Week 4 was another good week in college football, with six ranked matchups, including Texas taking down Tennessee, a battle of Heisman contenders when Florida defeated Ole Miss, and Kamario Taylor continuing his Heisman campaign with Mississippi State's win over Missouri.
A clear favorite is starting to emerge as Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith currently has the best odds following his 217-yard performance against Illinois, while his quarterback, Julian Sayin, is seeing his Heisman chances slip away. Arch Manning's Heisman chances are also shrinking, despite Texas sitting at 4-0 with wins over two ranked teams.
Below are the ten players with the best Heisman Trophy betting odds entering Week 5 via BetMGM:
QB Julian Sayin, Ohio State
Current Odds: +3000
Sayin's Heisman
odds have been slowly decreasing all season, and this is precisely where they were after last week. The loss to Texas really hurt his odds, but what also seems to be hurting his Heisman chances is Jeremiah Smith. It's become clear that Smith is the top offensive player on this team, not Sayin, shifting the odds toward Smith and away from Sayin.
QB Arch Manning, Texas
Current Odds: +3000
This is a drastic decrease from last week, despite the Longhorns defeating Tennessee 20-17. However, the win showed that Texas' success isn't because of Manning. He threw for only 201 passing yards, never threw a touchdown pass, and threw an interception. Especially with other players stepping up across college football, Manning doesn't seem like a real Heisman contender.
WR Malachi Toney, Miami
Current Odds: +2500
Toney is another player whose odds tumbled from last week, but it doesn't make much sense. He had six receptions for 120 yards and a touchdown last week in Miami's 52-3 win over Central Michigan. Perhaps this is also part of the Jeremiah Smith effect because Smith has performed better than Toney and they are two of the only non-quarterbacks with a chance at the Heisman at this point. Still, Toney should not be written off as a Heisman candidate with how strong of a season he has had so far.
QB Keelon Russell, Alabama
Current Odds: +1300
While some players' odds are dropping, Russell's odds shot up after leading the Crimson Tide to a dominant 49-18 win over South Carolina. In that game, he had 365 passing yards, four passing touchdowns and a rushing touchdown. Alabama's quarterback is doing it all right now and is certainly emerging as a dark horse candidate for the Heisman.
QB Trinidad Chambliss, Ole Miss
Current Odds: +1200
Even though Ole Miss was dominated by Florida last week, quarterback Trinidad Chambliss is still considered one of the top candidates for the Heisman. He actually had a pretty good game with nearly 300 passing yards, a passing touchdown and two rushing touchdowns. Especially after Ole Miss' win over LSU, Chambliss has established himself as one of the best quarterbacks in college football right now.
RB Jadan Baugh, Florida
Current Odds: +1200
There is finally a running back considered in the Heisman race! On the other side of the Ole Miss-Florida game is running back Jadan Baugh, who gashed the Rebels' defense with 142 rushing yards and three touchdowns. He has 11 rushing touchdowns on the year, which is the most in the NCAA through the first four games. If he continues to put up monster performances like what he did against Ole Miss, Baugh could seriously be a Heisman contender by the end of the season.
QB CJ Carr, Notre Dame
Current Odds: +1200
Carr had a pretty good day in Notre Dame's 39-point victory over Purdue with three touchdown passes. However, he does not have the "it" factor that other quarterbacks in college football seem to have right now. He hasn't had a quality win this year or a game where he just took over. Carr does not seem like someone who is going to win the Heisman this year.
QB Kamario Taylor, Mississippi State
Current Odds: +700
It is between Florida and Mississippi State for the biggest surprise so far in the college football season. I would argue Mississippi State because they weren't even close to being on anyone's radar this season. After their win over Missouri, they are now 4-0 thanks to quarterback Kamario Taylor, who is tied for the most touchdown passes in the NCAA and ranks in the top 10 in passing yards and quarterback rating while only having two interceptions.
QB Darian Mensah, Miami
Current Odds: +400
With Malachi Toney at wide receiver, it is hard for Darian Mensah not to look good. However, Mensah's strong stats aren't just because of Toney. He put up three passing touchdowns against Central Michigan; only one of those was to Toney. Mensah also has 14 passing touchdowns on the year, tied with Kamario Taylor for the most. His quarterback rating of 93.9 is also the best in the NCAA.
WR Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State
Current Odds: +275
Especially after he became Ohio State's leading receiver, how can Smith not be considered the Heisman favorite? He embarrassed Illinois' defense with 217 receiving yards on 12 receptions for four touchdowns. Smith now has 617 receiving yards, the most in the NCAA, as well as seven receiving touchdowns, which is tied for the most in the NCAA. He is an obvious choice for the Heisman right now. It will be hard for anyone to catch up to him in the race.
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This article originally appeared on Buffaloes Wire: Heisman Trophy odds, top contenders entering Week 5
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