$1.3 Million WR Named 'Most Dynamic Player' in College Football

Nearly one month has passed since Indiana's victory over Miami in the 2026 College Football Playoff National Championship game.

A significant number of the stars from the game are off to the 2026 NFL draft, but several are returning to their respective programs to add to the legacies they built in the 2025 season. One key returnee from the 2026 College Football Playoff National Championship game is Miami wide receiver Malachi Toney, who took the college football world by storm in the postseason.

The 5-foot-11, 188-pounder reclassified from the 2027 recruiting class to the 2026 recruiting class, joining the Hurricanes as a three-star prospect. Toney's impact on the Hurricanes was immediate; he finished the 2025 season with 109 receptions for 1,211 yards and 10 touchdowns, right around 50 more receptions and 500 more yards than the second-most productive receiver, Keelan Marion.

Malachi Toney during the College Football Playoff National Championship. — Miami wide receiver Malachi Toney (10) reacts after scoring a touchdown in the second half of the College Football Playoff National Championship | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Toney also ran the ball 23 times for 113 yards and a touchdown on offense. On special teams, he returned 23 punts for 298 yards. The ACC named Toney ACC Rookie of the Year, ACC Offensive Rookie of the Year, All-ACC First Team as a wide receiver and All-ACC Second Team as an all-purpose selection.

He was nominated to multiple Freshman All-American teams, and the Associated Press named him to its All-America Second Team.

With such a vast array of skills in his toolkit, Toney is expected to add to the impressive start to his college career in 2026. David Kenyon of Bleacher Report released a list of the five underclassmen most likely to win the Heisman Trophy in 2026. Toney was the second player Kenyon named on his list as a potential underclassmen Heisman candidate.

"Historically speaking, non-quarterbacks are infrequent Heisman winners. However, when a player has an established reputation, voters pay attention earlier. Malachi Toney certainly has that recognition," Kenyon wrote.

"Duke duo Darian Mensah and Cooper Barkate have an established connection, and they should keep producing at a high clip. That's a good problem for Miami, even if that affects Toney's statistical upside. Toney, however, is undeniably one of the country's most dynamic players."

The odds have long been stacked against wide receivers trying to win the Heisman Trophy. Only three wide receivers have hoisted the award since 1991: Desmond Howard (Michigan, 1991), DeVonta Smith (Alabama, 2020) and Travis Hunter (Colorado, 2024). The good news for Toney is that, similar to Howard and Hunter, he stars in another phase of the game, something that may help his cause for a Heisman Trophy campaign.

Underclassmen have won the award in the last 15 seasons, although the recipients have been junior and senior-dominant over the years. Former USC quarterback Caleb Williams was the last sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy back in 2022.