Is DeSean Bishop a Dark Horse for the Heisman Trophy?

Tennessee running back DeSean Bishop starred over the weekend in Tennessee’s victory over Alabama. Bishop had 159 rushing yards and two touchdowns as the Vols took down Alabama.

Tennessee quarterback George MacIntyre was solid in the victory, but the win essentially came down to Bishop’s production on offense and the defense holding it down.

This is not a one-off week; Bishop has put the Tennessee offense on his back all season amidst uncertainty at the quarterback position.

The Vols are 5-1 and ranked just outside the top 10 at the 11th position in the AP Poll. With that in mind, it raises the question: Is DeSean Bishop a dark horse for the Heisman?

Is DeSean Bishop a Dark Horse for the Heisman

Tennessee running back DeSean Bishop (18) celebrates scoring a touchdown during a football game between Tennessee and Alabama at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., on Oct. 17, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Through six games this season, he has rushed for 837 yards and 10 touchdowns. This means that he is on pace for 1674 rushing yards and 20 rushing touchdowns (not including a potential SEC Championship Game appearance). If he keeps up this level of production and Tennessee continues to win, there is no reason why he wouldn’t be at least in the conversation for the Heisman.

So why isn’t he now?

For one, the Heisman race is based on a pretty week-to-week basis. What that means is that the players who are in the Heisman race are often players who have had big performances in primetime games in the last week or two. While Bishop certainly fits this description, his performance got somewhat overshadowed by the rest of the college football world because of all of the crazy upsets that happened this weekend. Instead of Bishop, this week's new Heisman candidate is BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier, who led the Cougars to an upset victory over Notre Dame on Saturday.

He was still named 8th on the On3 Heisman Poll on Monday (note that On3 does not vote on the Heisman).

Slowly but surely, the college football world is going to catch on to Bishop and give him the credit he deserves.

It is also important to note that voters value good stories as well. Think about the 2024 Heisman when Travis Hunter won the award because of the storylines around him playing on both sides of the ball and playing for Deion Sanders. Whether you think he deserved the award or not, you cannot argue that these factors did, in fact, help him win

This helps Bishop's Heisman case because he has one of the best stories in college football. He grew up a Tennessee fan and is a Knoxville native, but he was never offered by the Volunteers out of high school. Determined, Bishop walked on to the team, eventually earning a scholarship, and has now become one of the best players in the country.

For now, only time will tell if he continues to edge his name closer to the Heisman, but it still remains crazy that he is not being talked about more.

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