The seventh installment of our SEC Heisman Watch features a clear frontrunner and two wildcards who emerged after Saturday’s performances:

SIZZLING

  • Dak Prescott, QB, Mississippi State: Though neither quarterback played mistake-free football, Prescott won the head-to-head battle with Nick Marshall on Saturday in Starkville and led his team to their third straight win over a Top 10 team. Few Heisman winners can say they’ve done that in a single season.
  • Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia: There will be character concerns from some misinformed voters due to Gurley’s current suspension, but one game doesn’t evaporate his Heisman chances. Another missed game however means there’s likely too much ground to make up down the stretch. It’s a shame $400 in autograph fees may have cost the nation’s best back college football’s top award.

WARM

  • Josh Robinson, RB, Mississippi State: The first of two wildcards in our list of candidates, Robinson’s scored eight touchdowns on the ground since Week 2 — the most in the SEC during that stretch — and has been a reliable second option in Mississippi State’s offense. His 197-yard outing in Death Valley during a win over LSU was his coming out party and he’s averaging just over 100 yards per game since.
  • Senquez Golson, DB, Ole Miss: It’s time the Rebels’ secondary is recognized for their dominating effort this season starting with a couple of their best players. Fellow ballhawk Cody Prewitt deserves some love here as well, but Golson’s the SEC leader in interceptions (5) and clinched the win over Alabama with an acrobatic pick in the back of the end zone. That was his Heisman moment while Prewitt’s came over the weekend against Texas A&M with a 75-yard interception return for a touchdown. Robert Nkemdiche’s another option here, though the casual observer may disagree based on numbers.
  • Nick Marshall, QB, Auburn: Marshall kept the Tigers in the game with two touchdown passes after an early 21-point deficit in the first quarter, but two interceptions coupled with lost fumbles from D’haquille Williams and Ricardo Louis proved too much to overcome at Mississippi State.

COLD

  • Kenny Hill, QB, Texas A&M: The pressure of having to do too much is finally getting to the Aggies sophomore quarterback. He turned it over three times against Ole Miss in College Station and two were returned for touchdowns, including a fumble. Hill did complete 42 passes and throw for 401 yards against the SEC’s best secondary, but much of that production came during garbage time in the fourth quarter when the game was out of reach.
  • Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama: Halloween came early for the SEC’s leading wideout at Arkansas when Cooper was disguised as a ghost during the Crimson Tide’s one-point win. Held to a meaningless 22 yards on two catches, the passing game never got on course in a defensive struggle. Cooper’s yardage total was his lowest since the second game of his freshman season in 2012. He iced his knee at halftime, but came out after intermission and was ineffective.