Heisman Hopefuls after Week 4

Here are the DSH rankings of the Heisman candidates after Week 4. There was a lot of movement last week and more is possible after Week 5.

BIGGEST DROP: Daryl Clark, Sr. (QB) Penn State Jacory Harris, So. (QB), Miami

Clark could have stayed in the Heisman race for a long time if he simply put up moderate numbers and kept winning. Instead, his team lost On the other hand, Harris had just stepped into the Heisman limelight, only to be thrown back after his performance against Virginia Tech. Both of Best and Harris can make statements in upcoming performances against USC and Oklahoma respectively.

BIGGEST BOOST: Tony Pike, Sr. (QB), Cincinnati

Pike's 4th straight solid performance in victory has demanded attention. He is on a top team, from a major conference, and is an NFL prospect. What more do you want?

TOP 10 AFTER WEEK 4

1. Tim Tebow, Sr. (QB), Florida (Defeated Kentucky, 41-7)

Week 4: Passing: 5/10, 103 yds, 1 TD, 0 INT; Rushing: 16/123 yds, 2 TD.
Season: Passing: 44/68, 643 yds, 6 TD, 1 INT; Rushing: 55/271 yds, 5 TD.

Tebow ran the ball effectively against Kentucky as the #1 Gators rolled. To many eyes, he still is not doing much throwing the football. Still, this is not an NFL tryout, and Tebow's unique running skills get him back on top.


2. Colt McCoy, Sr. (QB), Texas (Defeated UTEP, 64-7)

Week 4: Passing: 28/35, 286 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT; Rushing: 4/15 yds, 0 TD.
Season: Passing: 103/143, 1145 yds, 9 TD, 5 INT; Rushing: 28/61 yds, 1 TD.

McCoy delivered an expected dominant performance against a weak opponent. He was accurate and efficient in his passing, but he still threw another interception. The game with Oklahoma is really the one in which he must shine.

3. Jahvid Best, Jr. (RB), California (Lost to Oregon, 42-3)

Week 4: Rushing: 16/55 yds, 0 TD; Receiving: 2 catches, 14 yds, 0 TD.
Season: Rushing: 69/467 yds, 8 TD; Receiving: 9 catches, 73 yds, 1 TD.

Best ran for only 55 yards and the Bears were destroyed 42-3 so he must have played terrible, right? Of course, he ran for all of those yards in the first half. Best had all of 1 carry in the second half. Injury? Apparently not. It was just inexplicable playcalling from Cal offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig and/or head coach Jeff Tedford who hurt both Cal's chances for a comeback and Best's Heisman chances with their refusal to run him in the 2nd half last Saturday.

4. Case Keenum, Jr. (QB), Houston (Did not play)

Week 4: Passing: 38/58, 435 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Season: Passing: 83/134, 1160 yds, 8 TD, 2 INT; Rushing, 1 TD.

Keenum is now officially the real deal. Although it will take a lot for him to overcome the Tebow-McCoy reputations, he is clearly playing like the best QB in the country. Another spectacular performance in leading his team to victory over a good team, Keenum now has as good a resume as anyone. Sure, his statistics are helped by getting to throw nearly 60 times, but he is winning doing that.

5. Jimmy Clausen, Jr. (QB), Notre Dame (Def. Purdue 24-21)

Week 3: Passing: 15/26, 171 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT.
Season: Passing: 77/117, 1122 yds, 10 TD, 1 INT.

Clausen didn't play great, but again pulled out another close win for the Irish. Without his clutch play, the Irish could have lost 3 games already.

6. Tony Pike, Sr., (QB), Cincinnati (Def. Fresno St., 28-20)

Week 4: Passing: 18/26, 300 yards.
Seaspm: Passing: 93/132, 1223 yards.

This big QB can no longer be ignored as he puts up big numbers and has an undefeated top 15 team. He is also a solid NFL prospect which will help his Heisman chances if he continues to progress like this.

7. Terrelle Pryor, So. (QB), Ohio State (Def. Illinois, 30-0)

Week 4: Passing: 8/13, 82 yds, 1 TD, 0 INT; Rushing: 11/59 yds, 0 TD.
Season: Passing: 42/87, 695 yds, 5 TD, 4 INT; Rushing: 39/1235 yds, 2 TD.

Pryor was decent, but hardly spectacular in a blowout of Illinois.

8. Joe McKnight, Jr. (RB), USC (Defeated Wash. St., 27-6)

Week 4: Rushing: 6/49 yds, 1 TD; Receiving: 2/9 yds.
Season: Rushing: 47/353 yds, 3 TD; Receiving: 7/92 yds.

McKnight simply doesn't get the ball enough to be a serious contender. Barring a few huge games in the future, he will be off the list shortly despite his impressive YPC.


9. Darryl Clark, Sr. (QB), Penn State (Lost to Iowa, 21-10)

Week 4: Passing: 12/32, 198 yds, 1 TD, 3 INT.
Season: Passing: 77/129, 958 yds, 9 TD, 6 INT.

Clark was terribly inaccurate against Iowa last Saturday, completing less than 40% of his passes and throwing 3 interceptions. Penn State was the Big 10 favorite but now everything may need to be reassessed. Clark is still a strong leader and must redeem himself in the high-profile conference games ahead.

10. Jacory Harris, So. (QB), Miami (Lost to V. Tech, 31- 7)

Week 4: Passing: 9/25, 150 yds, 0 TD, 1 INT;
Season: Passing: 50/84, 806 yds, 5 TD, 3 INT; Rushing: 1 TD.

Harris was absolutely awful in this all-important ACC matchup. His only hope for redemption is the Oklahoma game.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Dez Bryant, Jr. (WR), Oklahoma St. (INJURED)
Evan Royster, Jr. (RB), Penn State (Loss to Iowa, 21-10)
Kendall Hunter, Jr. (RB), Oklahoma St. (INJURED)
Noel Devine, Jr. (RB), West Virginia (Lost to Auburn, 41-30)
CJ Spiller, Sr. (RB), Clemson (Lost to TCU, 14-10)
Sam Bradford, Jr. (QB), Oklahoma - (INJURED)


Manish Pandya
Staff Editor for TheDailySportsHerald.com