Making the case for each 2023 Heisman candidate
The 2023 Heisman Trophy will be announced Saturday evening, and the list of candidates is stacked.
The candidates feature LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels, Oregon quarterback Bo Nix, Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. and Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. This year’s race is neck and neck; it’s the closest race we’ve seen in a while, unlike last year, when USC’s Caleb Williams ran away with it.
Vegas has Jayden Daniels as the favorite to win at (-1400), Michael Penix Jr. at (+900), Bo Nix at (+2200), and Marvin Harrison Jr. at (+20000). The aforementioned odds are courtesy of BetMGM as of Monday, Dec. 4.
Jayden Daniels has made a strong case for the Heisman. He has thrown for 3,814 yards and 40 touchdowns while adding 1,134 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground. Daniels, who has the highest QBR at 95.7, recently won the AP Player of the Year award.
The winner of the AP Player of the Year award and has won the Heisman all but twice over the past two decades–the two being Ndamukong Suh and Christian McCaffrey. Daniels’ season is very reminiscent of the 2019 Heisman winner and former LSU quarterback Joe Burrow. He doesn’t have the wins, unlike Burrow, who took home the national championship for LSU, but will this mean it’s not enough to take home the Heisman?
Michael Penix Jr. has also made a strong case. This year, he threw for 4,218 yards and 33 touchdowns, averaging 324.5 passing yards per game. Despite not throwing crazy amounts of touchdowns, he carried his team to a perfect 13-0 season to lead them to the College Football Playoff and has them ranked No. 2 in the country–not an easy feat after coming out of a tough Pac 12.
Bo Nix put up crazy video game-like numbers this season for Oregon. The senior threw for 4,145 yards, 40 touchdowns and three interceptions on the year with a QBR of 91.0. Nix also ran for six additional touchdowns.
In November, Nix averaged 392.5 passing yards per game, including 408.0 yards while totaling 10 touchdown passes in two wins over USC and Arizona State. Nix did, however, lose twice to Penix’s Washington State and failed to make the College Football Playoff.
Marvin Harrison Jr. is a 6-foot-4, 205-pound junior and a Biletnikoff Award finalist. He’s tied for the most receiving touchdowns in the nation at 14. He also posted 1,211 receiving yards on 67 receptions, and he put together eight 100-plus receiving yard games with three 100-yard, two-touchdown outings. Doing all of this while in a loaded WR class, the junior-year wideout is regarded as the top receiver in the draft and even a potential top-5 pick.
Which 2023 Heisman candidate do you think is most deserving? Let us know in the comments!
