It is that time of year again folks, college football’s biggest award ceremony is just a few days away. There’s been a lot more controversy around this year’s Heisman finalists than I can remember in recent years. Many people are upset with the finalists for a variety of reasons such as they don’t like that it’s four quarterbacks or they think the wrong four QBs were chosen, or they feel like someone got snubbed. Unfortunately, there are always going to be players that get snubbed. This year I didn’t feel like there was the one standout player where you are like “Yes, this is going to be the Heisman winner”. This was an open race amongst a good number of candidates and it just so happens that these four young men were selected as Heisman finalists: Caleb Williams, QB, USC; Stetson Bennett, QB, UGA; Max Duggan, QB, TCU; CJ Stroud, QB, Ohio State.
In this article we will cover about a half dozen Heisman Snubs who we believe could’ve received an invite to NY based on their performances in 2022. We cover a couple QBs we believe could’ve taken one of the four spots as well as a couple non-QB offensive players, and a defensive candidate that most may find shocking. Let’s get into it!
Quarterbacks
Hendon Hooker: 229/329(69.6%), 3,135 yards, 27 TDs, 2 INT; 104 carries, 430 yards, 5 TDs
The first QB we are going to cover is Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker. Hooker is a QB we must start by saying made HUGE strides from last year. Hooker’s Heisman case started as one of the strongest, and as we got down the stretch slowly got worse. Hooker’s first fault was against UGA where he came up just shy of 200 passing yards with one INT and no TDs. However, it is also Georgia that has been the number one ranked team nearly all season. I think that game hurt him, but not enough to take away his invite to NY. The following week Hooker reminded people why he was a Heisman favorite when he lit up Missouri’s defense. The week after that the Vols played against South Carolina in a game where Spencer Rattler finally remembered he was a 5-Star Recruit coming out of HS. Obviously, Hooker does not play defense so that blame doesn’t entirely fall on his shoulders, but for a Heisman favorite and the QB of what people were calling one of the most explosive offenses in college football Hooker was not able to keep up with the South Carolina offense. Hooker also went down with a torn ACL in the 4th quarter of that game forcing him to miss their final game against Vandy. Many will say “Oh it’s just Vanderbilt”, but it would’ve been a great game for Hooker to get his stats up. Hooker led one of the nation’s top offenses and even won SEC Offensive Player of the Year. This may be a controversial take, but I think the end of Hooker’s season really bumped him out of the top four and I don’t really disagree with it.
Bo Nix: 271/379(71.5%), 3,389 yards, 27 TDs, 6 INT; 84 carries, 504 yards, 14 TDs
We at The Gridiron Review truly believed Nix was a dark horse to not just get a NY invite but had a chance at winning the Heisman. Nix transferred to Eugene from Auburn. Nix wasn’t even guaranteed to be the starting QB back in the summer. Nix won the competition, and in a week one matchup against the reigning National Champs, Nix laid an egg passing for 173 and two INTs. Some fans were already calling for Nix head, but Nix silenced the haters really quick. The Ducks went 8-0 in their next eight games with Nix getting it done on the ground as well as through the air. The next loss they suffered was to a strong UWashington team in which Nix went down with an ankle injury, but Nix looked good until the injury. The following week they played a revenge game against Utah. Nix was told not to leave the pocket as his ankle was not 100%, and somehow was still able to manage to get the win. They lost the following week to in-state rival Oregon State. I did not watch the game, but the stats suggest that Nix had a good day but was asked to remain in the pocket again. Nix is the type of QB the Heisman award is made for… a guy who gets the job done on the ground and in the air. Due to the fact that it was week one at a new school, I don’t think the Georgia game impacted his Heisman case as much as some may think. I think the injury against Washington and the inability to make plays with his legs was the primary reason that held Nix just out of the top four. I also think being a three-loss team and not in the Conference Championship played a factor.
Drake Maye: 324/482(67.2%), 4,115 yards, 35 TDs, 7 INT; 172 carries, 653 yards, 7 TDs
I truly believe that Drake Maye should be in NY on Saturday night. I am not going to say in place of who until our second Heisman article but know that Maye should be there. Statistically, Maye is just as good or better than any of the finalists. In passing yards, he blew Duggan, Stroud, and Bennett out of the water, and even had more than Williams. He did not have the most passing TDs(35), but was right up there with Stroud and Williams(T-37). None of the finalists even came close to him in rushing yards. Just like I talked about with Nix, the Heisman is an award made for QBs who can get it done on the ground as well as through the air, and Maye is exactly that. So why isn’t Maye heading to NY? I can’t say for sure, but I have a feeling it comes down to two primary factors. The first is UNC was a four-loss team who was not as explosive as say a team like Tennessee. The second reason is Maye fell apart and was unable to win the close games at the end of the year. 202 yards passing and an INT in a 21-17 loss to GT. 233 passing, a TD, and an INT in a 30-27 2OT game against in-state rival NCST. 268 passing and two INTs in a blowout loss to Clemson in the ACC Championship game. It’s hard to say what would’ve needed to happen for Maye to make it to NY, but I personally think wins against GT and NCST and a closer game against Clemson makes him a finalist.
