Mark Ingram of Alabama faces two obstacles to winning the 2010 Heisman Trophy, impressing the voters a second-straight season and getting past their 'quarterback bias.'
spread odds betting odds handicapping pick betting line
Mark Ingram, Running Back – Alabama Crimson Tide
Heisman Trophy Betting Odds: +350 (7 to 2)
The 2009 Heisman Trophy winner is favored to win it again and why not. The Alabama Crimson Tide return eight starters on the offensive side of the ball, including quarterback Greg McElroy. It’s a rarity for any player to win the Heisman in back-to-back seasons, which is why Ingram’s odds should better than +350. At this price, it’s best to stay away. Trent Richardson will share some of the workload this year and don’t be surprised if the Crimson Tide’s passing game improves, which means less hand-offs to Ingram. We’d need better odds than +350 to bet on something that has only happened twice in the 74 years of the trophy.
Terrelle Pryor, Quarterback – Ohio State Buckeyes
Heisman Trophy Betting Odds: +500 (5 to 1)
Terrelle Pryor looks like a great pick to win the Heisman. The Buckeyes are back in contention, they don’t have many stars on their offense outside of him, so you know he’s going to be the most valuable player on the team, and he’s a runner, which means he’ll good stats both running and passing. If the Buckeyes go to the BCS, he’s the likely Heisman winner.
On top of that, he looked like he turned a corner in the Rose Bowl last year. The media has been harsh on him through his first two seasons but we know what he’s capable of now and he’ll definitely be in the running for the Heisman Trophy this year.
Evan Royster, Running Back – Penn State Nittany Lions
Heisman Trophy Betting Odds: +1200 (12 to 1)
Evan Royster is a peculiar candidate. The oddsmakers have him at +1200, which doesn’t seem enticing enough considering Penn State is expected to be pedestrian and even Royster himself isn’t exactly the flashiest of running backs. On top of that, Penn State is breaking in a new quarterback and has questions along the offensive line. He deserves closer to 20-to-1 odds and even with a better payout, it doesn’t change the fact that he’s very unlikely to win it.
John Clay, Running Back – Wisconsin Badgers
Heisman Trophy Betting Odds: +1200 (12 to 1)
The 2009 Big Ten Player of the Year is now vying for the national award and if Wisconsin plays to their lofty expectations, he’ll have a great shot. The 10-win Badgers squad returns 18 players and Bret Bielema is loaded with his best team to date. The Badgers love to pound the rock and Clay is going to be fed as much as he can eat. Expect monster stats but the Badgers have to finish ahead of the Buckeyes for Clay to finish with more votes than Pryor.
Case Keenum, Quarterback – Houston Cougars
Heisman Trophy Betting Odds: +1200 (12 to 1)
By the time he graduates, Case Keenum will have notched almost all of the NCAA passing records. Unfortunately, his Houston teams haven’t done much winning, which has really made his back-to-back 5000+ passing yards seasons invisible on the Heisman radar. That and the fact that he plays in Conference USA. The same will be the case in 2010 as he’ll have the numbers in the box score, but his team’s record in the standings will keep him from Heisman notoriety.
Noel Devine, Running Back – West Virginia Mountaineers
Heisman Trophy Betting Odds: +1200 (12 to 1)
There’s no question that Devine has the explosiveness to earn the national attention and he’ll have the numbers to earn credibility for the award, but West Virginia has to make a dent on the BCS if he’s to win it.
There’s no question that as he goes, West Virginia will go, which means he’ll have a strong case for the Heisman as the MVP of the team if they are a winner. But if he doesn’t lead them to a Big East crown, he won’t be in the mix.
Kellen Moore, Quarterback – Boise State Broncos
Heisman Trophy Betting Odds: +1500 (15 to 1)
Kellen Moore seems like a great pick to take a flier on at +1500. The Broncos have to win two games this year: they play Virginia Tech on a neutral site and are home to Oregon State. If they can win those two games, they’ll breeze through the WAC schedule and likely play in the BCS Championship game. Moore is the unquestioned leader of the Broncos and he’ll have to earn some national notoriety for the Heisman. He had 3536 passing yards last year and 39 touchdowns. Piling up stats against a weak WAC aren’t good enough; if he can have two good games against Virginia Tech and Oregon State, he’ll be among the finalists. At 15-to-1, betting him is good value.
Heisman Trophy Betting Pick: Pryor +500
Article Update on 09/12/2010
Front Runners
Terrelle Pryor, Ohio State Buckeyes
The Ohio State Buckeyes are coming off a stomping of the
Miami Hurricanes and quarterback Terrelle Pryor was one of the main factors.
Pryor finished with 346 total yards and two touchdowns and is the face of a
team that could be in the National Champions game. He has to be considered the
favorite at this point.
Kellen Moore, Boise State Broncos
The Boise State Broncos passed their biggest test of the
year - a Labor Day matchup against Virginia Tech - and Moore's three touchdowns
stood as the difference. If the Broncos do go to the BCS Championship as
expected, Moore will receive serious consideration.
John Clay, Wisconsin Badgers
So far on the season, Clay has 260 rushing yards on 40
carries with four touchdowns. If Clay can keep this up and Wisconsin can
leapfrog Ohio State in the Big Ten, he'll be among the finalists.
Welcome To The
Conversation:
Denard Robinson, Michigan Wolverines
Could Robinson be the current Heisman favorite right now?
Through two weeks, he alone has accumulated 885 total yards and five passing
touchdowns. He also led the Wolverines on a classic fourth-quarter
come-from-behind win at Notre Dame. He's the trending topic right now.
Landry Jones, Oklahoma Sooners
A Sooners quarterback among the contenders? What a surprise.
Oklahoma was lazy in the opener but flexed their muscle in their matchup
against a quality Florida State team. Jones went 29-of-39 for 374 yards and
four touchdowns, which gets him into the conversation.
Patrick Peterson, LSU Tigers
It's always a long shot for a defensive player, but LSU's
junior cornerback Patrick Peterson is definitely in the conversation. He
totaled 257 all-purpose yards in the opener against North Carolina and a
touchdown. He was quiet this week against Vanderbilt, but he's Charles
Woodson-caliber and is worth keeping an eye on.
Ryan Mallett, Arkansas Razorbacks
Arkansas has yet to play a game with any serious
implications but quarterback Ryan Mallett is going to be in the conversation
before everything is said and done. So far this season, he is 49-of-67, 701
yards and six touchdowns through two games. Wins at Georgia and home to Alabama
in the coming weeks would help his case.
Forget About It:
Ricky Dobbs, Navy Midshipmen
He had an outside shot to begin with but with an opening
week loss to Maryland, you can scratch his name off the list.
Jacory Harris, Miami Hurricanes
Harris threw four interceptions in arguably the biggest
contest of his college career against Ohio State this weekend. Forget about it.
Mark Ingram, Alabama Crimson Tide
Ingram has missed the first two games of the season while
Alabama has looked just fine without him. With Trent Richardson's emergence, we
can eliminate the chances of back-to-back Heisman winners.
Evan Royster, Penn State Nittany Lions
Penn State took one on the chin courtesy of Alabama on
Saturday and Royster was invisible (nine carries, 32 yards).
Case Keenum, Houston Cougars
Maybe he still has a shot, but considering he plays for
Houston and Conference USA, he needs astronomical numbers to get notice.
Houston scored 54 against UTEP this week but Keenum finished with no touchdowns
and one interception. That drop his name from the list.