Each week this college football season, BetFTW will take a look at the 2023 Heisman Trophy race and break down the contenders. Check back every Tuesday as the best college football players in the country jockey for position with both oddsmakers and bettors. All odds via BetMGM. Past weeks here: Preseason, Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 8, Week 9.
Well, the J.J. McCarthy problem last all of one week and the Michigan quarterback didn’t even have to play to solve it.
Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. reclaimed his Heisman favorite status with a relatively meh performance against 2-6 Stanford, completing 21 of 37 passes for 369 yards, four touchdowns and one interception (extreme emphasis on the ‘relatively’ here).
With four weeks remaining in the regular season, the top five quarterbacks on the leaderboard are starting to put the final touches on their resumes. Here’s a look at where the race stands heading into Week 10 — according to oddsmakers, at least.
10. Oklahoma State RB Ollie Gordon II (+6000)
(AP Photo/Mitch Alcala)
Odds Last Week:
- +10000
Hello, OG2!
The Oklahoma State tailback is an extremely unlikely choice to win the Heisman for a variety of reasons, but it’s great to see the sophomore get some love from oddsmakers at this point in the season.
Gordon is up to 1,087 yards on 141 carries (7.7 yards per attempt) with 10 touchdowns. He’s also got another 200 yards and two scores in the passing game. Oh, and he also joined some elite OSU company with a 271 yard, two touchdown game against Cincinnati in Week 9. He’s the second Cowboys tailback in school history to rush for at least 250 yards in consecutive games. The other is Barry Sanders.
Consider that through the first three games of the season, OG2 rushed for a combined total of 109 yards. Since the start of October, he’s averaging 214.3 per game.
He’ll be a fun dark horse contender for the award next year.
9. Texas QB Quinn Ewers (+5400)
Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports
Odds Last Week:
- No Change
The Texas quarterback is out for at least 2-4 weeks with a shoulder injury. Perhaps he comes back in time to win a Big 12 title and lead the Longhorns to the playoff. What a story that would be. But he’s probably out of the Heisman race regardless.
8. Georgia QB Carson Beck (+3000)
(Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)
Odds Last Week:
- No Change
Carson Beck’s Heisman chances are probably best explained by the Kombucha Girl meme. Can he win? Sure. Does he have a path to a win? Definitely. Should he win? Maybe? Who’s to say? Ahh!
Beck does have 2,462 passing yards and 14 touchdowns on just four interceptions for the No. 1 team in the country. But he also hasn’t been the most impressive player on his own offense (we miss you, Brock Bowers).
Keep an eye on Beck, but don’t buy just yet.
7. Oklahoma QB Dillon Gabriel (+2500)
(Photo by Jay Biggerstaff/Getty Images)
Odds Last Week:
- +1200
The shine has worn off for the Oklahoma quarterback.
It’s not just that the Sooners lost to a legitimately good Kansas team. It’s that Gabriel didn’t really do much when his team needed him most. Even in a rainy environment, Gabriel only attempted 19 passes. He completed 14 for 171 yards, one interception (a pick six on the Sooners’ first possession) and no touchdowns. He wasn’t a non-factor by any means. He just wasn’t able to go out and win a game Kansas seemed more than willing to give away.
It could’ve been a Heisman-making moment. Instead it’s a wasted opportunity.
6. Ohio State WR Marvin Harrison Jr. (+1300)
(Photo by Robert Goddin-USA TODAY Sports – Pool/Getty Images)
Odds Last Week:
- +1800
Marvin Harrison Jr. now has as many games with multiple touchdowns this season (two) as he does with zero touchdowns. His latest performance — a six-catch, 123-yard, two-touchdown outing — helped the Buckeyes escape Wisconsin.
As long as he continues to produce like this, he’ll stay in the Heisman race with ease.
5. Florida State QB Jordan Travis (+800)
(AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
Odds Last Week:
- +900
Jordan Travis continues churning out big games. The latest: 359 yards and four total touchdowns in a beatdown of Wake Forest to keep Florida State’s undefeated season alive. The end of FSU’s season is littered with trap games, so it’ll be up to Travis to make sure he doesn’t get tripped up against Pitt, Miami or Florida.
The door is wide open for an invite to New York if he can successfully manage it.
4. Oregon QB Bo Nix (+600)
(AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Odds Last Week:
- +1600
Two weeks ago Nix sitting at +3000 and looking to rebound after a three-point loss to Washington. We told you to buy the dip. We did not expect this quick of a rebound.
The Ducks are coming off a blowout win at Utah that completely demoralized their opponents and Nix is once again closing in on the lead in the Heisman race. He’s up to 2,337 yards passing, 21 touchdowns and one interception on the season. Up next is a home game against Cal and a chance to pad his numbers even more.
3. LSU QB Jayden Daniels (+450)
(AP Photo/Michael Woods)
Odds Last Week:
- +325
Daniels and the LSU Tigers were off last weekend, so pay no mind to the dip here. Focus more on the fact the Tigers star is ranked second in QBR (91.8) and first in passer rating (204.3).
2. Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy (+300)
Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports
Odds Last Week:
- +240
McCarthy’s days-long run as the Heisman favorite may go down as just a bizarre footnote in one of the strangest Michigan seasons ever played. Even if he does show out against Penn State and Ohio State, it’s nearly impossible to imagine him developing a narrative worthy of the award.
Not with *gestures at everything happening at Michigan*.
1. Washington QB Michael Penix Jr. (+275)
Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
Odds Last Week:
- +300
Speaking of award-worthy narratives, Penix is going to be hard to top. Coming back from multiple season-ending injuries, transferring to Washington and leading the Huskies to the top of the Pac-12 in the conference’s final season is the kind of stuff voters salivate over.
Oddsmakers, too, apparently.
Full live odds
Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports
