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1,300-Yard WR Emerges as Top Non-QB Contender for 2026 Heisman Trophy

Despite a plethora of players who chose to turn down the NFL Draft, one who wasn't eligible is the 2026 Heisman favorite.
Joe Cox|
Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith tops the list of 2026 Heisman Trophy favorites.
Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith tops the list of 2026 Heisman Trophy favorites. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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In recent years, the Heisman Trophy race has tended to be all about the quarterback. Fernando Mendoza won it, Arch Manning missed it (and chose to return to chase it), and other top prospects like Dante Moore, LaNorris Sellers, and others chose to take another shot at the award in 2026. Eight of the last 10 Heisman winners were quarterbacks. But at least one strong candidate in the 2026 race isn't a quarterback.

The Non-QB Heisman Option

Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, widely regarded as the best player in the nation heading into 2026, is the early non-QB favorite to snag the Heisman Trophy. Smith remains viable among virtually all betting markets and has to be considered the most likely non-QB to win the Heisman Trophy.

In two seasons at OSU, Smith already has amassed 163 catches for 2,558 yards and 42 touchdowns. Even a less impressive season than his first two will put him atop the Ohio State record book in all three categories. The 6'3", 220-pound Smith has a unique combination of imposing physical skills, a record of consistent production, and the ability to learn on the move that will make him a focal point of the 2027 NFL Draft, and would likely have landed him atop the 2026 Draft, had he not been ineligible until after the 2026 college football season.

Other Early Heisman Favorites

Of course, Smith isn't the only Heisman favorite in town. A year ago, Arch Manning was comfortably in the favorite's seat, but his 2025 campaign hit a snag in a Week 1 loss to Smith and Ohio State and never really recovered its momentum. But Manning has returned for another shot and on a transfer-rich Texas squad, has to remain a viable contender.

Manning currently trails Notre Dame's CJ Carr in many betting markets, though. The talented Notre Dame passer is often atop the Heisman rankings, and off a freshman season that saw him pass for 2,741 yards and 24 touchdowns, it's not hard to see a viable Heisman path for Carr if he can jump Notre Dame back into the CFP picture in 2026.

One other player currently ranked above Smith for the Heisman (at least in current Fanduel odds) is transfer QB Josh Hoover. Hoover passed for 3,949 and 3,472 yards in the last two seasons at TCU. He's now at Indiana, where Fernando Mendoza blossomed from a QB with less profilic stats than Hoover into a superstar. If Curt Cignetti can perform his QB magic again, Hoover figures to be in the Heisman conversation.

Still, Smith is as viable as any other candidate, and while he'll have some work to do to overcome the QB-leaning nature of the vote for the Heisman Trophy, he'll open the season in good position to make a Heisman run.

Carr
Notre Dame QB CJ Carr is likely top competition for Jeremiah Smith in the 2026 Heisman race. | MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Joe Cox
JOE COX

Joe is a journalist and writer who covers college and professional sports. He has written or co-written over a dozen sports books, including several regional best sellers. His last book, A Fine Team Man, is about Jackie Robinson and the lives he changed. Joe has been a guest on MLB Network, the Paul Finebaum show and numerous other television and radio shows. He has been inside MLB dugouts, covered bowl games and conference tournaments with Saturday Down South and still loves telling the stories of sports past and present.

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