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Bill Connelly
Multiple Authors
In the era of the 24-team College Football Playoff, which is expected to start in 2027, it won’t be about whether teams with title-caliber talent can make the field — it will be about whether they’re rounding into championship form when it matters. When you get three mulligans, minimum, before results start to impact your playoff status, the season becomes far more about fine-tuning and fiddling with the knobs than about keeping your head above water.
I’ll leave this up to you to decide whether it’s a good thing (I have my own opinions), but those sorts of dynamics are on the way. And we’re almost getting a sneak preview of it with LSU. After looking like world beaters in the season opener against Clemson, Lane Kiffin’s Tigers suffered a pair of tight road defeats in conference play — to revenge-minded Ole Miss in Week 3 and to out-of-nowhere story Kentucky in Week 6 — and that would have been enough to knock them out of the hunt in the BCS or four-team-CFP eras. They would need help and a lot of wins to get back in position with the current 12-team CFP, and the extreme chaos of the past two weeks has already given them a lot of help. Their next three games (Alabama, Texas, at Tennessee) could easily deliver another loss, but if they maintain the form they showed in blowouts of Mississippi State and Auburn, they’re going to be in excellent shape. And if recent chaos continues, they might even be able to afford another defeat.
Regardless of how this ends up for them, however, one should make no mistake: LSU has looked great over the past two weeks, and as I wrote in my Sunday evening recap column, quarterback Sam Leavitt has led the way. He has cut down on the mistakes and a little of the wild-man routine, and he is once again looking like the QB who helped Arizona State achieve an incredibly high level late in the 2024 season.
In a surprisingly easy romp over Auburn on Saturday, Leavitt was controlled and brilliant. He completed 21 of 27 passes for 251 yards and three touchdowns, while rushing for another score, in the first half alone, as the Tigers surged to a 31-10 halftime lead. (They eventually won 38-17.)
In a funky week for the Heisman race, in which many of the country’s best players to date were either on bye (Ohio State‘s Jeremiah Smith), hurt (Texas‘ Colin Simmons) or continuing to split glory with a teammate (Miami‘s Malachi Toney and Darian Mensah), Leavitt stood out. He is your Heisman of the Week winner for Week 8.
This season, Heisman is running its Heisman Hopefuls Fan Vote all season long, with a platform that provides statistics, EA Sports ratings and other information. In that vein, I am once again awarding the Heisman every single week of the season and doling out weekly points, F1-style (10 points for first place, 9 for second, and so on). So far, this race is playing out in a pretty similar fashion to the real race. Will that continue?
This week’s Heisman winner: Sam Leavitt
1. Sam Leavitt, LSU
Week 8 numbers: 32-for-45 passing for 378 yards and 3 touchdowns, plus 8 carries for 54 yards and a touchdown against Auburn
Despite early-season sacks and interceptions, Leavitt has produced a Total QBR in the 80s or 90s in seven of eight starts, and for the entire season he’s fifth in Total QBR. Only two current Heisman candidates are ahead of him on that list (Darian Mensah is No. 1, and Georgia‘s Gunner Stockton is No. 4). Leavitt is up to 11th in DraftKings’ Heisman odds, and while it might be too late for him to make a proper run at the trophy, he does have a series of marquee games ahead. I’m not saying he’s a genuine candidate yet, but his story might not be over.
The rest of the top 10
2. Malachi Toney, Miami
Week 8 numbers: 16 catches for 194 yards and 3 TDs, plus 2 punt returns for 28 yards against Pitt
Actually, let’s just go ahead and combine Toney with the next entry:
3. Darian Mensah, Miami
Week 8 numbers: 31-for-37 for 387 yards and 4 touchdowns, plus 16 non-sack rushing yards against Pitt
How do you divvy out credit when a potentially Heisman-worthy passer is throwing to a potentially Heisman-worthy receiver? I’ve been struggling with it. Mensah’s Heisman odds are better, per DraftKings, but I’ve been giving more credit to Toney. This is his third time on a Heisman of the Week list, and he has finished in the top three each time. Mensah, meanwhile, has made fewer appearances and has finished lower.
Toney has been the target of 38% of Mensah’s passes, 40% of his completions, 44% of his passing yards and 50% of his passing touchdowns. He came into Week 8 averaging 5.3 yards per route run, a ridiculously high average that was nearly equal to Jeremiah Smith’s (5.4). And then on Smith’s bye week, Toney reeled in 16 of 17 passes thrown his way and scored three times. Mensah might be the best quarterback in the country this season, but Toney seems like an even better receiver. Regardless, they were both incredible against Pitt.
