Heisman poll: Ashton Jeanty doesn’t seem to be gaining much ground, but he could make history

Ashton Jeanty won. Travis Hunter lost. These results had an impact The Athletics‘s Heisman Trophy poll – ever so slightly, with Hunter losing two first-place votes to drop to 24, and Jeanty doubling his first-place votes to get to two.

Miami quarterback Cam Ward received the other first-place vote after throwing for 280 yards and two touchdowns in a rout at the hands of Wake Forest, breaking Bernie Kosar’s single-season records for completions (263) and passing yards (3,774) in the process.

But technically this remains a two-man race and in reality a defeat.

Hunter does the overwhelming favorite of oddsmakers to take home the award and leads this poll with 78 points to Jeanty’s 52. Ward is third with 15 points, and Penn State tight end Tyler Warren and Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel have seven and six points, respectively.

The Athletics follows the same voting protocol as the Heisman: three points for a first-place vote, two points for a second-place vote, one point for a third-place vote.

Hunter had another big offensive night for Colorado, catching eight passes for 125 yards and two touchdowns against Kansas. He also had seven tackles and a pass breakup on defense, but the Buffaloes were collectively dominated on that side of the ball in a 37-21 loss. Deion Sanders’ team lost control of its College Football Playoff hopes in the process, but that doesn’t change the prevailing belief that Hunter is the best player in the country.

Jeanty extended his national totals to 2,062 yards and 27 rushing touchdowns in a 17-13 win over Wyoming, in which he suffered a leg injury, missed time, returned and finished with 169 yards – including 60 on three critical runs in Boise The winning touchdown- drive of the state. That’s convincing stuff, but not convincing enough.

Jeanty has a regular season finale against Oregon State and the Mountain West title game to give herself an upset. If he could break Barry Sanders’ NCAA record in a single season, he would be tough to beat. That’s 567 meters away.

However, it’s likely that Jeanty will make it to the ceremony in New York, which is no small feat for a player outside of a power conference. In the past 40 years, only 10 players from schools not currently in a Power 4 league have ended up in New York. The last to do so was Northern Illinois quarterback Jordan Lynch in 2013.

That list also includes Temple with Paul Palmer in 1986, Holy Cross with Gordie Lockbaum in 1987, Air Force quarterback Dee Dowis in 1989, San Diego State with Marshall Faulk in 1992, Alcorn State quarterback Steve McNair in 1994, Marshall receiver Randy Moss in 1997, Marshall quarterback Chad Pennington in 1999, Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan in 2007 and another Boise State Bronco quarterback Kellen Moore in 2010.

Two quarterbacks who received votes in the poll — Indiana’s Kurtis Rourke and Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart — are absent this week after losses to Ohio State and Florida, respectively. There’s a new name, courtesy of Colorado’s face plant: Kansas running back Devin Neal, who had 287 yards of offense and four touchdowns against the Buffs.

(Photo: Loren Orr/Getty Images)