Plenty of Respect Between Heisman Candidates, Gators' Trask, Alabama's Jones

As the No. 11 Florida Gators get set to take on the No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide in the SEC Championship game in Atlanta on Saturday, the stakes will be incredibly high for both programs, but perhaps higher for at least two individuals competing in the contest itself.

Both Gators quarterback Kyle Trask and Crimson Tide quarterback Mac Jones are current front-runners for the ever-important Heisman Trophy, given annually to the most outstanding player in the NCAA. A true race to the finish line, the outcome, and performance from both players could very well decide the winner.

This season, the quarterback position under Gators head coach Dan Mullen has been elevated, a high standard set by himself and the nation as a whole it would appear.

"We're an offense that is very quarterback-based in that of what we put on them, what we ask the quarterback to do, very much a pro-style offense in that way of what we ask the quarterback to do within our system," Mullen said of his quarterback's standard.

"So I think he's had a great year, and I know that certainly it excites Florida fans. The one thing you know about Gator fans, they love points and explosive offenses. I know they've enjoyed the points that we've put up this year."

Trask has set standards for the quarterback position in Gainesville for years to come, producing numbers most would have deemed unimaginable entering the season. On the year, Trask has completed 259 out of 369 (70.2%) of his passes for 3,717 yards, 40 touchdowns and just five interceptions.

His 40 touchdowns mark the most in a single season in Florida history, surpassing former Florida quarterback Danny Wuerffel (39) on Saturday.

In speaking with the media via teleconference on Monday, Trask cast aside comments regarding the Heisman Trophy, instead just focusing strictly on the task at hand, winning the SEC Championship Game. Trask did, however, have some kind words to say about his competition in Jones.

"I know he's a very talented player," Trask said of Jones. "He gets the job done for them pretty well. It's going to be fun to get to play against another top QB, not only in this conference but in the country."

Jones, who has put up some stellar numbers in his own right, completing 217 out of 284 (76.4%) of his passes for 3,321 yards, 27 touchdowns and just three interceptions, also had some kind words to say about his competition in Trask, noting that the competition isn't between the two quarterbacks, but the two teams.

"Obviously Kyle has done a great job all year long. In the past year and a half, he's played great football, has been a great player," he said on Monday. "I definitely look up to him as a person that's one of the best quarterbacks in the nation."

According to the odds-makers at www.SportsBettingDime.com, Jones has 5/6 odds at winning the Heisman while Trask is currently sitting at 2/1 and 7/3 odds at winning it.

The SEC Championship game is set to take place on Saturday, Dec. 19 in Atlanta at 8 p.m. ET.