Following Week 1 of the college football season, it’s clear that a wide receiver is going to win the Heisman Trophy this year. Historically, the award favors quarterbacks, and the country is filled with star signal-callers. A couple of receivers, though, are going to set themselves apart from the pack.
Which Receivers Will Be Heisman Trophy Candidates?
The leader will be Jeremiah Smith from Ohio State. There’s a belief that he can be the second receiver ever to eclipse 2,000 yards in one season, and there’s a genuine chance he does. In the first game of his junior season against Ball State, Smith caught eight passes for 151 yards and two touchdowns, celebrating one of them with a Heisman pose.
It would take Smith until his 14th game to reach 2,000 yards at his current pace. The likelihood that the Florida native racks up 150+ receiving yards every game is low, but his skill set and opportunity grant promise. In his freshman and sophomore seasons, he had at least 1,200 yards each year along with his 27 combined touchdowns.
There may not be a better player than Smith in college football. Standing 6-foot-4, 225 pounds, he’s got an extraordinarily rare combination of elite size and speed. He’s a non-stop threat to the secondary who excels at all three levels. The 20-year-old has no weaknesses and is arguably the most NFL-ready prospect entering the draft next year.
Smith’s Quarterback, Julian Sayin, will also be feeding him all season. He ranked fourth in the Big Ten in pass attempts and second in passing yards last year, and shows no signs of changing it up. The junior gunslinger went 21-for-25 passing against the Cardinals last week, totaling four touchdowns and 320 passing yards. Sayin is a top quarterback in the nation and will be more than talented enough to get Smith the ball against any defense.
The other wide receiver who has an excellent chance at winning the Heisman is Malachi Toney. In Week 1, the Miami pass-catcher broke the school record with 234 receiving yards. His stat line also included 12 catches and three touchdowns against Stanford. Just like Smith, Toney set the tone by hitting a Heisman pose after a touchdown.
Hurricane alum Michael Irvin called Toney “the greatest receiver [he’s] ever laid [his] eyes on.” That’s high praise from a Hall of Fame wide receiver, but it’s well deserved. During his freshman season last year, the Florida native caught 109 passes for 1,211 yards and ten touchdowns, also adding two passing and one rushing score en route to being named an AP Second-Team All-American. Despite playing against college-level opponents for the first time, he played a massive role on the Miami team that came close to winning a National Championship.
This year, Toney appears primed for an even larger role. He may not turn 19 until Sep. 17, but he’s as talented as any receiver in the country. His playing style is different from Smith’s, which makes sense given his much smaller frame (5-foot-11, 188 pounds). The sophomore is at his best with the ball in his hands. He’s dangerous after the catch and is able to make plays that few people on the planet can. Toney was known for his quickness last year, but looked even quicker last week. Defenses need to know where he is at all times.
Similar to Smith, Toney has a skilled quarterback feeding him the ball. Darian Mensah, transferring over from Duke, is the current Heisman favorite after an explosive Week 1 performance. After impressive years as a Blue Devil and at Tulane, Mensah arrived in Miami with big shoes to fill. So far, he’s shown he’s not only up to the task, but also plans on bringing the Hurricanes back to the Championship game.
The Heisman award may have favored quarterbacks in the past, but the game hasn’t seen receivers with this much talent and hype before. The race will be between two wide receivers, and it will be pure entertainment to watch who comes out on top.
