(Photo: Yahoo Sports)
Saturday Spotlight
The 2023 Heisman Trophy Preview
1. Jayden Daniels (LSU)- What a season he had. I remember his days with the Arizona State Sun Devils and how limited he was as a passer. Then, he transfers to Baton Rouge in 2022 to play for Brian Kelly and the rest is history. Jayden is a 6’4 Quarterback with the ability to throw from the pocket, move with the pocket and can burn a defense with his feet. What I’ve noticed from him this season is he was always looking to make his reads from the pocket first and if he didn’t see what he liked, then he ran. There were games where he would finish with close to 350 scrimmage yards. Jayden was the anchor of an LSU offense that averaged 47 points per game. This was their best offensive output I’ve seen since 2019 with Joe Burrow, Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase. Just imagine if they had the defense to complement their offense this season, this is a playoff team if you ask me. What a season this kid put together.
2. Bo Nix (Oregon)- I watched him closely with the Auburn Tigers and I’ve paid even more attention to him since he transferred to Eugene to play for Dan Lanning. This Oregon offense isn’t what they were this year if it’s not for the efforts of one Bo Nix. He has grown tremendously as a Quarterback this season. If I can be honest, I don’t think Bo was necessarily coached correctly at Auburn, nor did he have the weapons around him. This is why I always say for football teams to invest and build around your Quarterback. He won’t be able to succeed if you don’t put him in that position to succeed. Bo had the luxury of throwing the ball to Troy Franklin, Tez Johnson and Terrance Ferguson this season. He can sling the ball from the pocket and can move and make things happen with his feet to extend the play. He’s cut from that Brett Favre cloth in my opinion with the way he can scramble and how he plays with that gunslingers mentality. After falling to Washington in the regular season, Bo helped lead the Ducks to wins in every single game after that and also helped lead them to the Pac-12 title game where they fell short to those Huskies once again.
3. Michael Penix Jr. (Washington)- I remember his days playing for the Indiana Hoosiers. He then transfers over to Seattle to play for the Washington Huskies last season. I haven’t seen a smooth Quarterback like Michael since Joe Burrow back in 2019 with the LSU Tigers. I like how he scans the entire field and spreads the football around to the open receiver. I’m also a fan of his ability to move up in the pocket and slide away from pressure. He’s never phased by anything and lets the game come to him. Michael has a tremendous chemistry with Wide Receiver, Rome Odunze and they make it look so effortless together. The Huskies aren’t a playoff team with MPJ9. Michael threw 33 touchdown passes and always delivered on big throws whenever his team needed them.
4. Marvin Harrison Jr. (Ohio State)- Speaking and analyzing Marvin Harrison’s son makes me feel old because I remember when Marvin was playing for the Indianapolis Colts and when he received his gold jacket to become a Hall of Famer. Now, we speak of Marvin Harrison Jr. This is the best Wide Receiver in the country and it isn’t even close to me at this point. If you feel there’s someone better, please tell me. Marvin is your typical possession receiver who dominates on every single coverage opportunity. The Buckeyes used him in different capacities to get him the ball and he delivered every time the football was thrown in his direction. I see a little bit of Julio Jones when I watch him play and he has the smooth route running of his father. It didn’t matter who was throwing him the ball, Marvin delivered for a Buckeyes offense that looked much different this year than we’ve seen in years past.
Prediction: Jayden Daniels will win the 2023 Heisman Trophy award. Let’s look at the stats first and foremost. Jayden accounted for 50 touchdowns this year. That’s 40 throwing and 10 rushing. He threw for 3,812 and rushed for 1,134 yards. This is the guy that you create on video games. Jayden was the catalyst for the highest scoring offense in college football and if his defense cooperated, this is a potential playoff team in my opinion. What a season this young man had and he will become the first LSU Tiger to win the award since Joe Burrow in 2019. I could make a case for every invite, but unfortunately, only one can win the award. It’s going back to Baton Rouge this year.
