Heisman Watch for Week 3 of College Football

Week 2 of the college football season was chaotic as No. 2 Alabama barely escaped Texas, the Sun Belt ruled the day, and Nebraska fired head coach Scott Frost. On the Heisman Trophy front, we saw some more shakeup near the top of the leaderboard as the frontrunner changed for a second week in a row.

We’ll take a look at who rose and fell coming out of the weekend and analyze where the Heisman race stands heading into Week 3. Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.

Stock Up

C.J. Stroud, QB, Ohio State

After taking a dip for one week, C.J. Stroud is once again the Heisman frontrunner with +260 odds to win the award in December. He led the Buckeyes to a 45-12 victory over Arkansas State on Saturday, going 16-24 for 351 yards and four touchdowns.

Stroud will get another opportunity to pad his stats on Saturday when Ohio State hosts Toledo at 7 p.m. ET on Fox.

Caleb Williams, QB, USC

Caleb Williams enters Week 3 with the second-highest odds on the board at +320 following USC’s 41-28 road victory over Stanford. The former Oklahoma quarterback was excellent in his first taste of Pac-12 action, going 20-27 for 341 yards and four touchdowns. A good chunk of those yards went to fellow Heisman candidate Jordan Addison (+5000) and those two are quickly establishing a chemistry that could be dangerous for opponents moving forward.

East Coasters will have to stay up late to watch Williams this Saturday as USC hosts Fresno State at 10:30 p.m. ET on Fox.

JJ McCarthy, QB, Michigan

After winning the starting job at Michigan following their 56-10 rout of Hawai’i on Saturday, quarterback J.J. McCarthy shot up the Heisman odds board from +7000 to +3000 heading into Week 3. The sophomore was hyper efficient in action against the Warriors, going 11-12 for 229 yards and three touchdowns.

He’ll get a chance to potentially flex again on Saturday when the Wolverines host UConn at Noon ET on ABC.

Stock Down

Bryce Young, QB, Alabama

Reigning Heisman winner Bryce Young relinquished the frontrunner slot back to Stroud this week, dipping down to +340 odds heading into Week 3. As alluded to earlier, his Crimson Tide needed a late field goal to put away Texas. For the game, Young went 27-39 through the air for 213 yards and a touchdown, also adding 38 rushing yards on the ground.

Young will get a chance to pad his stats like in Week 1 when Alabama hosts Louisiana-Monroe on Saturday at 4 p.m. ET on the SEC Network.

Anthony Richardson, QB, Florida

The weeklong hype surrounding Anthony Richardson cooled off a bit as Kentucky knocked off Florida in Gainesville 26-16. Richardson struggled throughout the contest, completing just 14 of 35 pass attempts with no touchdowns and two interceptions. His odds dipped from +2200 last week to +3500 heading into Week 3.

Richardson will get an opportunity to put up some numbers this Saturday when Florida hosts USF at 7:30 p.m. ET on the SEC Network.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Ohio State

Jaxon Smith-Njigba suffered a leg injury against Notre Dame in Week 1 and was held out of last Saturday’s game against Arkansas State. He had the highest Heisman odds of any receiver heading into the season but has plummeted down to +9000 as a result of the injury. His absence has opened the door for fellow teammate Marvin Harrison Jr., who also sits at +9000 after catching hauling in seven receptions for 184 yards and three touchdowns last Saturday.

Head coach Ryan Day has indicated his optimism for Smith-Njigba’s return soon, but it probably won’t be against Toledo this week.

Here are the latest odds to win the 2022 Heisman Trophy from DraftKings Sportsbook:

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