Heisman Rankings After Week 7: How the Most Chaotic Weekend in Years Shakes Up Race

What a weekend of football that was. Saturday’s chaos-filled slate brought upsets and incredible moments from start to finish. Five of the top seven teams in last week’s AP Top 25 took losses, shaking up conference races across the country, the College Football Playoff picture and, as you likely guessed given our focus here, the Heisman race. 

Last week, we went deep on the state of the race and separated the contenders from the pretenders. Many of the names in that latter category are off the list until we get some significant evidence that they are back in the mix to head to New York. Yes, this will be the first and last utterance of the name Arch Manning in this article—and perhaps for the rest of the season in this space. 

Injuries are also taking their toll. If Ohio State’s Julian Sayin misses significant time, that obviously means he won’t be in the Heisman race, but it could also derail what has been a historic run for teammate Jeremiah Smith. For now, the Buckeyes superstar remains in pole position.

Here are Sports Illustrated’s full rankings after seven weeks of the 2026 college football season:

The Heisman favorite

1. Jeremiah Smith, WR, Ohio State (6–1): Still the favorite, but the Sayin injury lurks

Week 7: Beat Indiana, 19–15—four receptions, 68 yards, one TD; one carry, two yards

Season: 52 receptions, 984 yards, 12 TDs; two carries, seven yards

Hoosiers defensive coordinator Bryant Haines schemed up the most successful defense against Smith to date, holding him to his lowest output since last season’s game at Michigan. And yet, Smith still made the day’s biggest play, snagging a touchdown between two Indiana defenders early in the fourth quarter. It would prove to be the decisive score, as the Hoosiers cut the Buckeyes’ lead to 19–15 on the next drive and were about an inch from the game-winning touchdown in the game’s final minutes. 

Now comes the hard part for Smith and the Ohio State offense. Sayin is set to miss time with an injury suffered late on Saturday. Will Smith continue to dominate with Luke Fahey throwing to him, and help lead the Buckeyes back to the College Football Playoff? If so, he still has a great chance of winning this award. If not, and his numbers understandably tail off without his fellow Heisman hopeful quarterback under center, and this race could get very interesting.

The top contenders

2. Darian Mensah, QB, Miami (6–0): The No. 1 threat

Week 7: Beat Florida State, 43–35 (OT)—23 for 34, 326 yards, three TDs, one INT; three carries, six yards

Season: 135 for 167 (80.8%%), 1,764 yards, 18 TDs, one INT; 15 carries, 85 yards, two TDs

It finally happened. Six games into his debut season with the Hurricanes—and after a streak of 186 dropbacks dating back to last year’s Sun Bowl win with Duke over Arizona State—Mensah threw an interception. He was very good otherwise, leading the Canes on four touchdown drives in their final five possessions between the fourth quarter and overtime after his team fell behind 21–14 late in the third. With a prolific stat line and a real chance to lead Miami to its first undefeated regular season since 2002, Mensah is right in the heart of this race.

3. Trinidad Chambliss, QB, Mississippi (5–1): Firmly in the mix

Week 7: Beat Missouri, 31–3—20 for 36, 241 yards, three TDs; four carries, 14 yards, one TD

Season: 142 for 210 (67.6%), 1,676 yards, 14 TDs, four INTs; 36 carries, 127 yards, six TDs

This wasn’t quite a vintage game for Chambliss and the Rebels; he was under 60% completions and just 6.6 yards per attempt, the worst mark of his career. Ole Miss logged just five explosive plays on offense. And yet, it was plenty, as the dormant defense woke up to shut down the red-hot Tigers. So often, Chambliss is called to make some magic happen, but on Saturday he just kept the trains running on time, didn’t make any huge mistakes, let the game come to him—and finished with four touchdowns and a blowout win to show for it. With many other names around the Heisman race wilting over the weekend, it was a strong showing for Chambliss on a day in which he didn’t have his best stuff, and didn’t need to. 

