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Justin's top 10 Heisman Trophy contenders ahead of Week 5 of the 2025 college football season. Where do Dante Moore and John Mateer rank?
Top 10 Heisman Contenders For Week 5
The Heisman favorite is the same, but we have a new name hot on his trail as we head into Week 5 of the college football season. This week, we say goodbye to two players, including a mainstay of this list so far this year: Penn State quarterback Drew Allar. Allar’s numbers are fine this year, but it’s time to penalize the lack of competition.
Beating Nevada, FIU, and Villanova doesn’t really prove anything to anyone, and he completed under 60 percent of his passes in two of those contests. He can work his way back onto the list, but it’s going to require a big showing against Oregon this week. It’s also farewell for the moment for Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin. Like Allar, he will have chances to get back on this list, but his three interceptions against Grambling and Ohio are a knock at the moment.
10. Joey Aguilar, Quarterback, Tennessee
Last Week: Eighth
After going toe to toe with Gunner Stockton in an overtime loss to Georgia, Vols quarterback Joey Aguilar got to take it relatively easy against UAB, going 15-for-22 for 218 yards and three touchdowns.
It’s been a good season for Aguilar, though there’s still concern about his history of turnovers at App State. With the SEC portion of Tennessee’s schedule getting ready to kick into high gear, can Aguilar protect the football?
9. Jeremiah Smith, Wide Receiver, Ohio State
Last Week: Fifth
Jeremiah Smith drops four spots off a bye week, largely because we saw some really strong performances this week that necessitated moving certain players up. It’s really as simple as that.
Smith is still arguably the best player in the nation, and he’ll have opportunities to show that in Big Ten play. For the moment, we have to hold something against him: The fact that his only mediocre game was also his only game against a power conference opponent.
8. Marcel Reed, Quarterback, Texas A&M
Last Week: Seventh
Texas A&M was off this week, but I’m still thinking about how good Marcel Reed was on Sept. 13 against Notre Dame. In that game, Reed threw for 360 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winning 11-yard touchdown to Nate Boerkircher with just 13 seconds to play.
7. Josh Hoover, Quarterback, TCU
Last Week: Not Ranked
Welcome to the rankings, Josh Hoover, whose 333.3 passing yards per game lead the FBS. Hoover only completed 55.0 percent of his passes this week against SMU, but he threw five touchdown passes in a huge win over the Horned Frogs’ DFW rivals. That win moved TCU to 3-0 on the year, with two of those wins against power conference opponents.
6. Garrett Nussmeier, Quarterback, LSU
Last Week: Third
Garrett Nussmeier has dropped big time in the betting odds, all the way to +2000 on FanDuel Sportsbook. That puts him 12th on the list of candidates. Despite that, I’m not ready to write him off…yet. That’s because LSU’s win against Southeastern Louisiana might serve as a get-right game for Nussmeier, who threw three touchdowns and rushed for one as well. He hadn’t accounted for multiple touchdowns in any of the first three games, but this might be the start of something, with the obvious caveat that he took on an FCS team.
5. Gunner Stockton, Quarterback, Georgia
Last Week: Sixth
Georgia was off this week, but Stockton’s big performance against Tennessee back on Sept. 13 is still at the top of my mind. It was a game where Stockton proved he was the right quarterback for this team. Up next for Georgia is a big matchup with Alabama. Stockton can solidify his spot in the Heisman race in that game.
4. Dante Moore, Quarterback, Oregon
Last Week: Fourth
It was another big game for Dnate More this week as he threw for 305 yards and four touchdowns in a 41-7 win over Oregon State. He also rushed for a season-high 53 yards. On one hand, it was Moore’s best game of the season. On the other hand, the Beavers are 0-4 and rank 131st in scoring defense, so we still haven’t really seen Moore against a good team yet.
3. Carson Beck, Quarterback, Miami
Last Week: Second
Carson Beck dropping a spot has a little to do with Carson Beck, but it’s not totally his fault. Sure, he failed to throw a touchdown pass in a 26-7 win over Florida this week, but his overall track record this year is still strong, and his completion percentage sits at a very strong 73.2 percent.
If the Florida win winds up being the weak spot in Beck’s Heisman case, then that’s just going to mean that the rest of his case is pretty strong.
2. Fernando Mendoza, Quarterback, Indiana
Last Week: Not Ranked
We have a new Heisman contender, and honestly, I’m kicking myself for waiting this long to put him on the list. Fernando Mendoza was pretty middling in Week 1 against Old Dominion as he failed to throw a touchdown pass, but he has 14 of them in the three games since.
On Saturday, against a ranked Illinois team, Mendoza was 21-for-23 for 267 yards with five touchdown passes. I’d argue it’s the best game we’ve seen from any quarterback this season.
1. John Mateer, Quarterback, Oklahoma
Last Week: First
What Mendoza did in Week 4 was impressive, but for now, John Mateer remains the favorite, even if it’s closer now than it has been over the past couple of weeks.
Mateer leads the SEC in passing yards and passing yards per game, and on Saturday, he led the Sooners to a 24-17 win over Auburn, throwing for 271 yards and a touchdown while rushing for one as well. He has at least one rushing touchdown in each game this season.
