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Justin's top 10 Heisman Trophy contenders ahead of Week 13 of the 2025 college football season. Where do Ty Simpson and Julian Sayin rank?
Top 10 Heisman Contenders For Week 13
In reality, the Heisman is down to two players right now. Barring some extremely weird end to the season, either Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza or Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin is going to win this award.
That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t talk about the players fighting for Heisman finalist positions, though. There are still a number of good players who deserve recognition for their play this season.
Trinidad Chambliss falls out of the top 10 this week. That isn’t to say anything negative about the Ole Miss quarterback. It’s simply because a very interesting player has surfaced to join the top 10. Here are our top 10 Heisman contenders heading into Week 13.
10. Jacob Rodriguez, Linebacker, Texas Tech
Last Week: Not Ranked
Texas Tech is a very good football team, so it only makes sense that someone on the team would eventually get Heisman hype. The fact that it’s linebacker Jacob Rodriguez might seem strange, but he’s been the team’s best player.
Even before Tech drew up a rushing attempt for Rodriguez this week against UCF, the fifth-year senior had a strong argument for placement on this list. He has four interceptions this season and leads the Big 12 in solo tackles with 55. He also leads the entire nation in forced fumbles with seven. Rodriguez is a force for the Red Raiders and deserves to be mentioned in the top 10 at this point.
9. Jeremiah Smith, Wide Receiver, Ohio State
Last Week: Eighth
Jeremiah Smith had a quiet game against UCLA, catching four passes for 40 yards before exiting with a leg injury. With so many quarterbacks playing so well this season, a skill position player like Smith can’t afford to have quiet games if he wants to win the Heisman.
There’s also the Julian Sayin factor. When your teammate has the second-best Heisman odds, you’re not going to be able to finish super high in the final voting. Look at last season: Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders had numbers that rivaled the two quarterbacks that finished top five in the voting, but he only finished eighth while teammate Travis Hunter won the award.
8. Haynes King, Quarterback, Georgia Tech
Last Week: 10th
Something’s clicked for Haynes King lately, as he’s now thrown for over 300 yards in three consecutive games. This week against Georgia Tech, King was 26-for-34 for 371 yards and a touchdown in a game that the Yellow Jackets just barely squeaked out by a 36-34 score.
King is completing 72.7 percent of his pass attempts and leads the ACC in adjusted yards per pass attempt. He’s only thrown 10 touchdowns all year, but he’s rushed for an ACC-best 14 of them as well.
7. Jeremiyah Love, Running Back, Notre Dame
Last Week: Seventh
Another week, another big game for Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love, who had 23 carries for 147 yards and a touchdown in a 37-15 win over Pitt.
Love has now scored at least one touchdown in nine consecutive games. His rushing ability has been the key component in Notre Dame’s eight-game win streak, which has propelled the team into a spot where it just needs two more wins to lock in a playoff spot.
6. Ty Simpson, Quarterback, Alabama
Last Week: Third
Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson has dropped all the way to the bottom of the top 10 in the betting odds, but I think that’s a little reactionary. Yes, his chance of actually winning the award is gone, but he can easily still finish in the top five in the voting if the rest of the season shakes out right.
Yes, Alabama lost and Simpson didn’t have his best showing, but it wasn’t a complete disaster from him. He was 28-for-42 for 326 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Simpson still leads the SEC in passing touchdowns.
5. Gunner Stockton, Quarterback, Georgia
Last Week: Sixth
Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton had one of his best performances on Saturday against Texas, going 24-for-29 for 229 yards and four touchdowns while being picked off once. He also rushed for a score.
No, Stockton isn’t consistently putting up monster passing numbers. Through 10 games, he’s thrown for 300 yards just once. However, he has the Bulldogs 9-1 and leads the SEC in completion percentage at 70.7 percent.
4. Diego Pavia, Quarterback, Vanderbilt
Last Week: Fifth
It took until overtime, but Vanderbilt’s 45-38 over Auburn kept the Commodores’ playoff hopes alive. Quarterback Diego Pavia was 25-for-33 for 377 yards and three touchdowns and added 112 rushing yards and another score.
Pavia is putting up wild numbers. He leads the SEC in quarterback rating and has thrown 21 touchdown passes. He’s also rushed for 613 yards and seven touchdowns, showcasing his versatility. With eight wins already, Pavia has led Vanderbilt to its best season since 2013. Wins over Kentucky and Tennessee would mean Vanderbilt’s first 10-win season ever.
3. Marcel Reed, Quarterback, Texas A&M
Last Week: Fourth
The first half of Saturday’s game against South Carolina looked to have killed Marcel Reed’s Heisman hopes. His team was down 30-3, and at one point, I’m pretty sure I checked and he’d only completed 33 percent of his passes.
Reed figured things out in the second half as he led a huge comeback to keep the Aggies undefeated. Overall, he completed 56.4 percent of his passes for 439 yards and three touchdowns, though he was picked off twice. Overall, I think this week did two seemingly opposite things. It moved Reed to a clear third in the race because of Alabama’s loss, but it also decreased his chance of actually winning.
2. Julian Sayin, Quarterback, Ohio State
Last Week: Second
The looming Big Ten title game between Ohio State and Indiana — assuming neither team is tripped up first — might single-handedly decide the Heisman, but that’s only if Julian Sayin can stay close to Fernando Mendoza first.
Saturday’s big win over UCLA didn’t feature a lot of Sayin. With Carnell Tate out and Jeremiah Smith exiting the game early, Sayin only threw for 184 yards and a touchdown, while the run game accounted for four touchdowns. Sayin definitely drifted farther back of Mendoza this week, but there’s still time for him to recover.
1. Fernando Mendoza, Quarterback, Indiana
Last Week: First
This feels like the first time we can say this all year: Fernando Mendoza is probably winning the Heisman. Obviously, the next few weeks can change that, but everything so far is working in Mendoza’s favor.
He had the Heisman moment with the last-second touchdown pass against Penn State. His four touchdown passes in this week’s win over Wisconsin give him an FBS-best 30 on the season, and his 10.85 adjusted yards per attempt is also the best mark in the nation. This is Mendoza’s award to lose, and he might not even have to beat Ohio State to do it as long as he still plays well in a close loss.
