdowns. He did throw one interception, and he’ll have to work on not throwing into traffic across his body. But that was basically the lone blemish on an otherwise brilliant afternoon.

+900 – QB Carson Beck, Georgia

Carson Beck georgia
Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Georgia was another of the teams that had a chance to make some early noise with a big win, and the Bulldogs did exactly that. The team downed a ranked Clemson squad 34-3, looking every bit the part of the No. 1 team in the nation.

Of course, Carson Beck was a huge part of that. He finished his day 23-of-33 passing for 278 yards and two touchdowns. He did not throw an interception and just took one sack. He even made some plays with his legs. Another excellent debut from a Heisman Trophy contender.

+1000 – QB Jalen Milroe, Alabama

Alabama TE CJ Dippre and QB Jalen Milroe
Alabama TE CJ Dippre and QB Jalen Milroe (Gary Cosby Jr. / USA TODAY Sports)

It was light enough work for Alabama to cruise by Western Kentucky that Milroe didn’t even reach double-digit passing attempts. And that was just fine, as things turned out.

Milroe paced things on the ground, rushing 10 times for 79 yards and two scores. He then went 7-of-9 passing for 200 yards and three touchdowns, all without throwing an interception. For a light day’s work it was a productive one.

+1100 – QB Quinn Ewers, Texas

Michigan Wolverines football will host Quinn Ewers and Texas in Week 2. (Photo by Aaron E. Martinez/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK)
(Photo by Aaron E. Martinez/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK)

As far as team results go, Texas was pretty close to perfect in a 52-0 win over a solid Colorado State squad on opening day. That said, there’s at least one throw Ewers would like to have back.

The Texas gunslinger finished the afternoon 20-of-27 passing for 260 yards and three touchdowns, but he did throw one interception. Ewers also wasn’t much of a rushing threat in the contest, which is perfectly fine for Texas’ season but won’t help his Heisman Trophy chances with several dual-threat prospects in contention this year.

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+1400 – QB Nico Iamaleava, Tennessee

Nico Iamaleava, Tennessee Football | Angelina Alcantar/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
(Angelina Alcantar/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK)

Iamaleava picked up right where he left off during bowl season in the season opener against Chattanooga, leading Tennessee to a 69-3 win in which he was done by halftime. He set a school record by throwing for 314 yards in the first half.

By the time his day was done, Iamaleava had gone 22-of-28 passing for 314 yards and three touchdowns, without an interception. He didn’t have a huge day rushing, but that will almost certainly come at some point this season, rest assured.

+2000 – QB Will Howard, Ohio State

Will Howard-Ohio state-Ohio State football-Buckeyes
© Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

Another of the transfer quarterbacks, all eyes in Columbus were on Howard in his debut. If the Buckeyes had gotten just a little bit more out of the position a year ago they might have been in the College Football Playoff.

Howard started off his debut by throwing for 228 yards and three touchdowns. It was a good day, one in which he developed a nice rapport with freshman five-star Jeremiah Smith, who hauled in two touchdown passes.

+2200 – QB Miller Moss, USC

LSU
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

As long as Lincoln Riley remains in Los Angeles, you can probably expect to see a USC quarterback on the Heisman Trophy watch list. He’s just that good at developing quarterbacks, especially when given time to work with.

Moss has had plenty of time to learn and grow in the system and it showed in a 27-20 dismantling of LSU. Moss threw for 378 yards and just one touchdown, but he made all the key throws when he needed to to secure a win over a ranked opponent. That’s a huge deal.

+2500 – WR/CB Travis Hunter, Colorado

paul-finebaum-desmond-howard-debate-whether-travis-hunter-can-win-heisman-trophy
Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

The only non-quarterback among the top 20 players with best odds to win the Heisman Trophy on FanDuel, Hunter was once again electric in his debut performance for Colorado. He played on both sides of the ball and starred on both, though his offensive outing produced the biggest numbers.

Hunter recorded seven catches for 132 yards and three touchdowns while playing receiver. He then flipped to the defensive side of the ball and logged three tackles, proving an effective shutdown cornerback on one side of the field. No one in America can match Hunter’s versatility or usage rate.

Heisman Trophy Betting Odds: 11-20

+2800 – QB Drew Allar, Penn State
+3000 – QB Garrett Nussmeier, LSU
+3000 – QB Jackson Arnold, Oklahoma
+3000 – QB Cam Rising, Utah
+3000 – QB Shedeur Sanders, Colorado
+3000 – QB Riley Leonard, Notre Dame
+4000 – QB Noah Fifita, Arizona
+4000 – QB Avery Johnson, Kansas State
+4000 – QB Jalon Daniels, Kansas
+4000 – QB Brady Cook, Missouri

There are plenty of quality options among the group ranked just outside the favorites, with a number of quarterbacks who could explode with a big game at any point. Even Nussmeier is on the list, impressing in a losing performance with the Tigers. Bottom line: The Heisman Trophy race is only just getting started and there are likely many twists and turns along the way, so don’t sleep on anyone just yet.