It took just 13 starts for Alabama quarterback Bryce Young to establish himself as the top player in college football. Oddsmakers aren’t expecting a repeat performance from the reigning Heisman Trophy winner.
Instead, Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud (+200) enters 2022 as the Heisman preseason favorite at FanDuel after finishing fourth for the award as a freshman in 2021. Young (+400) slots behind him in his quest to become only the second player in NCAA history — and first since Archie Griffin in 1974-75 — to win the Heisman Trophy twice.
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Those two join USC’s Caleb Williams (+600) as the only players priced shorter than +2500 in what books clearly consider to be a three-man race. Of course, history tells us that’s rarely the case, as long shots have littered Heisman Trophy ballots in recent years. That’s to say nothing of the concerns over Alabama’s supporting cast, Ohio State’s run-first focus, and Williams’ own struggles to end last season.
With that said, here are the preseason odds to win the 2022 Heisman Trophy (shorter than +10000) and three of our favorite long shots to bet ahead of this season:
2022 Heisman Trophy betting odds
| CJ Stroud | +200 |
| Bryce Young | +400 |
| Caleb Williams | +600 |
| DJ Uiagalelei | +2500 |
| Will Anderson | +3000 |
| Dillon Gabriel | +3000 |
| TreVeyon Henderson | +4000 |
| Tyler Van Dyke | +4000 |
| Bijan Robinson | +4000 |
| Quinn Ewers | +5000 |
| Jaxon Smith-Njigba | +5000 |
| Jahmyr Gibbs | +5000 |
| Hendon Hooker | +6000 |
| Anthony Richardson | +6000 |
| Jaxson Dart | +6000 |
| Haynes King | +6000 |
| Braelon Allen | +6000 |
| Will Rogers | +8000 |
| KJ Jefferson | +8000 |
| Malik Cunningham | +8000 |
| Spencer Rattler | +8000 |
| Jordan Addison | +8000 |
| Jayden Daniels | +8000 |
| Cameron Rising | +8000 |
| Spencer Sanders | +8000 |
| Devin Leary | +8000 |
| Devon Achane | +8000 |
2022 Heisman Trophy long-shot picks and betting analysis
Will Anderson, LB, Alabama (+3000)
The Crimson Tide have produced four of the last 13 Heisman winners, including the last two. Young faces a historic task trying to repeat after his eye-popping 2021 campaign, so why not take a shot on the player many consider to be the best in the country?
Anderson finished fifth in Heisman voting last year and realistically deserved a better showing after leading the country in sacks (17.5) and tackles for loss (34.5) — amassing a dozen more TFLs than any other defender. He also ranked among the nation’s best in overall tackles (101) and QB pressures (81) and recorded at least one sack in seven consecutive games entering the College Football Playoff.
He did all that as a sophomore, so it’s anyone’s guess what the 20-year-old will do for an encore in 2022. If he can build on that production for an Alabama team that enters the season atop every major poll, he’ll be among the finalists in New York in December.
Quinn Ewers, QB, Texas (+5000)
It’s remarkable to see a talent such as Ewers dealing as a +5000 long shot just a year after he was battling Stroud for the Buckeyes’ starting job in 2021. Twelve months later, Stroud is the consensus Heisman favorite, and Ewers is easily the most compelling long shot to challenge him.
Much like Young before him, Ewers was the No. 1 quarterback prospect out of high school and has drawn comparisons to Trevor Lawrence as a prototypical arm with a clean delivery and some burst as a scrambler. He’s the perfect fit for Steve Sarkisian’s offense at Texas, where he will be surrounded by elite playmakers in running back Bijan Robinson – another Heisman dark horse at +4000 — and top wideout Xavier Worthy, who posted 981 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns as a freshman.
Ewers hasn’t been named the starter yet, which is likely inflating the price here, but it feels like a lock that the former top recruit will have the reins of this high-octane Texas offense. And he will have plenty of pressure to perform with mega-recruit Arch Manning on his way in 2023. This is a make-or-break year for Ewers, who has the talent and supporting cast to have a Young-like start to his collegiate career.
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Spencer Rattler, QB, South Carolina (+8000)
It feels like an eternity since Rattler entered the 2021 season as the Heisman favorite after a scintillating start to his Oklahoma career. Then he lost his job to Caleb Williams and subsequently transferred to South Carolina, where he’s a distant afterthought for the award he was projected to win just one year ago.
Those preseason expectations were too lofty in hindsight, but this feels like too much of an overcorrection for one of the most talented players in college football. Rattler is still the same guy that finished in the top 10 in passing yards (3,031), touchdowns (28), and yards per attempt (9.6) as a sophomore, and his passer rating last year (155.5) would have ranked in the top 25 had he started the entire season.
Now he gets a fresh start for the Gamecocks, who return most of their production from a 2021 offensive unit that had talent but was plagued by a revolving door at quarterback. It will be tough for Rattler to enter the Heisman conversation if South Carolina doesn’t contend for an SEC crown, but we’ve seen spectacular individual performances garner consideration before. And at this price, a talent like Rattler is well worth the wager.