Running Backs
Blake Corum: 247 carries, 1,463 yards, 18 TDs; 11 receptions, 80 yards, 1 TD
I know I’m going to get extreme backlash for this one, but contrary to popular belief I do not believe Corum should’ve ever been in the Heisman conversation. People thought even with the injury Corum should be in NY, and there’s just no way. What is your case for him? Corum started the season extremely slowly and that was against Colorado State, Hawaii, and UConn. If you want to win the Heisman you have to run over anyone put in front of you, especially teams like that. If Corum played against Ohio State and torched them then maybe I would think he has a case, but he missed the biggest game of the season due to injury. Corum also wasn’t the “bell cow” back. He split with Donovan Edwards, which is fine, most college teams do have a committee, but Corum does not have the receiving stats to make himself a Heisman case. Look at 2015 Heisman winner Derrick Henry. He did not have the receiving stats either, but he also ran for 2,200 yards and 28 TDs that season. Corum is nearly 800 yards off. As much as it pains me to say the Heisman award is made for QBs to win, you really need to stand out if you’re a non-QB offensive player or defensive player, and Corum just doesn’t have anything to back up the fact that he should be a Heisman finalist. The only reason he’s part of this article is because I know many fans think he’s one of the biggest snubs.
Chase Brown: 328 carries, 1,643 yards, 10 TDs; 27 receptions, 240 yards, 3 TDs
If any Big 10 Running Back is going to get the Heisman how about we talk about the serious candidate? The Big 10 leading rusher and second-leading rusher in the nation, Chase Brown from Illinois. This kid is not talked about enough or with the respect he deserves. I did not really watch any Illinois game until the Michigan game when I saw Illinois was keeping it a game. Brown really stuck out to me as he ripped off a few really nice runs to help keep his team moving the ball down the field and in the game. If Brown was able to rush for 150+ against Chattanooga and 100+ against Purdue and Northwestern to get his total up to around 1,800-1,900 yards rushing I think Brown has a chance, but he would probably also need to increase either his receiving yards or TD total a little bit as well. If Chase Brown had been a 4 or 5-Star Recruit who had stats as he has at Michigan or nearly any other program that’s not Illinois he would be in the Heisman conversation.
Bijan Robinson: 258 carries, 1,580 yards, 18 TDs; 19 receptions, 314 yards, 2 TDs
If any running back was going to make it to New York for this year’s Heisman it would’ve been Bijan Robinson. Despite having similar total yardage to Brown, Robinson had seven more TDs, and was a much more explosive player than Brown. Could you make an argument for Robinson with his current stat line? Sure, I don’t see why not. He had nearly 1,900 total yards and 20 TDs. Obviously, he had a pretty strong case but didn’t make it. Look at Texas’s backfield though. Backup RB Roschon Johnson had 107 total touches for almost 700 yards. Imagine if Robinson was the bell cow and you add those stats to his already impressive stat line. Robinson would for sure be in NY this weekend. It would’ve been nice to see a non-QB as a Heisman finalist considering Robinson has a compelling case, but I can understand why he’s probably right outside the top four.
Defense
Drew Sanders: 103 tackles, 9.5 sacks, 3 FF, 1 FR, 1 INT, 5 PD
Yes, I know. I’m going to get “where’s Will Anderson?” Look at Anderson’s stats(51 tackles, 10 sacks, 1 INT, 1 PD, 1 TD); he does not have Heisman stats, all he has is the superstar name. Sanders has double his tackles, three more FF, one more FR, and four more PDs). Anderson only has 0.5 sack and a TD more than Sanders. If Sanders’s name was Will Anderson I have a feeling he’d be in NY or at least in the conversation in which his name was never a part. This is a strong stat line and makes a pretty strong case for Heisman. Unfortunately, Sanders is not a household name and that is why I believe his name was never even mentioned. I did do a little bit of research into defensive Heisman candidates, and no one really stood out except for Sanders. I understand Sanders doesn’t have the best case, but he had the best of what I saw, and I wanted to be able to mention at least one defensive candidate. The unfortunate part is that if Will Anderson had his 2021 stats this year he would probably be in NY on Saturday.
Honorable Mention: Jalen Carter
Jalen Carter looked like one of, if not the best defensive player at times this season. I’m not going to go in-depth about Carter, but I will say two factors went into him not being in the Heisman conversation. The first is that defensive linemen without a ridiculous stat line are never going to win the Heisman just for their disruptiveness. The second is Carter missed a chunk of the season due to injury. Had he been healthy we could be having a different conversation.