Week 3 Preview

We are going into a great weekend of college football, headlined by Ohio State at USC. Many Heisman hopefuls are getting their first real challenge of the season this week. I have the top five going into the weekend and a few others who are trying to get into the top five for you to think about, as well.


(Number in parentheses indicates ranking from last week)

1. (2) Chase Daniel (Sr. QB Mizzou) - I've seen enough from Daniel this season to consider him the best quarterback so far. There's still a lot of season left, but with Nevada coming to town, look for more big numbers out of Daniel Saturday.

2. (3) Sam Bradford (So. QB Oklahoma) - Whenever any quarterback tears up a team that won 10 games the year before, they're going to move up the board. Bradford had 395 yards and 5 TDs against Cincinnati last week, but this week the Sooners are heading up to the Great Northwest to take on a Washington team that is still stinging after a heartbreaking loss to BYU. We'll see how Bradford handles the traveling. Last season in road games Bradford threw 9 TDs to 4 INTs, while at home he threw 25 TDs to only 3 INTs.

3. (1) Tim Tebow (Jr. QB Florida) - Through no fault of his own did he lose the top spot in my 5. Tebow had good numbers in a rivalry game against Miami. The other two QBs played their way above him this week. And although it was a rivalry game, we aren't talking about The U anymore when we talk about Miami. They are a sub par team in possibly the worst conference in college football.

4. (NR) Knowshon Moreno (So. RB Georgia) - This young back has rushed for three TDs in each of the first two games of the season. And the word on the street is the track team is interested in having him run high hurdles after one of his carries seen here. The real season begins for Moreno and the Bulldogs now as they open up SEC play against a stingy South Carolina defense.

5. (4) Michael Crabtree (So. WR Texas Tech) - 7 catches, 158 yards and 82 of those yards on one big play for a score. If he wants to stay in the conversation he needs more touches. No wideout has ever won the Heisman by playing only on offensive snaps. So if he's not going to play defense or at least return kicks (which he shouldn't do either of these) he needs to get the ball thrown to him more and Tech should maybe try a reverse or two to him.


On the Outside Looking In

Todd Reesing (Jr. QB Kansas) - Reesing gets his first real test on national television tonight at his Jayhawks take on the USF Bulls. Reesing has thrown for 6 TDs already this season and can vastly improve his resume if he can torch USF's Defense. The primary obstacle for him will be staying on his feet as South Florida has defensive end George Selvie who finished second in the nation last year in sacks.

Matt Stafford (Jr. QB Georgia) - Every week he goes out there and does his job. Stafford hasn't put up the best numbers this season, but his team is good enough to play for the national title and he is a big reason why. Stafford has his first true challenge of the season this weekend. If South Carolina tries to shut down Moreno, Stafford has to be able to lead his team to the victory.

Mark Sanchez (Jr. QB USC) - When you are the quarterback of USC you're supposed to be in this conversation, right? Sanchez has his chance to prove his worth this weekend in the biggest game of his season when Ohio State comes to town.

Chris "Beanie" Wells (Jr. RB Ohio State) - He has to play Saturday night if he wants to even think about the Heisman, or if his team wants to think about the national title.

Donald Brown (Jr. RB UCONN) - He has 360 rushing yards and 5 TDs so far this season. We all saw what USC did to Virginia in week 1, now Brown gets his chance to run wild on that defense.

Jahvid Best (So. RB Cal) - He ran for 111 yards and a score and had 63 yards receiving in week 1 against Michigan State, and he didn't start! Last week against Washington State, and in his first start, he carried the ball 14 times for 200 yards and 3 TDs. Cal travels to the East coast to take on a weak Maryland team that just lost last week to "Sunbelt powerhouse" Middle Tennessee.