Ole Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss is quickly becoming a Heisman favorite again. Could he become the favorite sooner than we think?
With Julian Sayin's right shoulder injury, Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith's Heisman prospects are suddenly clouded. Smith is the type of player who can get open no matter who the quarterback is, but it's fair to wonder how productive he can be with freshman QB Luke Fahey at the helm. The Buckeyes are off in Week 8 and Fahey will make the first start of his career in Week 9 at USC.
If Ohio State's offense struggles without Sayin — remember, he was a Heisman finalist himself in 2025 — then the door is open for someone else to surge to first place over the final six weeks of the season. And Chambliss is as good of a bet as anyone.
The No. 7 Rebels head to No. 19 Texas on Saturday night with a chance to put the Longhorns' playoff hopes in serious peril with a win. Texas has lost two straight games to unranked opponents. No team had fallen from the No. 1 ranking with back-to-back losses to unranked teams since 1961.
Ole Miss and Chambliss, meanwhile, are on a roll. The Rebels, too, lost to Florida. But Chambliss has thrown for six touchdowns and rushed for two others in Ole Miss' last two games. And he's totaled at least three total touchdowns in every single game this season.
In a blowout win over Vanderbilt two weeks ago, Chambliss was 20-of-30 passing for 213 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another score. On Saturday against then-No. 13 Missouri, Chambliss was 20-of-36 passing for 241 yards and three scores while also adding another touchdown on the ground.
Chambliss' numbers so far aren't much different than they were in 2025 when he finished eighth in the Heisman voting and was one of the breakout stars of the College Football Playoff. Yes, he's thrown one more interception (four) than he had in 15 games last season, but his interception rate is still below 2%. He's completing 1% more of his passes, and he's also rushed for just two fewer TDs than he did all of last season despite rushing for fewer yards per game.
Chambliss is also a fearless quarterback. He's unafraid to throw over the middle and one of the best quarterbacks in the country at doing so. So far, Ole Miss is averaging more points per game than it did in 2025 when Lane Kiffin was in charge.
Entering Week 8, Chambliss is the No. 3 favorite for the Heisman at BetMGM behind Smith (-130) and Miami QB Darian Mensah (+350) at +750. And while the big takeaway from an Ole Miss win will be Texas' faint national title hopes, it could also be the springboard to Heisman-winning season for Chambliss too.
Here are the other contenders to watch in Week 8.
Miami WR Malachi Toney (22-1): We're not going to rule out both Toney and Mensah being Heisman finalists, especially if Miami beats Notre Dame and goes undefeated. Toney is averaging over four yards more per catch than he did as a freshman in 2025 and already has eight receiving TDs after he had 10 in 16 games a season ago. He could be in line for a big game against a Pitt team that is starting its third QB in four games.
BYU QB Bear Bachmeier (25-1): What can Bachmeier do for an encore after he had passing, receiving and rushing TDs in the Cougars' win over Notre Dame? He's going to need to keep playing at an incredibly high level for BYU to stay undefeated. And a road trip to UCF after the high of that win over Notre Dame may be tricky.
USC QB Jayden Maiava (80-1): If you think Ohio State is vulnerable without Sayin on the field for the foreseeable future, then you're bullish on USC, right? Maiava has a chance to force himself into the Heisman conversation with big games against Wisconsin and then against the Buckeyes to conclude October. Maiava was 21-of-33 for 301 passing yards and three touchdowns in USC's Week 7 win over Penn State. No one is confusing this Penn State team with a juggernaut. But this is a USC team that is still just 5-7 on the road in Big Ten play.