Week 3 Heisman Trophy Power Rankings: Stetson Bennett Rises as Caleb Williams Remains on Top

Week 3 Heisman Trophy Power Rankings: Stetson Bennett Rises as Caleb Williams Remains on Top article feature image
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Todd Kirkland/Getty Images. Pictured: Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett.

Week 2 of the college football season has come and gone, and this glorious game gave us a number of memorable moments and several shocking upsets.

With that said, go ahead and toss away any tickets you might have had from players wearing Notre Dame and Texas A&M jerseys. I'm not sure why you may have had any to begin with, but they're officially off the table now.

Also, I had Anthony Richardson at No. 5 on this list last week, and that ticket will now be saved for a fire to heat my bedroom when I can no longer pay my electricity bill in a few weeks.

Regardless, we all whiff. But the beautiful thing about the Heisman Trophy race is the opportunity to grab great prices all season.

With that said, my five favorite Heisman bets that remain on the board are here.

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5.

Georgia QB Stetson Bennett (+1600)

It's time to stop ignoring what's going on with Stetson Bennett to begin the season.

The touchdown stats are not quite there yet, but with the state of the Bulldog offense right now, I can't look past what's happening with the Georgia quarterback.

Averaging 334.0 yards per game through the air and completing over 75% of his passes, Bennett appears to be taking that next step in his development. Georgia took care of business with a 33-0 win over Samford.

Again, I would love for the touchdown numbers to really start popping for Bennett. At the end of the day, this race is as much about what's on paper as the prime highlights from each week.

Only three touchdowns through two games is a bit concerning, but with a price tag still hovering around +1400, there's enough value there to interest me.

Georgia begins SEC play this weekend against South Carolina. As a result, the strength of schedule should begin to plummet Bennett's odds. Georgia looks like it will keep rolling, and it won't be long before those odds sit under +1000.


4.

Alabama QB Bryce Young (+325)

Alabama squeaked out of Austin with a one-point victory, yet found itself bumped down to the No. 2 spot in the AP Top 25. The win is what it is — a win.

The Crimson Tide remain undefeated and in control of their destiny for the College Football Playoff.

With that, Young did have a tremendous moment to look back on at the end of the season with a game-winning drive that resulted in a field goal with 10 seconds left to seal the deal. Without question, the play of the game was when Young evaded a sack attempt by Ryan Watts off the edge and then ran for 15 yards to put the Tide in control.

Young's receiving corps did not do much to help against Texas. Alabama's receivers had several drops and miscommunications in their Week 2 showdown.

But again, Alabama won. The Tide are still a very good football team, and it's only a matter of time before those corrections are fixed.

I'm a bit surprised Young's odds remained where they were. That looks to be pretty good value on the 2021 Heisman winner.


3.

Oklahoma QB Dillon Gabriel (+2800)

This is all about value.

Oklahoma has looked superb in its first two weeks under Brent Venables. The defense has allowed only one touchdown in the first two games, and as a result, neither of OU's first two contests have been close.

Now to what matters for this conversation — Gabriel has been moving the ball pretty effectively so far in Jeff Lebby's offense. Five touchdown passes and 529 yards through the air through two games is a fine start to the season.

However, I'm looking at the value for Gabriel.

I do think the Big 12 is going to provide some solid competition this fall. If the Sooners can once again make an appearance in the Big 12 Championship, I would have to imagine Gabriel is going to be in the Heisman conversation with stats comparable to the rest of the players on the list.


2.

Ohio State QB CJ Stroud (+340)

CJ Stroud and Ohio State did their thing once again this past weekend.

Stroud headlined a 42-13 victory over Arkansas State by throwing for 359 yards and three touchdowns with a 67% completion percentage. That's what we expected to see from Stroud before the season began.

Stroud lit up the stat sheet last fall. After a slow start statistically against Notre Dame in the opener, he silenced critics in Week 2 and got back on the horse.

With the weapons Ohio State has at its disposal on the offensive side of the ball, it's hard to imagine Stroud not continuing this trend next week with Toledo on deck to finish the nonconference schedule.

Similar to Young, Stroud's odds will only plummet when the conference slate comes around, as  Ohio State and Alabama are both expected to roll early on.


1.

USC QB Caleb Williams (+400)

Caleb Williams is once again lighting up the box scores in Lincoln Riley's offense, and USC is back to playing fun football.

Williams racked up 341 yards and four touchdowns through the air in a road victory over Stanford to begin Pac-12 play. The USC offense looks very potent with Mario Williams and Jordan Addison leading the way as Williams' top pass-catchers.

USC boasts the No. 2 scoring offense in the country at 55.5 points per game. The Pac-12 is not a defensive conference, so the Trojans should continue to light it up offensively.

To be honest, I'm shocked these odds have not dropped even more. USC finds itself ranked No. 7 in the AP Top 25, and there may not be a better offense in the country to quarterback than one coached by Riley.

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