2023 Heisman Winner Odds: Can Any Darkhorse Candidate Steal Caleb Williams’ Thunder?

Is Cade Klubnik Ready to Become the Next Great Clemson Quarterback?

There are plenty of familiar names leading the way in the 2023 Heisman Winner odds.

Reigning Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams of USC is the front-runner to join former Ohio State running back Archie Griffin as the only two-time winner of the most prestigious individual honor in college football. He is currently at +500 in the Heisman odds.

Some might be surprised to see Florida State’s Jordan Travis (+800) ahead of North Carolina’s Drake Maye (+850) and Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. (+1200). However, the more interesting aspect of the early Heisman odds is the number of unproven quarterbacks on the list.

Let’s take a look at the college football players who could be taking the college football world by storm during the upcoming season. It is interesting that the much-ballyhooed incoming freshman Arch Manning is not showing up on all the Heisman boards as Quinn Ewers is expected to be the starting QB for the Texas Longhorns in 2023.

Cade Klubnik, Clemson

Klubnik did get a chance to show what he could do as he took over for an ineffective DJ Uiagalelei on multiple occasions. There wasn’t much difference in the numbers between the two.

Uiagalelei had a better completion percentage and passer rating than Klubnik.

Clemson fans are hoping he will resemble the player who was 20 of 24 for 279 yards with one touchdown pass and no interceptions in a win over North Carolina in the ACC title game rather than when he was 30 of 54 with two interceptions and just 5.9 yards per attempt in a bowl loss to Tennessee.

Klubnik did have touchdown runs in both of those games so he will be yet another Clemson quarterback with the ability to make plays with his arm and his legs.

With the chance to head into spring practice as the unquestioned starter after Uiagalelei transferred, it is no wonder he is priced at +1800 in the 2023 Heisman Winner odds.

Drew Allar, Penn State

Another promising candidate who got some work as a freshman during the 2022 season, Allar had four touchdown passes and no interceptions while appearing in 10 games.

With Sean Clifford off to the NFL, the job is 6-foot-5, 240-pound Ohio native’s to lose.

One concern is that it could be argued that teammate Nicholas Singleton, who ran for 1,061 yards as a freshman, could be the better Heisman candidate when it comes to the 2023 Heisman Trophy predictions.

Ten of the top 12 pass catchers during the 2022 season were freshmen or sophomores, so there will be no lack of talent for Allar to work with.

Brock Vandagriff and Carson Beck, Georgia

This is an interesting pick now that Georgia’s offensive coordinator Todd Monken is headed back to the NFL to call the plays for the Baltimore Ravens.

Two of Vandagriff’s three career passes have come against Charleston Southern and Samford so there are questions about how he will fare against the speed of SEC defenses.

Beck is the more established of the two Georgia quarterbacks with 58 passes thrown in his two seasons in Athens. However, they all came when the game’s outcome was no longer in question.

Both Beck and Vandagriff have +2500 odds to win the Heisman.

Georgia added receivers RaRa Thomas from Mississippi State and Dominic Lovett from Missouri. Thomas led the Bulldogs with 44 catches and 626 receiving yards while Lovett had 56 catches and 826 yards to lead Missouri so whoever gets the job will have proven playmakers to throw the ball to during the 2023 season.

Kyle McCord, Ohio State

Anybody throwing to Marvin Harrison Jr. deserves to be on the list of Heisman hopefuls. Will McCord even be the starter for Ohio State or will it be Devin Brown?

McCord has certainly looked the part as he has completed 71% of his passes in 12 career games with the Buckeyes.

His best games have come against Akron and Toledo. He has yet to throw a pass against Michigan or Penn State. However, the Ohio State offense should be something special once again so it is no wonder that the 2023 Heisman winner odds list him tied for eighth at +2000. Brown comes in at +6600.

Best of the Rest

Whoever wins the starting quarterback job at Alabama won’t be asked to be Bryce Young, the player expected to be the No. 1 pick in the upcoming NFL draft. Ty Simpson was the No. 2 rated quarterback in his class and he will get a chance to show what he can do at the college level.

He threw just five passes for the Crimson Tide as a freshman and is priced at +4000 to win the Heisman. Jalen Milroe was ahead of Simpson during the 2022 season. He threw three touchdowns in a hard-earned win over Texas A&M in relief of Young. Milroe has +5000 odds to win the Heisman.

Nico Iamaleava will have to beat out Joe Milton to become the starting quarterback at Tennessee. If he does that, there will be plenty of talent to work with.

Milton is viewed as the favorite to win the job with +1800 odds to win the Heisman with Iamaleava at +8000.

Those are the same odds given to Texas A&M’s Conner Weigman. However, Weigman took over down the stretch for the Aggies so he would not classify as an untested QB as he played in conference games against South Carolina, Ole Miss, Auburn and LSU.

Can’t get enough? Here’s more!

• NCAA Colorado Buffaloes Odds: Deion Sanders Making Presence Felt
• College Football Early Odds: Can Surprise Team Crash the CFP Party?
• NCAA Transfer Portal Update: Florida State Seminoles, USC Trojans Cleaning Up
• Odds to Win 2024 NCAA Football Title: Bulldogs Favored to Complete the 3-Peat
• Final NCAAF Championship Odds: Defending Champs Still Double-Digit Favorite