Week 2 didn’t just shake up the 2026 college football season. It also scrambled the Heisman Trophy race in a hurry.
The early favorites took hits as Dante Moore, Julian Sayin and John Mateer all stumbled while leading ranked teams, and that kind of slip this early can drain momentum fast. Two weeks in, the door has swung open for a different group of players - some familiar stars, some quieter names who are suddenly forcing their way into the conversation.
Jeremiah Smith still went off in Ohio State’s heartbreaking loss to Texas8 REC, 164 YDS, 1 TD pic.twitter.com/bBYxw6eVwU
Smith gets an honorable mention here out of respect for how dominant he’s been. Even in Ohio State’s heartbreaking loss to Texas, when the Buckeyes coughed up a 20-point second-half lead, the junior wideout was impossible to ignore.
He’s kept right on torching defenses since breaking out in 2024. Through two games, Smith is averaging eight catches and 157.5 yards per game, and his 19.7 yards per reception jumps off the page. With a daunting Big Ten schedule ahead, the returning sixth-place Heisman finalist will need Ohio State to rebound - but he’s still producing like a player who belongs in the race every week.
Then there’s Gunner Stockton, whose start has been about as clean as it gets. Georgia has rolled over Tennessee State and Western Kentucky, including a 70-point outing in Week 2, and Stockton has more touchdown passes in two games (eight) than incompletions (four).
The senior from Tiger, Georgia has been lighting it up, even if the opposition hasn’t been elite. Georgia heads into SEC play in Week 3 with a trip to Arkansas, and after the Razorbacks were pounded by Utah in Week 2, Stockton has a chance to keep stacking Heisman buzz.
At USC, Jayden Maiava has been the busiest quarterback of the bunch because he’s already been playing since Week 0, and he’s made that extra runway count. He’s delivered three dominant outings, and in Week 2 he threw his first interception of the year while also setting a career high with five touchdown passes in the win over Louisiana.
His numbers are loud: a 91.0 QBR that ranks fifth nationally, plus one of only nine passer ratings above 200 in the country. USC has one more non-conference game left against Rutgers before turning to Big Ten play and an old Pac-12 matchup with Oregon.
Malachi Toney has been just as electric on the perimeter. Florida A&M’s defensive backs had no answer for him in a 77-7 blowout in Week 2, when he caught four passes for 96 yards and a touchdown in limited work.
Toney is a different kind of receiver than Smith, but the production is just as eye-popping. He’s averaging 20.6 yards per catch and has already scored four times in two games. Wake Forest is next on the schedule, and Toney and his star quarterback remain firmly in the Heisman mix.
Darian Mensah deserves a serious look too, and not just because he’s throwing to one of the best players in the country in Toney. The Miami quarterback has been surgical through two games, with eight touchdown passes and only four incompletions, and he has not thrown an interception.
He also leads the nation with a 96.5 QBR and hasn’t been sacked through two weeks. Miami has beaten Stanford and Florida A&M in convincing fashion, and Mensah’s case is built on more than just the talent around him. The numbers say he’s playing like a Heisman contender in his own right.
Darian Mensah routes on air vs Florida A&MThis game doesn’t mean anything for his NFL Draft stock, but an extra 252 yards and 3 TDs looks great on a Heisman resume. He’s my pick (by far) for the 2026 Heisman at the moment. https://t.co/sR3PWeOI87 pic.twitter.com/4b5I3edlf7
In Other News...
Notre Dame May Have Seized Early Control In A Huge Recruiting Fight
Notre Dames 52-0 win over Rice did more than pad a season opener, it also gave the Irish another chance to make an impression on one of the more important underclassmen in the country. Wyatt VanBoening, a 4-star offensive tackle in the 2028 class, was among the visitors taking in the atmosphere, and it was the latest stop in a recruiting relationship that has already included multiple trips to South Bend. With major programs already involved, Notre Dame has at least put itself squarely in the mix.
For a program always trying to build its future in the trenches, VanBoening is the kind of prospect worth tracking closely. The repeated visits suggest real mutual interest, and performances like the one against Rice can only help the Irish with recruits weighing early impressions as much as long-term fit. No commitment has been made, but Notre Dame appears to have positioned itself well in a fight that could still go a long way. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame Finally Looked Like The Team Fans Were Waiting For
Notre Dames home opener against Rice was the kind of performance that had been missing in the early part of the season, a clean, commanding statement in a 52-0 win that never really gave the visitors a chance to breathe. The Irish were sharp from the opening series, with quarterback CJ Carr settling in quickly and the rest of the roster following suit in a game that looked more like the standard Notre Dame had been trying to establish than the stumble fans had been waiting to shake off.
Carrs efficiency set the tone, while safety Adon Shuler and wide receiver Jordan Faison both turned in notable performances in a rout that showed how complete this team can look when it is in sync. The bigger question now is whether this was the one-off release fans needed to see or the first sign that Notre Dame has finally found the version of itself it was supposed to bring into the fall. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame Is Suddenly In The No. 1 Debate After Week 2
Week 2 delivered the kind of shakeup that can redraw the entire AP Top 25, with Texas knocking off No. 1 Ohio State late and leaving the top of the poll suddenly up for grabs. The ripple effects go well beyond Columbus, because the national conversation now has to sort through a crowded group of contenders, with Notre Dame and Georgia both in the mix as the rankings get rebuilt after a chaotic Saturday.
For the Irish, that puts a clean opening-week performance in a much brighter spotlight than it had before. Other contenders are still trying to survive the fallout from losses of their own, including Oregon and Oklahoma, which only adds to the uncertainty at the top. However the voters sort it out, Notre Dame has unexpectedly landed in the middle of the No. 1 debate, and the next set of rankings will say plenty about how much weight the Irishs start carried. [Read more 🡒]