HEI2MAN WATCH: Matt Corral’s stock is rising

Last week, I wrote a column titled “How realistic is a Heisman campaign for Matt Corral in 2021?” Honestly, writing that seemed premature.

To some extent, contemplating that possibility is still kind of weird and the hype gets any Ole Miss fan nervous for impending doom, but the players ahead of or around him just keep doing things to hurt their chances.

On top of that, Matt Corral threw five touchdowns against Austin Peay and still hasn’t thrown an interception (seems good!). Sure, he didn’t put up prolific stats, but he did enough to be named the Walter Camp National Player of the Week for some reason.

And so, as long as Matt Corral stays in the Heisman conversation, we’re going to keep entertaining the idea he might actually go off and win the damn thing.

Last week, Corral was tied for third with Clemson QB DJ Uiagalelei and Ohio State QB CJ Stroud. He trailed Oklahoma’s Spencer Rattler and Alabama’s Bryce Young. So what happened in week 2? Who helped their stock, and who hurt it?

Updated Bovada Heisman Odds, Top 5

• Bryce Young +350
• Matt Corral +500
• Spencer Rattler +800
• CJ Stroud +1000
• D.J. Uiagalelei +1800

Bryce Young | QB | Alabama

Young is the only competition to Corral who did much to help his case in week 2. Young went 19/27 for 227 yards and 2 touchdowns in a short outing against Mercer. So beating up on Mercer doesn’t really matter, but Young continues to play excellent football, not turning the ball over so far this season.

On top of that, he has completed more than 70% of his passes in both games this season. Honestly, for Corral to win the Heisman, he may need to beat Bryce Young and Alabama... a pretty tall task.

Spencer Rattler | QB | Oklahoma

Spencer Rattler bounced back in a big way against Western Carolina (including five touchdowns), but it doesn’t really matter. Rattler is going to have to play mistake-free football in games that matter after throwing two picks against Tulane. Since he’s not a runner, he has to be exceptional in the passing game. We’ll see if the Tulane game was just an outlier soon.

CJ Stroud | QB | Ohio State

It’s not that Stroud played badly; he definitely didn’t. Hell, he threw for 484 yards and 3 TDs against Oregon. The trouble is Ohio State lost to Oregon and winning means a lot in the Heisman voting. Ohio State additionally was expected to run the table this season.

As weird as this may seem, Stroud’s excellent game doesn’t seem to have made up for the loss.

DJ Uiagalelei | QB | Clemson

Uiagalelei just may not be good. It’s great he’s in a Dr. Pepper commercial though!

Seriously, Uiagalelei completed just 58% of his passes against South Carolina State, throwing for 171 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. He didn’t play very long, but when he was in, it wasn’t great.

Desmond Ridder | QB | Cincinnati

I kinda think Ridder is one of those “I guess technically he could win the Heisman” kind of players. He has been fine so far this year, but he only plays one top 25 opponent this year (Notre Dame in week 4). I just can’t fathom him winning the thing without an undefeated season and leading the nation in more than one offensive category.