DKNetwork Logo DKNetwork Logo
2026 Heisman Trophy Opening Odds

2026 Heisman Trophy Opening Odds

College Football DraftKings Sportsbook Insights

Published:

By: Blake Krass

The college football season is rapidly approaching. There are plenty of ways to get in on the action before the season kicks off on DraftKings Sportsbook. The futures market is vast and full of bets to be made.

There is no award in college football more prestigious than the Heisman. Here is a look at the 2026 Heisman Trophy odds.

2026 Heisman Trophy Odds

The Heisman Trophy criteria has become quite clear over the past two decades. Since 2006, 16 of the 20 Heisman winners have been quarterbacks. There have been two running backs to win the award over that stretch – Mark Ingram in 2009 and Derrick Henry in 2015. DeVonta Smith is the only pure wide receiver to win the award over the past two decades. The most recent non-quarterback to win was Travis Hunter in 2024 with a once-in-a-generation type of season playing on both sides of the ball.

It’s hard to make an argument to bet on a non-quarterback to win the award. To be fair, Jeremiah Smith (+1400) is as strong a preseason contender as you’ll see from a skill position player. He already has the name recognition and will be on an offense that allows him to put up big numbers. However, it would still likely need to be a record-breaking season for Smith to actually win the award.

The favorites to win the award are quarterbacks from the schools that will most likely be competing for a national title. Those quarterbacks are CJ Carr from Notre Dame, Arch Manning from Texas, Dante Moore from Oregon, Julian Sayin from Ohio State, Darian Mensah from Miami, Josh Hoover from Indiana and Trinidad Chambliss from Ole Miss. Those seven quarterbacks, along with Jeremiah Smith, are the eight players with odds of 15/1 or better to win the Heisman Trophy.

RELATED 2026 NFL MVP Opening Odds

Some names further down the odds board with the ceiling to go on a Heisman run are Sam Leavitt at LSU, Jayden Maiava at USC, LaNorris Sellers at South Carolina and Demond Williams Jr. at Washington. Those are all players with much more value who have the potential to play at a Heisman level but need to put all of the pieces together for a full season.

Blake Krass

I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skills and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.