Each week this college football season, BetFTW will take a look at the 2022 Heisman Trophy race and break down the contenders. Check back each Monday as the best college football players in the country jockey for position with both oddsmakers and bettors. Preseason odds can be found here and Week 10 here.
Only two games remain on Ohio State’s regular season schedule and the pressure is turning up on quarterback C.J. Stroud. Having already passed every test this season to the tune of 2,750 yards and 34 touchdowns passing on just four interceptions, the Buckeyes star now gets ready to face a pesky Maryland team before hosting No. 3 Michigan in what may as well be the Big Ten semifinal game.
If Stroud is going to win the Heisman, these are the only two guaranteed opportunities left to do so. And while he’s mostly been the favorite all year, Stroud has yet to separate himself from a crowded field.
Here’s how the board looks after Week 11.
Oregon QB Bo Nix (+800)
There wasn’t any change in Nix’s odds from Week 10 to Week 11, though No. 6 Oregon’s loss to No. 25 Washington certainly didn’t help his case. Nix passed for 280 yards and two touchdowns while running for another 59 yards and a score on nine attempts.
The upperclassman went from holding to fourth-best odds to the fifth-best. Not terrible, all things considered, and he can prove his stature again in Week 12 against No. 13 Utah.
Michigan RB Blake Corum (+600)
Much like Nix, Corum’s odds didn’t move at all from last week, but he still finds himself in a worse position on the board. That’s despite a 162 yard rushing performance on 28 carries with one touchdown.
But that happened to come at home against a loathsome Nebraska program, so it may as well qualify as a cupcake game. Michigan and Ohio State boast two of the best Heisman candidates out there but their relatively weak schedules remain the biggest challenge to overcome.
North Carolina QB Drake Maye (+500)
Maye took a massive leap this week as his odds moved from +1200 to +500 after another impressive showing against Wake Forest.
The freshman quarterback for No. 15 UNC completed 31 of 49 pass attempts for 448 yards and three touchdowns while leading his team in rushing with 71 yards on 19 carries with another score. There’s still time to get in on Maye as this year’s Heisman winner but he should enter as one of the favorites next season.
Tennessee QB Hendon Hooker (+300)
Just when Hooker needed a get-right game most, along come the Missouri Tigers to help him pad his stats. Hooker bounced back from the loss to Georgia with a masterful 355-yard, three touchdown day in the air while adding another 50 yards and a touchdown rushing.
His odds might not have moved from last week, but that still keeps him among the elite favorites.
Tennessee crushed Mizzou, 66-24 and pretty much booked a ticket to the Heisman ceremony for its star quarterback.
Ohio State QB C.J. Stroud (+130)
What more can you learn about Stroud before the Michigan game this season that we haven’t already? The guy absolutely destroys teams that are average or worse. Indiana is one of those teams.
The 3-7 Hoosiers stumbled into Ohio Stadium and watched helplessly as Stroud passed for 297 yards and five touchdowns.
Stroud was +175 to win the Heisman last week, so it’s clear oddsmakers felt strongly enough about his performance to lower that number, but not enough to make put the rest of the field in his wake.
