Quarterbacks
Ryan Tannehill — Texas A&M vs. Kansas. The Kansas secondary continues to be exploited this season, where the Jayhawks have given up an average of 286.8 passing yards and 44.0 points over an eight game losing streak in Turner Gill’s second year as head coach. Of Texas A&M’s five losses, their only uncontested game was on the road at Oklahoma in Week 9, and Tannehill is playing like the college equivalent of Brett Favre in Mike Sherman’s pro-style West Coast offense, where he’s combined for 3,184 all-purpose yards and 27 touchdowns while averaging 7.0 yards per attempt. The Aggies are scoring 38.9 points per game and generate 516.7 yards of total offense. Kansas ranks dead last in points against and total defense, and bottom-ten in turnovers and time of possession.
Case Keenum — Houston vs SMU. Keenum is the FBS career leader in total offense, all-time leader in touchdown passes, and the major college football career leader in passing yards. The sixth-year senior has proven to be a legitimate Heisman contender, averaging 395 passing yards per game and 37 touchdowns in Houston’s high-powered spread attack that ranks second nationally in efficiency. SMU is bowl eligible for the third consecutive season under June Jones, but the Mustangs have one win over their last four weeks after nearly reaching the Top 25 with a 5-1 start.
Collin Klein — Kansas State at Texas. Klein rushed for a school-record five touchdowns in last week’s four-overtime win against Texas A&M and threw for a career best 281 yards on 17 of 27 passing. KSU runs an option based offense with a 78:32 run-to-pass ratio, where Klein’s 241 carries rank first in the Big 12 and third nationally. Klein’s 2011 numbers compare favorably to former Nebraska quarterback Eric Crouch, who ran an option-style offense when he won the Heisman in 2001. Crouch would go on to rush for 1,115 yards and 18 touchdowns while throwing for just 1,510 yards and seven touchdowns, whereas Klein has 1,504 yards and 10 touchdowns, while rushing for 1,009 yards and 24 TDs.
Brandon Weeden — Oklahoma State at Iowa State. Oklahoma State is averaging 52 points per game and Weeden has 3,635 total yards and a 31:9 TD-to-INT ratio in 10 appearances this season. Iowa State ranks last in the Big 12 in scoring defense and the task of covering Justin Blackmon will likely fall on cornerback Leonard Johnson, who will be giving away at least three inches to the reigning Biletnikoff winner. Blackmon is running circles around Big 12 opponents this season with 32 catches for 480 yards and six touchdowns in his last three games. Florida State’s Chris Weinke set the precedent for an older player winning the Heisman in 2000 and Weeden is looking to repeat that trend this year in leading OSU to an undefeated season.
Brett Smith — Wyoming vs New Mexico. Smith has four consecutive games of at least two touchdowns and is a mismatch for the New Mexico defense because of his ability to scramble and make plays on the perimeter. UNM has produced only eight sacks on the season and their defensive backs are used primarily in deep, cover-two type packages that allow opposing offenses to exploit “soft spots” on short to intermediate routes. As long as they can limit their turnovers, Wyoming should be able to march up and down the field without resistance. The Lobos rank last in the Western Atlantic in total defense and yield an average of 466.3 total yards per game.
Mid-to-Low End Options
Robert Griffin — Baylor vs Oklahoma
James Franklin — Missouri vs Texas Tech
Landry Jones — Oklahoma at Baylor
Kain Colter — Northwestern vs Minnesota
Aaron Murray — Georgia vs Kentucky
Tyler Tettleton — Ohio at Bowling Green
Ryan Radcliff — Central Michigan vs Toledo
Logan Thomas — Virginia Tech vs. North Carolina
Derek Carr — Fresno State at Hawaii
Kriss Proctor — Navy at San Jose State
Running Backs
Montee Ball—Wisconsin at Illinois. Ball leads all running backs in touchdowns with 23 and is fourth in nation in rushing yards this season. The junior had yet another stellar game for the Badgers last week, rushing for 166 yards and three total touchdowns (2 rushing, 1 receiving) against Minnesota. Ball has scored at least twice in every game this season, and is averaging 194.5 yards rushing over his last two games. This week, Ball and the Badgers head to Champaign to play a pretty good Illinois defense. But as evidenced by what he’s done this season, the matchup is basically irrelevant and he is going to get his scores regardless.
