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Justin's top 10 Heisman Trophy contenders ahead of Week 11 of the 2025 college football season. Where do Ty Simpson and Fernando Mendoza rank?
Top 10 Heisman Contenders For Week 11
We don’t have too many changes in the Heisman top 10 this week. In fact, the 10 players on the list last week are the 10 players on the list this week. The betting odds would say Oregon’s Dante Moore should be 10th, but I’m not ready to move Haynes King off, even after Georgia Tech’s first loss.
Before we get to the list, I want to acknowledge a couple of players who aren’t getting respect in the betting odds but have a case to be in this list: Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby and Tennessee quarterback Joey Aguilar. Their odds are too long to list them at the moment, but both are having very good seasons. Here are the top 10 Heisman contenders entering Week 11.
10. Haynes King, Quarterback, Georgia Tech
Last Week: Eighth
Dante Moore dropped out of the rankings after his struggles against Wisconsin. He was 9-for-15 for 86 yards before exiting the game due to injury. The Ducks were on a bye this week, but Moore moved up in the odds because players ahead of him lost.
Here’s the thing, though. I can’t move Haynes King out of the top 10. Yes, his Yellow Jackets lost this week, but you can’t blame King for that. King did everything he could to will Georgia Tech to a win, going 25-for-35 for 408 yards with two touchdowns and a pick while also rushing for 103 yards and two scores. The loss is not on him. It’s on the Tech defense.
9. Jeremiah Smith, Wide Receiver, Ohio State
Last Week: Ninth
Jeremiah Smith had another strong game this week, catching six passes for 123 yards and two touchdowns as the Buckeyes defeated Penn State 38-14.
But I’ve been saying this for weeks now: Smith can’t win the Heisman because he has a teammate whose case is better. If Julian Sayin wasn’t playing as well as he is, Smith would be much higher on this list, but we have to take everything into account here.
8. Trinidad Chambliss, Quarterback, Ole Miss
Last Week: 10th
Trinidad Chambliss’ Heisman case definitely boils down to “narrative.” He’s got Ole Miss in line for a playoff spot and has done a great job taking over for the injured Austin Simmons, good enough that he held on to the job once Simmons was back.
However, his ceiling is probably, like…sixth place? He had a completion percentage under 60 percent for the third week in a row and has just three touchdown passes over that span, though he also has three rushing scores. He has the narrative to win the award, but not the numbers.
7. Jeremiyah Love, Running Back, Notre Dame
Last Week: Seventh
Notre Dame appears to have pulled off the impossible. The Irish started the season 0-2, but have somehow made their way back into the playoff conversation, with running back Jeremiyah Love being a huge part of the team’s strong run.
Against Boston College on Saturday, Love carried the ball 17 times for 136 yards and two touchdowns. He currently sits fifth in the FBS in rushing scores and sixth in rushing yards.
6. Diego Pavia, Quarterback, Vanderbilt
Last Week: Fifth
Vanderbilt lost a shootout to Texas this week that put a huge dent in the team’s playoff chances, but quarterback Diego Pavia deserves zero blame for it. He did what he had to do. The defense just let him down.
Pavia was 27-for-38 for 365 yards and three touchdowns and also added 14 carries for 43 rushing yards and a touchdown. He proved he can step up in a shootout, and he almost led a huge fourth-quarter comeback. It’s just tough when your defense gets you in a 17-0 first-quarter hole.
5. Gunner Stockton, Quarterback, Georgia
Last Week: Sixth
Georgia almost lost to Florida this week, only beating the Gators 24-20. Still, a win is a win, right? Gunner Stockton was 20-for-29 for 223 yards and two touchdowns in the win. He was picked off once. Stockton leads the SEC in completion percentage.
4. Marcel Reed, Quarterback, Texas A&M
Last Week: Fourth
This is one of those cases where a very good player on a very good team probably has no shot at the Heisman unless we get a month of chaos in November.
Reed has led A&M to an undefeated season, but he has a few things working against him, including six interceptions. He’s currently fourth in the SEC in touchdowns responsible for and should finish top five in the voting unless A&M implodes, but the top three are just running away with this race right now. That’s reflected in the betting odds, with the top three at +175, +225, and +350 while Reed is in fourth at +750.
3. Ty Simpson, Quarterback, Alabama
Last Week: Second
As much as I hate moving a guy down after a bye week, Julian Sayin’s performance this week proved why he should pass up Alabama’s Ty Simpson.
That’s not to say anything bad about what Simpson has done this year. The Crimson Tide quarterback leads the SEC in quarterback rating and adjusted yards per attempt while throwing 20 touchdowns to just one interception. He’s been incredibly good all year, minus the Florida State loss, where he completed a season-low 53.5 percent of his pass attempts.
2. Julian Sayin, Quarterback, Ohio State
Last Week: Third
Julian Sayin is now the betting favorite for the Heisman, with his odds on BetMGM skyrocketing to +175 after this weekend. However, I’m only moving him up to the No. 2 spot here, mostly because I don’t think Fernando Mendoza deserves to be dropped a spot.
Sayin was great against Penn State this week, completing 87 percent of his passes for 316 yards and four touchdowns. It was the third time in the last four games that his completion percentage was over 85 percent, and his 80.7 completion percentage is the best mark in the nation.
1. Fernando Mendoza, Quarterback, Indiana
Last Week: First
You can argue that Julian Sayin took the statistical argument away from Fernando Mendoza this week, and you wouldn’t be wrong. Mendoza was 14-for-21 for 201 yards with a touchdown and an interception against Maryland and also rushed for a score. It was a good showing, but Sayin has been better if we’re just talking stats.
Luckily for Mendoza, stats aren’t the only thing that matters in the Heisman race. He has the Hoosiers undefeated and has the narrative argument at the moment. Honestly, this might just come down to which quarterback beats the other in the Big Ten title game, which would be a fun way to settle things.