1:29
Darian Mensah throws 53-yard TD pass to Malachi Toney
4. Easton Messer, Florida Atlantic
Week 8 numbers: 12 catches for 162 yards and 2 TDs, plus an 82-yard punt return, 18 rushing yards and 2 TDs against Rice
FAU-Rice was an absolute fireworks show, and Messer was the headliner. He scored via run and pass in the second quarter, via run and pass in the third and via what turned out to be a game-clinching 82-yard punt return in the fourth. FAU won 51-49, and there’s no way the Owls survive without every bit of Messer’s greatness.
OH MY EASTON MESSER😱😱
PUNT RETURN FOR HIS 5TH TOUCHDOWN OF THE GAME‼️
📺 | @ESPNCFB
#BuiltToRise x @FAUFootball https://t.co/xudJ1d3WfS
— The American (@American_Conf) October 24, 2026
5. Sebastian Cheeks, Wisconsin
Week 8 numbers: 5 tackles, 3.5 TFLs, 2.5 sacks and 2 run stops against USC
A team with Lincoln Riley as its head coach had never been held to 7 points before Saturday night. Wisconsin put together a defensive masterclass against Riley’s USC Trojans, and Cheeks was as dominant as anyone. He took part in three huge sacks, stuffed King Miller on an early third-and-1 run attempt and later stuffed Miller again on first-and-goal from the Wisconsin 1.
6. Keyone Jenkins, UCF
Week 8 numbers: 25-for-41 passing for 293 yards and 3 TDs, plus 39 non-sack rushing yards and a TD against BYU
After three years at Florida International, Jenkins moved to Orlando to ostensibly become the backup for Alonza Barnett III. But Barnett has been injured for most of the season, and Jenkins instead crafted a legacy moment in leading UCF to its first win over a top-2 team. It was a strange, sloppy game, but anytime the Knights needed a big-time play, Jenkins made it.
7. Gael Ochoa, Rice
Week 8 numbers: 11 non-sack carries for 267 yards and 4 touchdowns, plus 2-for-5 passing for 80 yards and a TD against FAU
The primary reason FAU needed such brilliance from Messer was that Ochoa, making his first start of the season, couldn’t stop scoring long touchdowns. He scored on a 56-yard run 87 seconds into the game, then on a 52-yard run a few minutes later. His 74-yard run kept the Owls close at halftime, and his 69-yard run brought them within 2 late in the third quarter. After Messer’s punt return, he almost immediately responded with a 71-yard touchdown pass to Braylen Walker. It was almost a surprise when he didn’t score again on Rice’s final possession. (Instead, the Owls settled for a last-minute field goal attempt and missed.)
This was a truly ridiculous football game, and I mean that in the best possible way.
1:18
Rice Owls vs. Florida Atlantic Owls: Full Highlights
8. Rasheem Biles, Texas
Week 8 numbers: 4 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 interception and 2 pass breakups against Ole Miss
It’s a pretty mean feat holding Trinidad Chambliss and the Ole Miss offense under 30 points; for one half, Texas held the Rebels to 3. The Longhorns needed every bit of brilliance the defense could muster to buy time for Arch Manning and the offense, but they got a season-saving win, and Biles, with a touchdown-saving interception in the second quarter and two breakups and a run stop in the fourth, was a major reason for it.
9. John Mateer, Oklahoma
Week 8 numbers: 22-for-29 passing for 283 yards and 2 touchdowns, plus 46 non-sack rushing yards against Mississippi State
Oklahoma fell off the national radar with a 3-3 start, and Mateer’s play has been spotty at best in 2026. But he was dynamite in Starkville. He was controlled and accurate, completing 76% of his passes, distributing the ball to nine different targets, taking only one sack and rushing for four first downs. Evidently cowbells bring out the best in him.
10. Cole Tabb, Cincinnati
Week 8 numbers: 16 carries for 173 yards and a TD, plus a receiving TD against Texas Tech
Cincinnati’s defense was brilliant in the Big 12’s other major upset, constantly forcing errors out of an occasionally error-prone Tech offense. But Tabb’s brilliance was equally important. He was the key piece of a ball-control attack, then he got to seal the upset with a long sprint.
Cole Tabb takes it 58-yards to the HOUSE!
@GoBEARCATS https://t.co/X19vlXjTu4
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 24, 2026
Honorable mention:
• Raleek Brown, Texas (23 carries for 157 yards against Ole Miss).
