ESPN’s Jordan Rodgers has identified 5 preseason Heisman Trophy contenders with college football set to kick off later this month.
His list is entirely made up of quarterbacks — 3 from the SEC and 2 from the Big Ten. Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer, Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin, Indiana quarterback Josh Hoover, Texas quarterback Arch Manning and Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss made the cut.
Rodgers made his list during an episode of First Take on ESPN this past week. He had particularly-high praise for Chambliss, who earned preseason All-SEC honors over Manning last week as well.
“Trinidad Chambliss is the best quarterback in the country returning,” he said. “Twenty-two touchdowns, 3 interceptions last year. Oh yeah, that was his first year coming from D2 Ferris State. He’s only going to get better. This is a heck of a list, but I’m telling you Trinidad Chambliss is one to watch.”
Chambliss and Manning are among the top contenders to win the Heisman Trophy per the latest odds on Kalshi:
Hoover is an outlier on Rodgers’ preseason top 5. The former TCU quarterback succeeds Fernando Mendoza in Bloomington and could be in for a season. However, he has been turnover-prone in his career. Hoover has thrown 33 interceptions over this past 3 seasons with the Horned Frogs, leading the Big 12 in that category in each of the past 2 seasons.
The 2026 college football season will begin later this month with Week 0 action.
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Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
