When DeVonta Smith grabbed the Heisman back in 2021, he broke a 30-year hiatus. He became the first WR after 3 decades to grab a Heisman. For the Crimson Tide, this was a big deal because Smith also became the 3rd player on their roster to grab the trophy. Now, in 2024, the next player who’s making waves and could even grab the Heisman would be Carson Beck from the Bulldogs. That kid led the team to a solid 13-win season and has managed to clock in a completion rate of 72%. Multiple analysts already regard him as the top pick for the NFL draft in 2025. However, looks like Beck’s dreams are going to get crushed.

Because there is a new kid on the block who’s breaking records. If you thought Travis Hunter was the best WR in college football, then you have probably been living under a rock. Let me introduce you to the star player from the Tigers, Luther Burden. CKPicks23 took to X on August 22nd to talk about why Luther winning the next Heisman makes sense. “+8000 on a guy who has already broken out and now has the opportunity to lead his team to a potential playoff birth,” CK mentioned in his post. Burden already has a +8000 odds of becoming the next Heisman winner/contender. His entire legacy in college football is a mirror image of what DeVonta Smith managed to do. Smith was standing at odds of +6000 when he won the cup. If we look at last year’s stats itself, Burden has already managed to pull in around 86 receptions under his belt. Not only that, the kid has amazing chemistry with his QB. The QB and the WR managed to take the Tigers to an 11-2 record last year and also grabbed a win during the Cotton Bowl.

This landed both of them on major national attention and also on the Maxwell Award watchlist. Another amazing thing that happened back on August 19th was when Burden received the honor of being marked as the first-team preseason All-American. He also managed to slide into the Biletnikoff Award watchlist. This is something only the nation’s best WRs get. This makes Beck’s plan to grab the Heisman for the Bulldogs quite tough. However, we cannot forget that there are 2 more candidates who are in the race to win it all.

The Buffs and the Tides

While 2023 was rough for the Buffs, it still showed us the potential Shedeur Sanders has as a QB. The stats alone from last year make him a solid standout player. However, that isn’t the important part. What’s more important are the changes he has undergone ever since Deion Sanders decided to revamp the entire lineup of the team. Shedeur now has access to over 150+ years of NFL experience and that will make him a monster on the field.

On the other side, we got QB Jalen Milroe all set to fly with Kalen DeBoer’s guidance. DeBoer has already proved his talent when he made Michael Penix Jr a Heisman Runner Up. That HC knows how to get things done and Milroe himself is nothing less. Under Saban, he has shown exceptional promise with over 20 TDs and over 3000+ yards. Carson Beck’s Heisman race has all sorts of obstacles. Now only time will tell who finally picks up the cup.