2017 Heisman Watch: Week 2

Story posted September 6, 2017 in CommRadio by Sports Staff

The first full week of college football games is now complete and we have had a chance to see how each of the Heisman contenders came out of the gates. Here are our analysts' top candidates heading into the second week.

Hunter Pitcoff: Josh Rosen, QB, UCLA

And so the legend of Josh Rosen continues.  It seems that the UCLA Bruins quarterback is the most polarizing college football star since Johnny Manziel.  Rosen has received his fair share of criticism over his childish antics as well as the inability to embrace being the leader of a football team.  Nevertheless, Rosen proved yet again how talented of an athlete he is, as he led the Bruins to a remarkable 45-44 victory against the Texas A&M Aggies after being down by a staggering 34 points.

Josh Rosen’s performance was one for the ages, as he finished with 481 passing yards and 4 touchdowns.  The more impressive fact about his performance was that 292 of his passing yards came from the final 20 minutes of play.  It took four scoring drives during the last quarter for the “Golden Boy” and the rest of the the Bruins to secure the victory against the Aggies.  There’s no question that Rosen possesses the skills necessary to take home the Heisman trophy this year; however, he will have to put this performance behind him and keep producing week in and week out.

Josh Starr: Saquon Barkley, RB, Penn State

Looking to build upon his stellar sophomore season in which he ran for 1,496 yards and 18 touchdowns while adding another 402 yards and four touchdowns as a receiver, Barkley did not disappoint against Akron. He rushed for 172 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries to go along with three receptions for 54 yards.

It has to be understood that Akron is far from the best defense that Barkley will face this year, but his Week 1 outing proves that he will be the kingpin of the Nittany Lion offense.

If Barkley can stay healthy, he will remain an intrical part of Penn State’s success. His heavy workload combined with his unparalleled explosiveness will keep him a part of the Heisman race throughout the entirety of the season.

Anthony Spada: Baker Mayfield, QB, Oklahoma

The game of the week may bring this Heisman candidate into our watch list. Baker Mayfield of the Oklahoma Sooners has to face off against J.T. Barrett and the Ohio State Buckeyes. Baker Mayfield called this game a “preview of the national championship.” Last week, Mayfield threw for 329 yards on 19 of 20 attempts. He also threw for three touchdowns.

This game will be the most important game of the regular season for Baker Mayfield. If Mayfield leads the Sooners to a victory it will most certainly put them in the top four of the rankings. Baker Mayfield is a top three candidate for Heisman after his week one performance and could take the lead over Saquon Barkley if he has yet another spectacular performance on the field.

 

Josh Starr is a freshman majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email http://jqs6428@psu.edu.

Anthony Spada is a sophomore majoring in security and risk analysis. To contact him, email ajs6709@psu.edu.

Hunter Pitcoff is a freshman majoring in broadcast journalism.  To contact him, email hxp80@psu.edu