The other wide receivers

4. Jesse Legree, WR, Oregon State (5–2): Too prolific to ignore

Week 6: Beat Washington State, 48–30—eight receptions, 108 yards, two TDs
Season: 46 receptions, 1,040 yards, 14 touchdowns

In last week’s Heisman piece, I called Legree a “pretender” for the award (while also acknowledging just how incredible this freshman campaign has been). I still have a very hard time seeing a Group of 6 wide receiver on a multi-loss team win the nation’s top award, but until someone in the Pac-12 proves that they can slow down Legree and the Beavers, he has a deserving spot in these rankings. Among the many incredible things about this run: Legree isn’t playing in an offense that is just force-feeding him targets. Running back AJ Newberry actually had more yardage than Legree against the Cougars, with 120 on five receptions. Seven Oregon State players have double-digit receptions and at least 130 yards, and 10 have caught touchdown passes. The Beavs can also run the ball, with Newberry rushing for 431 of the team’s 995 yards on the ground. This is a well-designed offense all the way around, that also happens to feature the nation’s most unexpected superstar.

5. Malachi Toney, WR, Miami (6–0): Trending back up after a huge rivalry win

Week 7: Beat Florida State, 43–35 (OT)—11 receptions, 154 yards, two touchdowns; two carries, 31 yards

Season: 50 receptions, 758 yards, eight TDs; three carries, 50 yards

The bye week came at a great time for the banged-up Toney, who had come out of a few games with minor injuries and was coming off of his quietest performance of the year: a 40-yard, scoreless outing against Clemson. Toney was back in elite form against the rival Seminoles, torching them for his second-highest receiving total of the year and his first multi-touchdown game since Week 1 (with a 30-yard run to boot). His 50 receptions without a drop lead the FBS this season. Toney deserves to hang around these rankings for another week.

In flux after a loss

6. Drew Mestemaker, QB, Oklahoma State (4–2): Contender, but he can’t afford to start slow

Week 7: Lost to Houston, 35–32—22 for 34, 365 yards, three TDs, one INT; six carries, 34 yards
Season: 136 for 169 (67%), 1,940 yards, 16 TDs, six INTs; 21 carries, 142 yards, two TDs

It was the tale of two halves for Mestemaker against the Cougars. The North Texas transfer had perhaps his worst half of the season since the Week 1 loss to Tulsa to begin Saturday’s game, as he went just 6 for 15 with an early interception. Mestemaker turned it on in the second half, connecting on 16-of-19 throws and nearly leading Oklahoma State all the way back from an early 14–3 hole, but a late fumble in Houston territory erased a scoring opportunity in the early fourth quarter, and the Cowboys fell three points short. The gaudy numbers and name I.D. have Mestemaker alive in the race, but he won’t be able to withstand many more losses in which his own turnovers are a significant factor.

7. Josh Hoover, QB, Indiana (6–1): Missed a huge opportunity

Week 7: Lost to Ohio State, 19–15—20 for 40, 296 yards, one TD; four carries, three yards

Season: 108 for 169 (63.9%) for 1,660 yards, 18 TDs; 26 carries, 45 yards, one TD

This was an ugly game for every quarterback involved, and yet Hoover was so close to his first signature moment as a Hoosier. On fourth-and-4 from the Buckeyes 27-yard line and just over a minute left in the game, Hoover found Nick Marsh open in the end zone, with a step on his defender. Hoover delivered a good ball, but Marsh couldn’t quite get a foot inbounds. Turnover on downs, and a road win for Ohio State. 

Hoover should still be in the contention, especially if Indiana starts a new winning streak after seeing its remarkable 22-game streak snapped on Saturday. With a win over the Buckeyes, he’d probably find himself pretty high in these rankings.

8. CJ Carr, QB, Notre Dame (6–1): Beat Miami or bust

Week 7: Lost to BYU, 28–24—27 for 49, 261 yards; six carries, 13 yards

Season: 129 for 193 (66.9%), 1,639 yards, 16 TDs, one INT; 23 carries, 82 yards, three TDs

Yes, Carr probably should’ve had another chance at a game-winning touchdown throw, either as the result of an uncalled pass interference or the extra second that should’ve been on the clock as his final pass fell to the ground in Provo, Utah. And had he found a receiver in the end zone to give the Fighting Irish a last-second road win against a top opponent, the narrative around his game would be much different. But regardless, this was not a banner performance for Carr. He completed just over 50% of his passes, he did not throw or run for a score for the first time in his starting career, he had a bizarre fumble on an attempted spike near BYU’s end zone at the end of the first half and his 5.3 yards per attempt were the second worst of his career, edging the 5.2 he posted in last year’s win over USC. In last week’s contenders/pretenders format, I wrote that he needed a signature performance against one of ND’s few top opponents. With all due respect to SMU, that likely falls to the Miami game—one with added significance because it could be the Irish’s only real shot at a playoff-worthy win as well.

