8. HOUSTON QB GREG WARD JR.
Houston’s American Athletic Conference counterpart Memphis lost to Navy Saturday, and quarterback Paxton Lynch had a relatively middling game. That opens the door for Greg Ward Jr. as the Group of Five’s best chance to break into the Heisman race.
Offensive in H-Town.
Chance Allen hauls in TD pass from Greg Ward to put Coogs up 14-7
#CINvsHOU
https://t.co/WZEz9wZTsZ
— American Football (@American_FB) November 7, 2015
Ward’s stat line in a hard-fought, Cougar win over Cincinnati wasn’t that much more impressive than Lynch’s against Navy. Ward threw two touchdown passes and rushed for 119 yards, but was intercepted twice. However, Houston remaining unbeaten does as much for Ward’s candidacy as a historically prolific outing in a loss.
Consider the only non-BCS conference Heisman finalists of recent years, Jordan Lynch in 2013 and Colt Brennan in 2007, played for teams with perfect regular-season records. While team success weighs heavily in the Heisman race, it’s especially important for conference outsiders.
7. TCU QB TREVONE BOYKIN
No Heisman hopeful had a week as rough as that of Trevone Boykin.
If TCU runs the table the rest of the way, wins the Big 12 championship and Boykin resumes his place at the forefront of the Heisman chase, his stats alone don’t seem so bad. Despite throwing four interceptions, he scored three touchdowns and passed for 445 yards.
However, getting back into the mix both for the Big 12 title and Heisman without Josh Doctson, the nation’s leading wide receiver, is a tall order. Doctson sustained a wrist injury early against Oklahoma State, and his status going forward is unclear.
Doctson’s been a huge part of the TCU offense, and thus a cornerstone of Boykin’s Heisman campaign. Of any front-runner downgraded after Week 10, Boykin might have the most bleak outlook moving forward.