LSU Quarterback Joe Burrow Named Finalist for Heisman Trophy
Monday was just a formality as LSU quarterback Joe Burrow was named one of three finalists for the Heisman Trophy. Joining Burrow at the Heisman ceremony on Saturday will be Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts, Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields and Buckeyes defensive end Chase Young.
Burrow is a virtual lock to take home college football's most prestigious award, with his latest odds coming in at a staggering -50,000 after his latest 349-yard, four touchdown performance in the SEC Championship against Georgia.
For the season, Burrow has broken SEC records for touchdowns and yardage, throwing for 4,715 yards and 48 touchdowns in 13 appearances. The senior is also on pace to shatter Colt McCoy's NCAA completion percentage record, currently sitting at 77.9% for the season.
With Burrow being such a heavy favorite among analysts and fans combined, it'll be interesting to see if the senior will win by unanimous decision. No player has ever received 100% of the first place votes for the Heisman with Reggie Bush in 2005 being the closest at 91.77% with Troy Smith in 2006 being the next closest at 91.63% of votes.
The senior will go head-to-head with fellow Heisman candidate Hurts on Dec. 28 when the Tigers take on the Sooners in the Peach Bowl. Burrow could also potentially face his other Heisman candidates Fields and Young in the national championship if both teams were to move on in the College Football Playoff.
"In my opinion, he should win it," LSU coach Ed Orgeron said. "In my opinion, he's going to win it. The best thing about Joe is he's a team player. All he wants to do is win this game. Individual awards are not high on his list. That's what makes him such a great team player."
Burrow backed up his coaches high praise when talking about how far the team has come since he walked onto campus in the summer of 2018.
“I think it really started last year. We had a lot of people coming back,” Burrow said. “We lost three starters, I think, and we were young on offense last year. I think towards the end of the year you saw us kind of starting to gel. You know, when I first got here, I felt like it was kind of -- you had the offense, and you had the defense, and now you have LSU. That really started middle of last year. They started really gelling as a team, and this is as close as I've ever been to anybody.”
Here's how Burrow's stats stack up with the other Heisman finalists.
Burrow: 342-439 (77.9%), 4,715 yds, 48 TD, 6 INT, 289 yds rushing, 3 TD
Fields: 208-308 (67.5 %), 2,953 yds, 40 TD, 1 INT, 471 yds rushing, 10 TD
Hurts: 222-309 (71.8%), 3,634 yds, 32 TD, 7 INT, 1,255 yds rushing, 18 TD
Young: 44 tackles, 21 TFL, 16.5 sacks, 7 forced fumbles