Joseph Randle —Oklahoma State at Iowa State. Though Randle has been overshadowed by QB Brandon Weeden and his Heisman-hopeful season, the sophomore back has had an amazing offensive season in his own right. Being the leading rusher in the nation’s third-ranked offense clearly has it benefits, with Randle racking up 21 touchdowns on the ground and grabbing two more through the air. The yardage might not always be there but the touchdowns will, as witnessed by last week’s 78-yard, three-touchdown game against Texas Tech. He and the Cowboys’ offense have ripped through the Big 12 this season, and there’s really no reason to think Iowa State’s 90th ranked defense is going to be able to stop Randle from reaching the end zone multiple times this weekend as well.
Cyrus Gray —Texas A&M vs. Kansas. Gray is now the consensus number one back with Christine Michael out for the season with a torn ACL. The senior showed what he can do when he’s the go-to guy last week, exploding for 218 yards and two touchdowns against Kansas State. Gray should be riding high after receiving a season-high 30 carries in that game, and should carry that swagger over into this week’s contest against Kansas’ worst-ranked defense this week. Kansas has not shown that it can stop a good run game, as it gave up 441 yards on the ground three weeks ago against Texas, so look for Gray to have a field day this Saturday in College Station.
LaMichael James —Oregon vs. USC. There’s really no reason to bet against James at this point. He’s shown that his injury hasn’t slowed him down at all, going for 146 yards and three touchdowns in last week’s big win over Stanford. James is averaging a ridiculous 7.9 yards per carry and a country-leading 150.9 yards per game. He’s also still 6th in the country in total rushing yards despite missing two games with a dislocated elbow. James and the Ducks are going to do everything they can to beat their final test of the regular season, so he should be looking for a repeat of last week’s performance this Saturday night against USC.
Adonis Thomas —Toledo at Central Michigan. Thomas has gone off the last two games, averaging 228.5 yards from scrimmage during that time for the Rockets. Toledo’s potent offense has averaged 63 points during their last two contests, and Thomas has been a big part of that. He had a huge day last week against Western Michigan, rushing for 216 yards and two scores and grabbing a receiving touchdown as well. Toledo heads to Central Michigan this week, a team who gave up 63 points itself last week. There’s no telling how many points the Rockets will be able to put up this week, and Thomas figures to be a big part of whatever that number ends up being.
Mid-to-Low End Options
Cameron Marshall—Arizona State vs. Arizona
Trent Richardson—Alabama vs. Georgia Southern
John White IV—Utah at Washington State
Marcus Coker —Iowa at Purdue
Robert Turbin—Utah State at Idaho
Rex Burkhead—Nebraska at Michigan
Robbie Rouse—Fresno State at Hawaii
Zac Stacy—Vanderbilt at Tennessee
Chris Rainey—Florida vs. Furman
Michael Dyer —Auburn vs. Samford
Bobby Rainey—WKU at North Texas
Kendial Lawrence—Missouri vs. Texas Tech
Branden Oliver—Buffalo vs. Akron
Kenny Turner—New Mexico State at BYU
LeVeon Bell—Michigan State vs. Indiana
Wide Receivers
Justin Blackmon—Oklahoma State at Iowa State. Blackmon is the country’s premiere receiver, having caught 93 balls for 1,142 yards and 14 touchdowns this season for the Cowboys. Prior to last game, the junior had back-to-back games of 13 grabs and two scores in each. Blackmon hauled in two more touchdowns last week against Texas Tech, making it 9 straight games with a TD grab. The Cowboys take on a below-average Iowa State this week, meaning Blackmon has a good chance to extend his multi-TD streak this Friday.
Patrick Edwards—Houston vs. SMU.Edwards is the clear beneficiary of Houston’s unabashed attempt to win quarterback Case Keenum the Heisman. As his go-to receiver, each game Edwards has the opportunity to catch as many touchdowns as Keenum can throw. Look no further than the Cougars’ game against Rice in which Keenum had nine touchdown passes, with five of them going to Edwards. The 6’2 senior had 129 yards and three scores last week against Tulane, and looks to repeat the effort this week against SMU. It’s clear that it’s going to take a special kind of effort to slow down Houston’s offense, and there’s no reason to think that Edwards and the Cougars will put up anything less than the standard huge numbers this week.
