Heisman Odds: This Week’s Heisman Watch and Trophy Favorites

One game turned the Heisman race upside down. CJ Carr threw for 319 yards and three touchdowns as Notre Dame knocked off No. 1 Miami 31-24, and as we often see, one big-time performance has catapulted him to co-favorite at +200. Darian Mensah, the man he beat, sits right alongside him. With a month of the regular season left, this is a two-quarterback race with one receiver hanging on and a couple of long shots behind them.

We update these Heisman odds every week after the games, with how the race has moved, the case for every serious contender, and everything you need to know about the finalists and the ceremony in December.

Odds from BetOnline as of November 10, 2026.

Heisman Trophy Odds

Player	School	Odds
CJ Carr, QB	Notre Dame	+200
Darian Mensah, QB	Miami	+200
Jeremiah Smith, WR	Ohio State	+265
Devon Dampier, QB	Utah	+1600
Drew Mestemaker, QB	Oklahoma State	+1800
Gunner Stockton, QB	Georgia	+2200
Keelon Russell, QB	Alabama	+2800
LaNorris Sellers, QB	South Carolina	+4000

Heisman Watch: How the Race Has Moved

If you want proof that the Heisman market has a short memory, look at the last seven days. CJ Carr went from a double-digit long shot to co-favorite in a single Saturday night, while Darian Mensah, the favorite a week ago, is suddenly “in trouble” after throwing for 302 yards and three touchdowns. That’s how this market works: it treats the last game like it’s the only game, and the talking heads on TV aren’t far behind. Those overreactions are exactly where the value comes from, in both directions.

Rising: CJ Carr. He went 29 of 40 for 319 yards and three touchdowns against the No. 1 team in the country, in prime time, and the market did what it always does with a quarterback who wins the big one: it crowned him. The question now is whether he can keep that level up against Boston College, SMU and Syracuse, because anything less than a stellar finish could see him drift again.

Rising: Devon Dampier. Utah beat No. 9 BYU 28-20 to stay unbeaten, with Dampier accounting for four touchdowns, two through the air and two on the ground. The Utes are No. 3, and their quarterback is finally getting priced like it, but he still needs a big performance on a national stage to close the gap on the leaders.

Rising: Gunner Stockton. Georgia beat No. 10 Ole Miss 42-7, and Stockton threw four touchdown passes on just 15 attempts. That’s the kind of efficient, big-game performance voters remember.

Falling: Darian Mensah. He threw for 302 yards and three scores in South Bend, but it was a loss, his first of the season, and a costly second-half interception. Miami’s star receiver Malachi Toney is also gone for the rest of the regular season after ankle surgery, which could also inhibit Mensah’s playmaking ability.

Falling: Jeremiah Smith. Ohio State has lost two straight, at USC and to Oregon, since quarterback Julian Sayin went down. Smith is still producing, with 133 yards and a touchdown against Oregon, but a receiver on a team sliding out of the playoff picture isn’t historically going to win the Heisman.

Out: Malachi Toney and Trinidad Chambliss. Toney was third in the betting a week ago before his injury. Chambliss went 18 of 34 for 170 yards and an interception in the loss to Georgia, and he’s off the board.

The Leading Heisman Contenders

CJ Carr, Notre Dame (+200)

This is our best bet, and it isn’t close. Carr has the résumé, the moment, and the schedule. He’s thrown for 2,168 yards with 21 touchdowns and just one interception, and Saturday gave him the signature win every Heisman campaign needs. He beat the No. 1 team in the country, he out-dueled the previous favorite, and he did it on the biggest stage of the season so far.

Now look at what’s left. Notre Dame’s remaining schedule is the softest of any of the leading contenders, and the Irish are on course for the College Football Playoff. That means a month of big numbers in games Notre Dame should win comfortably, with no voter-scaring losses waiting around the corner. Heisman voters love a quarterback at a blue-blood program who wins the big game in November, and Carr, the grandson of former Michigan coach Lloyd Carr, has a story the voters already know.

There’s one catch. As an independent, Notre Dame has no conference title game, so Carr’s last chance to impress voters comes at Syracuse on November 28, while his rivals get one more big stage in championship week.

At +200, he’s priced as a co-favorite, but he should be the outright favorite, and parts of the market already have him there. Take the number while it lasts.

Darian Mensah, Miami (+200)

Mensah has the best raw numbers of anyone on the board: 2,701 yards, 28 touchdowns and only two interceptions after transferring in from Duke. He was the favorite a week ago for good reason. But +200 is too short for a quarterback who just lost the head-to-head and who has lost his best weapon. Toney was a Heisman contender in his own right, and without him, Miami’s offense is a lot easier to defend.

Mensah needs Carr to stumble, and Notre Dame’s schedule says he probably won’t. He’s a fade at this price.

Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State (+265)

Smith is the most talented player in college football, and that still won’t be enough. He has 1,200 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns, and he’s been brilliant even with Ohio State’s quarterback situation falling apart. But the Buckeyes have lost two in a row, and they’re drifting out of the playoff picture.

Only two wide receivers have won the Heisman in the last 25 years, and both did it on teams that were winning big. A receiver on a fading Ohio State team at +265 is the worst price on this board. Pass.

Devon Dampier, Utah (+1600)

This is where the value is. Dampier is the engine of an unbeaten Utah team that’s sitting at No. 3 and has a real case to be the best team in the country. He’s a genuine dual threat, with 2,053 passing yards and 20 touchdowns, plus 480 rushing yards and seven more scores on the ground. He just put up four touchdowns against a top-10 BYU team.

If Utah runs the table and wins the Big 12, Dampier gets a title game platform and a playoff seed, and voters will have to take him seriously. At +1600 you’re getting paid for that path. It’s our value pick.

Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State (+1800)

Mestemaker has the best story in the sport. He arrived as an unheralded kid who handled punting duties in high school, and now he’s one of the most prolific passers in the country. He has thrown for more than 2,600 yards and 25 touchdowns, including a five-touchdown day in a 51-49 shootout at Iowa State. The problem is the record. Oklahoma State has already taken too many losses, and Heisman voters almost never reward a quarterback on a team outside the national picture. Great numbers, wrong team.

Gunner Stockton, Georgia (+2200)

Stockton won’t win the Heisman with volume. Georgia doesn’t need him to throw 40 times a game. But four touchdowns on 15 attempts in a 42-7 demolition of a top-10 Ole Miss team shows exactly why the Bulldogs keep winning. If Georgia makes the SEC Championship Game and Stockton has another big night there, his efficiency numbers and the Georgia name could carry him into New York as a finalist. He’s a reasonable long shot, but he needs help from the players above him.

Keelon Russell, Alabama (+2800)

The talent is obvious, and the Alabama name always gets votes. But the Crimson Tide have already had a losing skid this season, and Russell hasn’t put together the kind of run that forces his way into the conversation. He needs a huge finish and losses from everyone above him.

LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina (+4000)

Sellers is one of the most dangerous dual-threat quarterbacks in the SEC, and he can take over a game with his legs. At +4000 he’s a pure long shot, and South Carolina would need to win out against SEC opposition for him to get a look.

Why Quarterbacks Win the Heisman

Before you bet the Heisman, know who wins it. Quarterbacks have taken the trophy 21 times in the last 26 years. The exceptions were running backs Reggie Bush (2005), Mark Ingram (2009), and Derrick Henry (2015), and receivers DeVonta Smith (2020) and Travis Hunter (2024), who also starred at cornerback.

That’s the biggest reason we’re against Jeremiah Smith at +265. A non-quarterback usually needs a truly historic season and a team in the playoff picture to win over the voters. Team success matters for everyone. The voters rarely reward a great player on a team that’s out of the hunt.

When Is the Heisman Ceremony?

The Heisman Trophy is presented in New York on the second Saturday of December, which puts the 2026 ceremony on Saturday, December 12. Last year’s was on December 13. The finalists, usually three to five players, are announced earlier that week. Betting on the Heisman usually stays open until the ceremony, but expect the prices to tighten sharply once the finalists are named.

Heisman Finalists

The 2026 Heisman finalists will be announced in early December. We’ll list them here, with their final odds, as soon as they’re named.

Recent Heisman Trophy Winners

Year	Winner	School
2025	Fernando Mendoza, QB	Indiana
2024	Travis Hunter, WR/CB	Colorado
2023	Jayden Daniels, QB	LSU
2022	Caleb Williams, QB	USC
2021	Bryce Young, QB	Alabama
2020	DeVonta Smith, WR	Alabama
2019	Joe Burrow, QB	LSU
2018	Kyler Murray, QB	Oklahoma
2017	Baker Mayfield, QB	Oklahoma
2016	Lamar Jackson, QB	Louisville

How to Bet on the Heisman

BetOnline is our top pick for Heisman betting. It prices the Heisman all season long, from preseason through to the ceremony, and its odds move every week with the results. Sign up, make a first deposit to claim the welcome bonus, then find the Heisman under College Football futures and pick your player.

The best value usually comes early. Once a player becomes the clear favorite, his price can collapse within a couple of weeks, and by the time the finalists are named, there’s rarely much value left on the leaders. If you like a contender who’s flying under the radar, it pays to get in before the rest of the market catches up.

And take the weekly hype cycle with a pinch of salt. Every Saturday someone gets crowned and someone gets written off, and by the time the finalists head to New York, half of those storylines will have flipped again. The bettors who do best here are the ones who can tell a genuine shift in the race from one big night in prime time.

For the full college football betting picture, see our college football odds page