• Devon Dampier, Utah (18-for-26 passing for 204 yards and 2 INTs, plus 151 non-sack rushing yards and 2 TDs against Houston).
• LaDainian Fields, Oklahoma State (8 tackles, 1.5 TFLs, 2 run stops and 2 interceptions against Colorado)
• Micah Ford, Stanford (22 carries for 150 yards, plus 58 receiving yards against NC State).
• Jackson Gutierrez, Navy (27 carries for 225 yards and 3 TDs, plus 7-for-10 passing for 133 yards and a TD against North Texas).
• Cardae Mack, Arizona State (26 carries for 166 yards and 4 touchdowns against Kansas State).
• Isaiah Myers, Missouri State (11 catches for 242 yards and 2 touchdowns against Delaware).
• Gavin Sell, North Dakota State (10 tackles, 5 TFLs, 2 sacks and 4 run stuffs against New Mexico).
• Marcus Stokes, Memphis (29-for-43 passing for 320 yards and 3 touchdowns, plus 31 non-sack rushing yards and two TDs — all five TDs came in the second half — against East Carolina).
• Jahiem White, North Texas (20 carries for 174 yards and 2 TDs, plus 58 receiving yards against Navy).
Point totals and current odds
Through nine weeks, here are your points leaders. I’m using a player’s points over the past four weeks as a tiebreaker when necessary. As always, players who are also in the top 10 of the current DraftKings betting odds are in bold.
1. Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State (27.5 points)
2. Malachi Toney, Miami (27 points)
3. Keelon Russell, Alabama (25 points)
4. Kamario Taylor, Mississippi State (20 points)
5. Michael Hawkins Jr., West Virginia (17 points)
6. Colin Simmons, Texas (15.5 points)
7. Bear Bachmeier, BYU (15 points, all in the last four weeks)
8. Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State (15 points, five in the last four weeks)
9. Trinidad Chambliss, Ole Miss (15 points, zero in the last four weeks)
10. Jamal Roberts, Missouri (14 points)
This week’s list features eight first-timers, as Toney and Mensah were the only repeat customers. But Toney is making things awfully interesting. It looked like Smith had almost put this race to bed a few weeks ago with his back-to-back 200-yard games and the struggles from Russell (sacks) and Taylor (injury). Instead, Toney has finished in the top three in back-to-back weeks, and we once again have a race.
Will Smith be able to hold off the Miami duo while potentially catching passes from someone other than Julian Sayin? In a short amount of time, his Heisman odds have shifted from -220 (equivalent to a 69% chance) to +122 (45%), and Mensah (+290, 26%) and Toney (+350, 22%) are hot on his heels. We have ourselves a race!
Our weekly hat tip to a smaller-school standout, named after the Holy Cross two-way legend who finished in the Heisman top five twice in the 1980s.
I promise I didn’t dole out any bonus points for the amazing name — Sixkiller earned the small-school player of the week honors all on his own. The senior from Norman, Oklahoma, (there’s actually a lake called Lake Tenkiller in Oklahoma, too) played the game of his life in a 35-6 road win over Maine. His 53-yard TD pass to Jon Gullette opened the scoring, a 28-yarder to Brady Ambrose gave the Camels a commanding third-quarter lead, and his 59-yarder to Jyron Waiters put the game away early in the fourth quarter.
Over the middle for 53 yards 🙌
#FightAsONE | #RollHumps 🐪🏈 https://t.co/aoSCivINx1
— Campbell Football (@GoCamelsFB) October 24, 2026
Campbell is 7-1 on the season; it’s the most games the Camels have won since bringing back football in 2008, and Sixkiller is up to 2,349 passing yards, 18 passing touchdowns and four rushing touchdowns. Roll Humps!
As always, there were plenty of worthy Lockbaum candidates. Western Illinois’ Kennedy McGill had a major case with his combination of 221 rushing yards and 139 passing yards against UT Martin, while Northwood’s Ethan Hamby threw for 434 yards and two scores against Ohio Dominican at the Division II level, Lewis & Clark’s Sam Simril threw for 437 yards and five TDs against Whitworth in D-II, and Mount Union’s Mikey Maloney went for 229 passing yards and 156 rushing yards against Wilmington as the Purple Raiders continued their move up the Division III polls. And let’s not forget Trine’s Zack Pillow, a receiver who carried a load of 17 catches for 180 yards and 4 scores against rival Adrian.
