2017 Heisman Trophy favorites

An incredible Rose Bowl performance against Penn State made Darnold a household name and the front-runner for this year's Heisman. He threw for more than 3,000 yards and 31 touchdowns for USC last season.

Mayfield enters his last season at Oklahoma without head coach Bob Stoops, but the offense remains the same. After coming just short of winning the Heisman over the last two seasons, the Sooners quarterbacks has high hopes for 2017.

The defending Heisman Trophy winner, Jackson did run into some struggles late last season. With a strong ACC conference this year, he could have issues reaching last year's numbers that included 3,543 passing yards, 30 passing touchdowns, 1,571 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns on the ground.

Barrett had a somewhat disappointing junior year for the Buckeyes but has high hopes for capping off his college career. He did throw for 24 touchdowns and added nine rushing scores last season.

Francois got knocked around in his freshman season at Florida State but still threw for 3,350 yards and 20 touchdowns. With a full year of seasoning, he's expected to make a big jump in 2017.

Browning took a massive step forward last season, bringing Washington to the College Football Playoff. He threw for 43 touchdowns compared to only 16 in his freshman season. At this rate, Browning is a great Heisman candidate.

A Baylor transfer, Stidham could have Auburn in the thick of the SEC race this season. He was incredibly efficient in 2015 for the Bears, completing nearly 69 percent of his passes with 12/2 TD/INT.

Rudolph threw for more than 4,000 yards and 28/4 TD/INT last season. Oklahoma State has a great shot to make a leap in the Big 12 this season, led by Rudolph.

Rosen played only six games last season due to injury and is hopeful of increasing his draft stock in his junior season. He struggled last season, throwing only 10 touchdowns in six games.

Barkley looks to solidify himself as the nation's top running back after rushing for nearly 1,500 yard and 18 touchdowns last season. His Heisman odds are currently better than Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley's.

Hurts nearly led the Crimson Tide to a National Championship in his freshman season. The mobile signal caller has a wealth of elite offensive weapons with him in the Alabama offense but has some ground to cover in order to compete for the Heisman after throwing for only 2,780 yard and 23 touchdowns last season, along with 954 rushing yards and 13 scores on the ground.

Scarbrough got only 125 carries last season for the Crimson Tide but emerged late in the year. He did average 6.5 yards per carry with 11 touchdowns on the ground.

Guice is the unquestioned starting running back at LSU following Leonard Fournette's departure to the NFL. He will have a tough time topping an incredible sophomore season in which he rushed for 1,387 yards and 15 touchdowns, averaging 7.6 yards per carry.

McSorley came on strong late in his sophomore season, finishing with 3,614 passing yards and 29 touchdowns. He could stand to increase his overall accuracy and will likely need to do so to win the Heisman.

Chubb didn't look quite the same last year following a knee injury in his sophomore season but still rushed for 1,130 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground. Considering he had more than 1,500 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns in his freshman year in 2014, there is still reason for optimism.

Pettway was excellent in his first year as Auburn's starting running back with 1,224 rushing yards and seven scores. If the Tigers compete for an SEC title, Pettway should be in the running for the Heisman.

Falk has a pair of 4,400-yard passing seasons under his belt in the Air Raid offense at Washington State. He's also thrown for 38 touchdowns in consecutive seasons. The numbers will certainly be there for Falk to enter the Heisman race if the Cougars are more competitive.

Weber had an excellent freshman season with nearly 1,100 rushing yards and nine scores on the ground. He shows huge upside for the Buckeyes this year.

James showed himself to be a dominant safety in his freshman season but played only two games for the Seminoles last year due to injury. A true game changer, he showed the ability to enter the Heisman race if he has a full rebound.

There was reason to be impressed with Jim Harbaugh's quarterback last season, but Speight's numbers were far from Heisman-worthy with 2,538 passing yards and 18 touchdowns. He will have to take a huge step forward in his senior season to be in the conversation.

The talented Buechele threw for nearly 3,000 yards and 21 touchdowns in his freshman season at Texas. With Tom Herman taking over as the Longhorns head coach, the expectations are much loftier.

Gaskin has rushed for more than 1,300 yards in consecutive seasons for the Huskies. He also had 10 rushing touchdowns last season.

Oregon fell flat last season, and Freeman struggled with injuries. He still had 5.6 yards per carry and nine scores on the ground. If he can rebound in his senior season, his Heisman candidacy and the Ducks' win total should improve.

With an opportunity to win the quarterback job for the Fighting Irish, Wimbush is on the long list of Heisman candidates. He's thrown only five passes during his college career, so he enters the season as a relative unknown.

Flowers was an offensive machine for South Florida last season, throwing for more than 2,800 yards and rushing for 1,530 more. He had 24 passing touchdowns and 18 on the ground.