Heisman Watch: Ranking the Top 5 Heisman Odds Candidates Heading into Week 12

Heisman Watch: Ranking the Top 5 Heisman Odds Candidates Heading into Week 12

I need the sportsbooks to wake up and stop anointing CJ Stroud the Heisman Trophy winner already, but that's pretty much what they've done with the latest Heisman odds. However, As you'll read in this week's Heisman Watch, I think there are a few ways he can be unseated.

This week's college football news is slow as we don't have any huge games on the east coast the week before rivalry week. However, out west, we have two games, including one that features a player on this week's Heisman Watch list.

Make sure you're following along with the latest Heisman odds to make some futures bets to go along with your weekly college football picks.

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Heisman Watch: Top 5 Heisman Odds

1. CJ Stroud - Ohio State QB (+140) (Bet $100 to collect $240)

We may be renaming our Heisman Watch list to the CJ Stroud Show because he sits atop the list every week (with the exception of one). I don't expect that to change this week as Ohio State takes on a 6-4 Maryland team they should handle, but it gets interesting next week. The lone blemish on Hendon Hooker's Heisman candidacy is a loss to Georgia. If Stroud and Ohio State lose to Michigan again this season, it becomes a three-horse race between our top-three names on the Heisman Watch list. Heisman odds are often unpredictable, but we could still see some drama in this year's race. This season, CJ Stroud has been very good, but I would hesitate to call it an excellent season for the Buckeyes' signal caller. So far, Ohio State has played a whopping two ranked teams. They beat an average Notre Dame team in Week 1 and they took care of a decent Penn State team. That's it. I'd like to see the sportsbooks give a little more respect to the gauntlet that our No. 2 name on the list has faced.

2. Hendon Hooker - Tennessee QB (+400) (Bet $100 to collect $500)

Hendon Hooker is still my pick for Heisman this season. I don't care that CJ Stroud is unbeaten still, I don't care that his Heisman odds are shorter, and I certainly don't care that Hooker looked pedestrian against Georgia. Every single QB the Bulldogs have faced has looked less than stellar, just ask fellow Heisman hopeful Bo Nix. Tennessee has five wins over ranked opponents, including a huge win over an LSU team that now looks like they could make a run at the CFP. Hooker has been far and away the best player on that team and has rejuvenated an entire fanbase. This week, Tennessee faces a scrappy South Carolina team that they should handle easily. It's a shame we won't see Hooker and the Vols in the SEC title game, and I think that goes into why his Heisman odds have actually gotten longer this week, compared to last week. Hooker has the 15th most passing yards in the country (2,888), is tied with the 14th most passing TDs (24) and has the second-best QBR in college football (90.2). The space between the top spot and No. 2 should be much closer than the sportsbooks have it.

3. Blake Corum - Michigan RB (+800) (Bet $100 to collect $900)

This is where the Heisman Watch list gets interesting. Remember, no non-Alabama running back has won the Heisman Trophy since Ron Dayne in 1999 (it wasn't my decision to strip Reggie Bush of his Heisman, take it up with the committee). But, Blake Corum is an upset win over Ohio State away from making it a real conversation. I will caution Corum and Michigan to not overlook their opponent this week in Illinois. This is s good Illini team that boasts one of the best defenses in the conference. While it's a scary trap-game situation for the Wolverines, it's also a good opportunity for Corum to increase his odds. Unlike Stroud and Hooker, Corum has a real opponent on the schedule this week. A good game and we could see his Heisman odds shorten going into Ohio State week.

4. Caleb Williams - USC QB (+1200) (Bet $100 to collect $1,300)

Some of the wind was taken out of the sails of this week's USC vs. UCLA showdown, but I still think Caleb Williams has a unique opportunity ahead of him. CJ Stroud still does not have his signature win under his belt. If Caleb Williams can put up massive numbers in a win over rival UCLA this week and outplay Dorian Thompson-Robinson, he puts himself in good shape to move up the board. What if USC handles UCLA easily, takes down a Notre Dame team that is playing much better football now than they were at the beginning of the season and then beats Oregon in the Pac-12 title game? I know that's a lot of ifs, but it looks as though Caleb Williams is just an Ohio State loss away from making himself a true Heisman contender this season. I have previously declared Caleb Williams' Heisman odds dead, but it appears as though there is a sliver of hope that they can be resurrected. It starts this week with a huge showdown against rival UCLA.

5. Stetson Bennett - Georgia QB (+2500) (Bet $100 to collect $2,600)

The good news for Stetson Bennett is that Georgia looks poised to win another SEC title and make a run for back-to-back National Championships. If that happens, Bennett goes down in lore as the best Georgia QB ever and will never have to buy a drink in Athens again. The bad part is his Heisman push has pretty much come to an end. on last week's Heisman Watch, Bennett's Heisman odds sat at +1600. Then, in a lopsided win, Bennett threw two picks and looked pretty average and we've seen those odds balloon to +2500. It's still an amazing story that this former walk-on QB is leading the best team in the country, but the individual numbers just aren't there to justify any real Heisman hype for Bennett.