The optics were impressive over the weekend for Oklahoma’s John Mateer and Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza, the quarterbacks who are the two current Heisman favorites at most sportsbooks.
Mateer, who had already emerged at the front of the pack, continued to tack onto his early season resume by leading the Sooners to a 24-17 victory over Auburn. The Washington State transfer has now produced a rushing and passing touchdown in 10 consecutive games while his Heisman odds shifted from +900 to +700 at BetMGM.
That is just ahead of Mendoza, who vaulted to the No. 2 spot at +900 after throwing five touchdown passes in the Hoosier’s 63-10 rout of Illinois. Mendoza was not among the top 10 Heisman favorites at the book last week, but the Miami native has now thrown 14 touchdowns with no interceptions through Indiana’s 4-0 start.
While Mendoza was serving notice of his Heisman campaign, the Cal transfer saw his former team shut out 34-0 by two-touchdown underdog San Diego State on Saturday.
The No. 11 Hoosiers travel to Iowa this weekend before a big showdown at No. 6 Oregon. Ducks quarterback Dante Moore has the third-shortest Heisman odds at +1200 at BetMGM along with Miami’s Carson Beck. Georgia’s Gunner Stockton rounds out the top 5 at +1400.
Mateer (+750), Mendoza (+950) and Moore (+1100) are the three current favorites at BetMGM, where Texas A&M’s Marcel Reed and Tennessee’s Joey Aguilar are each +1400. Beck has fallen to +1500, where he is even with Stockton and Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith.
Beck has guided Miami to a 4-0 start that includes wins over Notre Dame and Florida, but the Hurricanes relied heavily on their ground game in Saturday’s 26-7 win over the Gators. Beck struggled to move the ball through the air, passing for 160 yards and an interception while failing to throw a touchdown.
Smith is also the top non-quarterback at BetMGM, where he is being offered at +1600. The sophomore has 315 receiving yards and three touchdowns through three games. Also making a giant leap was TCU quarterback Josh Hoover, who is +1500 after throwing for 1,000 yards and 11 touchdowns during the Horned Frogs’ 3-0 start.
Auburn quarterback Jackson Arnold suffered one of the week’s biggest drops, plummeting from +2000 to +4000 following the Tigers’ loss at Oklahoma in which he was sacked 10 times. Utah’s Devon Dampier suffered the same fate following the Utes’ decisive loss against Texas Tech.
Preseason Heisman favorite Arch Manning saw his odds tick back up to +2500 from +3500 following Texas’ 55-0 dismantling of Sam Houston.
The book currently stands to do very well in the Heisman market, with the three biggest liabilities being Manning, Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love and South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers. All three are on the fringe of Heisman consideration before the calendar even hits October, with Manning leading all players with 13.2 percent of the money wagered backing him to win the award.
HEISMAN TROPHY ODDS*
PLAYER, POS, TEAM, SEPT. 1, CURRENT
John Mateer, QB, Oklahoma (+1300), (+700)
Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana (N/A), (+900)
Dante Moore, QB, Oregon (+2000), (+1200)
Carson Beck, QB, Miami (+1200), (+1200)
Gunner Stockton, QB, Georgia (+1200), (+1400)
Marcel Reed, QB, Texas A&M (N/A), (+1500)
Josh Hoover, QB, TCU, (N/A), (+1500)
Joey Aguilar, QB, Tennessee (+5000), (+1500)
Garrett Nussmeier, QB, LSU (+650), (+1500)
Jeremiah Smith, WR, Ohio State (+1500), (+1600)
Julian Sayin, QB, Ohio State (+2500), (+1700)
Ty Simpson, QB, Alabama (N/A), (+2000)
Thomas Castellanos, QB, Florida State (N/A), (+2000)
Jayden Maiava, QB, Southern Cal (N/A), (+2000)
Arch Manning, QB, Texas (+1600), (+2500)
Haynes King, QB, Georgia Tech (N/A), (+2500)
Drew Allar, QB, Penn State (+1600), (+3000)
Beau Pribula, QB, Missouri, (N/A), (+3500)
Jackson Arnold, QB Auburn (+2000), (+4000)
Devon Dampier, QB, Utah (+2500), (+4000)
Sam Leavitt, QB, Arizona State (+1600), (+4000)
Diego Pavia, QB, Vanderbilt, (N/A), (+5000)
Jeremiyah Love, RB, Notre Dame (+2500), (+5000)
LaNorris Sellers, QB, South Carolina (+700), (+8000)
Cade Klubnik, QB, Clemson (+1600), (+10000)
DJ Lagway, QB, Florida (+2000), (+30000)
*BetMGM