With the opening week of college football in the books, it is now time to take a look at who has already put some separation from all the others in the Heisman race.

5. Marqise Lee

USC fans settling into their seats, getting ready to see their #1 ranked USC Trojans play Hawaii. First play of the game, short pass to Marqise Lee, who preceded to turn it into a 75 yard touchdown. The standout receiver caught 10 balls for 197 yards, and also had a 100 yard kick return for a touchdown. Although many will dismiss him as a Heisman candidate because of the people he plays with (Barkley, Woods), he deserves credit for the game he put forth.

 

4. Geno Smith

Look up “Pure Passer” in the dictionary, and you may see the picture above staring you in the face. Geno Smith had a completion percentage of almost 90% last week, a number that is hard to do against air, let alone a college defense of any level. His total stats against Marshall were 32-36 for 323 yards and 4 touchdowns. Although he may be a product of a system tailored to his skill set, one cannot deny the numbers that he put up week one, and should continue to during the season.

 

3. Le’Veon Bell

Last year it was Robert Griffin III, this year could it be Le’Veon Bell? Bell followed a similar path by using a national televised opening game to showcase his skills at the biggest level. This workhorse carried the ball an outstanding 44 times for 210 yards and 2 TDs against a Boise State defense that was supposed to be one of the better in the nation. He also had 6 receptions for 55 yards. Think about this for a second…he touched the ball 50 times for 265 yards. If this workload continues (and he can handle it), he could be in the discussion for the Heisman all year long.

 

2. De’Anthony Thomas

Even though the competition wasn’t top notch, and he had limited action, the Black Mamba did not disappoint. In a game where the backups were playing by the middle of the 2nd quarter, Oregon playmaker De’Anthony Thomas had 3 TDs and 119 total yards (3 rushes for 64 yards & 4 receptions for 55 yards). In this game, it was evident that Arkansas State was trying to defend against Thomas, the only problem was that they couldn’t. By the time Thomas even got rolling, Oregon already had 50 points, and it wasn’t even halftime yet.

 

1. Matt Barkley

 The leader in the Heisman race, Matt Barkley did nothing to relinquish that lead. Barkley was 23 of 38 for 372 yards and 4 TDs. On the first play of the game, he hooked up with Marqise Lee for 75 yards and the first touchdown of the year. On a offense that is loaded in every way, he is the figurehead. As long as he wins and puts up numbers like these, there is no reason why he wouldn’t be holding the Heisman at the end of the year.