At this point in the season, it would take a major screw up by Ingram to lose the Heisman. His team seems to be connecting on all cylinders and he's carrying the offense on his shoulders. Alabama is probably the best player in the country and that never hurts the cause for a Heisman candidate. Ingram should surpass the 1000 yard mark either this week or next. Ingram's next major test is LSU, which should be the hardest for him before Alabama plays Florida in the SEC Championship game. Ingram's 200+ yard performance on the ground against South Carolina has set him apart from the rest of the pack, considering he ripped most of those yards after initial contact and when the game was close in score. Those are signs of a tough, clutch player.
2. Tony Pike
Pike could take a fall after this week, but Heisman Contenders rewards year to date performance and not projected output. News broke recently that Pike will not start this week, rather his backup Collaros. Collaros is a pretty fun quarterback to watch, being much more mobile than Pike, but Cincinnati will miss Pike's arm if he doesn't see action in the game. Pike has 1633 yards on the season through the air and a 15/3 ratio at the midway point through the season. If he continued that rate (meaning he played every game), he'd end up with about 3500 yards and 33 touchdowns, which is impressive but still not close to the numbers of Sam Bradford a season ago. Cincinnati has to continue to roll if Pike has any shot at this award.
3. Ryan Williams
Ryan Williams gets a break from Heisman Contenders this week. Although his team lost, Williams still managed 100 yards (including a big 66 yard run) despite playing will an illness. Williams continues to be the most exciting freshman (true or redshirt) in the country over Matt Barkley. It should be interesting to see how many carries Darren Evans will get next season with Williams performing at such a high level. Through the first seven games of the season, Williams has 999 all purpose yards and 11 touchdowns, amazing statistics for a guy that wasn't even supposed to start this season. Hokie nation knew how good Williams could be, but most of the nation didn't.
4. Case Keenum
Houston won big again, keeping Keenum in the hunt for the trophy. Keenum is number one in the country in passing yards per game, a statistic expected from him if he wants the trophy. Through just six games he has 2501 yards and 19 touchdown passes. Unlike Pike, Keenum will approach the numbers of Bradford from a season ago, but will his conference hold him back from winning the trophy? Keenum has already proved he can beat the big boys. Oklahoma State hasn't had the season they wanted with injuries and suspensions, but they keep managing to win. Houston also beat Texas Tech, a team that seems to be clicking right now and although Sheffield wasn't the quarterback against Houston, must people won't remember that little detail.
5. Tim Tebow
The interesting case of Tim Tebow. The purpose of this blog entry at the beginning of the season was to show who I thought was most deserving of the trophy, but as we enter the back half of the season the purpose changes to projecting who will win the Heisman trophy. As much as the media says Tebow is the Heisman favorite or one of the front runners at this point, what justification do the voters have for that vote? Yes, they can say Tebow does enough for his team to win and that they are ranked as the top team in the nation in some polls, but that argument better supports Mark Ingram. Tebow is riding reputation at this point and until he makes a statement, he does not deserve this trophy.
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