The bad news: C.J. Stroud had the worst game of his career throwing the ball in Evanston this past Saturday.
The good news: Ohio State still beat Northwestern and Stroud was able to showcase his running ability when the offense needed him to – a part of his repertoire that Buckeye Nation has wanted to see become a part of Stroud’s game all season. When he wasn't able to throw the ball due to the high winds and rainy weather throughout the game, he found a different way to involve himself in the game and lead the offense to score enough points to come away with a win. Stroud completed just 10 of 26 passes for 76 yards but ran for 79 yards on six carries.
And as Troy Smith proved 16 years ago, one rough game at the start of November does not preclude an Ohio State quarterback from winning the Heisman Trophy.
The last time a Buckeye won the Heisman in 2006, Ohio State, on the first Saturday in November, visited a 2-7 Illinois team, and won an ugly 17-10 game. High winds limited Troy Smith to just 108 passing yards, with 0 TD’s and 1 INT. Maybe history will repeat itself for CJ Stroud
— Matt McCoy (@MattMcCoyRadio) November 6, 2022
Even with Stroud's struggles in the win over the Wildcats, he is back atop the Heisman Trophy rankings, at least according to oddsmakers. With other quarterbacks such as Tennessee's Hendon Hooker – who jumped Stroud as the favorite for about a week or so – and Alabama's Bryce Young losing on Saturday, Stroud is the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy, according to betJACK.
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State | -125 |
| QB Hendon Hooker, Tennessee | +250 |
| RB Blake Corum, Michigan | +700 |
| QB Caleb Williams, USC | +800 |
| QB Stetson Bennett, Georgia | +1000 |
| QB Bo Nix, Oregon | +1200 |
| QB Jayden Daniels, LSU | +1800 |
| QB Drake Maye, North Carolina | +2500 |
| QB Max Duggan, TCU | +3000 |
| TE Brock Bowers, Georgia | +5000 |
| WR Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State | +7500 |
Even though the Buckeyes scored just 21 points against the Wildcats, they jumped Tennessee for the highest-scoring offense in the country, averaging 45.8 points per game. The Vols are now averaging 45.3 points per game after a 13-point performance in a loss at Georgia this past weekend. Ohio State is averaging 484.1 total yards (14th in FBS) and 290.9 passing yards (19th) per game through nine games this season.
Through nine games of the season, Stroud has been one of the best quarterbacks in the country. He ranks among the best in the country in nearly every major statistical category for passing:
- Passing yards per game: 272.56 (23rd)
- Passing touchdowns: 29 (2nd)
- Passing yards per attempt: 9.85 (4th)
- Passing yards per completion: 14.51 (7th)
- Completion percentage: 67.9% (19th)
- Passing efficiency: 185.84 (1st)
Hooker, who has the second-best odds, has completed 179 of 252 passes for 2,533 yards, 21 touchdowns and two interceptions. He also has 91 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground. Hooker and Stroud have some very similar numbers in terms of yards and touchdowns, but the Tennessee quarterback now has one loss on his resume, which clearly makes a difference whether right or wrong. The fifth-year senior could have been the clear-cut favorite to win the Heisman with just three weeks remaining in the regular season, but Georgia had other plans.
Blake Corum, who has the third-best odds to win the Heisman, is the only non-quarterback among the top nine players on the list, which shows you just how impressive the Michigan running back has been this season. The junior has 199 carries for 1,187 yards and 16 touchdowns through nine games and has added eight catches for 37 yards and a touchdown. Corum has taken advantage of the Wolverines' run-first offense and is a major reason Michigan is currently undefeated.
Marvin Harrison Jr. has the best Heisman odds of any wide receiver, giving Ohio State two of the top 11 candidates for the award. Route Man Marv has 53 receptions for 834 yards and 10 touchdowns so far this season. Whether it's his size, speed or athleticism, the sophomore has proven to be a mismatch no matter who he’s going up against, and he and Stroud have formed one of the nation’s most prolific passing-receiving duos.
With the Heisman race shaping up as it is, it appears as though there will be even more on the line when Ohio State and Michigan meet in Columbus on Nov. 26. If both teams win their next two games, it will not only be a top-three matchup between two undefeated teams to determine who advances to the Big Ten Championship (and potentially a spot in the College Football Playoff), but The Game could also play a role in who wins the Heisman Trophy, providing a prime opportunity for either Stroud or Corum to have a “Heisman Moment.”
Since the Heisman is essentially a quarterback’s award – 18 of the past 22 Heisman winners dating back to the 2000 season have been quarterbacks – Stroud is in the driver's seat when it comes to winning the most prestigious individual award in college football if he continues to play well and the Buckeyes remain undefeated.
Ohio State hasn't had a Heisman winner since 2006, when Troy Smith brought the award back to Columbus. Since Griffin won back-to-back trophies nearly 50 years ago, the Buckeyes have had just two Heisman Trophy winners: Smith and Eddie George (1995).
Will Stroud end that drought? We'll likely have a better guess in less than three weeks.