9. Gunner Stockton, QB, Georgia (6–1): Coming off a rare mistake-filled outing

Week 7: Lost to Auburn, 27–24—22 for 34, 272 yards, two TDs, two INTs; nine carries, 26 yards

Season: 117 for 158 (74.1%), 1,570 yards, 16 touchdowns, four INTs; 35 carries, 160 yards, one TD

The SEC big-game hangover comes for everyone, as was the case for the Bulldogs against the Tigers on Saturday, yet another example of a team stubbing its toe right after picking up a massive victory. (This time, Alabama, which lost to Georgia last week in an instant classic, seemed to be suffering from the same affliction.) Even without top linebacker Xavier Atkins, who was suspended for the game and has since been dismissed from the program, the Tigers defense intercepted Stockton twice—the first two-interception game of his college career. The Dawgs remain in great shape to make a run for the SEC title and the College Football Playoff, and assuming the normally unflappable Stockton doesn’t let things snowball, he could remain in the discussion, but this was a setback.

10. Keelon Russell, QB, Alabama (5–2): Inexperience is showing

Week 7: Lost to Tennessee 26–10—19 for 29, 147 yards, two INTs; 11 carries, six yards, one TD

Season: 129 for 191 (67.5%), 1,746 yards, 12 TDs, four INTs; 57 carries, 231 yards, five TDs

Russell was flying high as a first-year starter, even after last week’s loss to Georgia in which his numbers weren’t pretty but he put forth a gutsy performance and was a controversial no-call in the end zone away from a late lead. The follow-up, a largely noncompetitive loss at Neyland Stadium in which the Crimson Tide failed to score in the second half, marked by far Russell’s worst game as Alabama starter. Yes, the Volunteers have one of the nation’s most underappreciated defenses, but Russell’s early season performance raised the expectations of his game. He has an excellent get-right opportunity against Texas A&M on Saturday.

11. Jamal Roberts, RB, Missouri (5–2): Tumbling after his worst game of the season

Week 7: Lost to Mississippi—20 carries, 39 yards; two receptions, 21 yards

Season: 167 carries, 867 yards, eight TDs; 13 receptions, 105 yards

Roberts played his way into our rankings after back-to-back 200-yard games in wins over Florida and Texas A&M. Life comes at you fast in the SEC. The Tigers face-planted against the Rebels on Saturday, and Roberts was completely bottled up for fewer than two yards per carry and a long run of just six yards. He failed to reach the end zone for the second time this season.

The injured list

12. Kamario Taylor, QB, Mississippi State (4–2): Badly needed under center

Week 7: Lost to LSU, 31–0: DNP (injury)
Season: 102 for 154 (66.2%), 1,448 yards, 17 TDs, four INTs; 43 carries, 159 yards, one TD

Last week, I called Taylor a Heisman contender “if he stays healthy.” That was a big if, given his uncertain status for Week 7 against the Tigers, and by the end of the week, it became apparent that he was not going to play. Without Taylor and star running back Fluff Bothwell in the backfield, the Bulldogs offense had nothing for LSU, managing just 291 yards. If Taylor can return in time for next week’s game against Oklahoma and finish out on an absolute tear, one missed game might not end his candidacy, but it’s going to be very difficult.

13. Julian Sayin, QB, Ohio State (6–1): Likely eliminated with injury

Week 7: Beat Indiana, 19–15—15 for 29, 232 yards, two TDs, two INTs

Season: 131 for 192 (68.2%), 2,007 yards, 19 TDs, four INTs; two rushing TDs

Overcoming a vote-split with Smith was going to make it very difficult for Sayin to compete for the trophy. A likely multi-week injury absence effectively brings his candidacy to a close, but more importantly, gives the Buckeyes a really tenuous path to the CFP with a tough end-of-season schedule ahead after Saturday’s bye.

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