Jeremy Ebert—Northwestern vs. Minnesota. Ebert teed off against a favorable matchup of Rice last week, grabbing seven catches for 208 yards and two touchdowns in a 28-6 win. The good news for Wildcats fans is that the team faces a similarly porous defense against Minnesota this Saturday. The Gophers are ranked 95th in the country in total defense and 104th in points allowed, so Ebert should be able to repeat his big receiving day. The senior wideout has hauled in 58 passes for 924 yards and 10 touchdowns this season for the Wildcats.
Stedman Bailey—West Virginia vs. Pittsburgh. Bailey and quarterback Geno Smith were high school teammates, and this year the duo has reaped the benefits of that chemistry. The sophomore registered his seventh 100+ yard game of the season last week against Cincinnati and collected his 10th touchdown of the year on a 59-yard strike from Smith. With Smith putting up 349.7 pass yards per game, Bailey should continue his five-game scoring streak this week against Pittsburgh.
Marquess Wilson—Washington State vs. SDSU. Wilson is one of the few bright spots for the ho-hum Cougars this season. Wilson is third in the nation in with 1,197 receiving yards and has added 10 touchdowns on the year. The sophomore is coming off his best game of the year, an eight-catch, 223-yard, 3 touchdown performance last week against Arizona State. Wilson is no stranger to big games, having a 236-yard effort early in the season against San Diego State. The team hosts Utah this Saturday, which is good news for Cougar fans. Six of Wilson’s nine touchdowns have come at home this season, meaning a potential big game for the emerging star.
Mid-to-Low End Options
Marvin McNutt — Iowa at Purdue
Marqise Lee— USC at Oregon
Chris Givens—Wake Forest vs. Maryland
Mohamed Sanu—Rutgers vs. Cincinnati
Kenny Stills— Oklahoma at Baylor
Jordan Matthews—Vanderbilt at Tennessee
Juron Criner — Arizona at Arizona State
Gerell Robinson —Arizona State vs. Arizona
Josh Boyce — TCU vs. Colorado State
Jalen Saunders — Fresno State at Hawaii
Rishard Matthews —Nevada vs. Louisiana Tech
Taveon Rogers — New Mexico State at BYU
Ryan Swope—Texas A&M vs. Kansas
Emory Blake—Auburn vs. Samford
Michael Floyd— Notre Dame vs. Boston College
Tight Ends
1. Michael Egnew — Missouri vs Texas Tech
2. Tyler Eifert — Notre Dame vs Boston College
3. Drake Dunsmore — Northwestern vs Minnesota
4. Coby Fleener — Stanford vs California
5. Vance McDonald — Rice vs Tulane
6. Dwayne Allen — Clemson at North Carolina
7. Jacob Pedersen — Wisconsin at Illinois
8. Orson Charles — Georgia vs Kentucky
9. Jordan Reed — Florida vs Furman
10. Ryan Otten — San Jose State vs Navy
11. Joseph Fauria — UCLA vs Colorado
12. Philip Lutzenkirchen — Auburn vs Samford
13. David Paulson — Oregon vs USC
14. Kolby Arendse — Nevada vs Louisiana Tech
15. Gavin Escobar — San Diego State vs Boise State
Kickers
1. Dustin Hopkins — Florida State vs Virginia
2. Randy Bullock — Texas A&M vs Kansas
3. Caleb Sturgis — Florida vs Furman
4. Quinn Sharp — Oklahoma State at Iowa State
5. Kevin Fitzpatrick — Tulsa at UTEP
6. Michael Hunnicutt — Oklahoma at Baylor
7. Zach Hocker — Arizona at Arizona State
8. Matt Weller — Ohio at Bowling Green
9. Danny Hrapmann — Southern Mississippi at UAB
10. Parker Herrington — Air Force vs UNLV
11. Dan Conroy — Michigan State vs Indiana
12. Jeremy Shelley — Alabama vs Georgia Southern
13. Maikon Bonani — South Florida vs Miami
14. Chris Boswell — Rice vs Tulane
15. Justin Tucker — Texas vs Kansas State
Defense/Special Teams
1.Florida (vs Furman)
2. Alabama (vs Georgia Southern)
3. South Carolina (vs Citadel)
4. Temple (vs Army)
5. Georgia (vs Kentucky)
6. Virginia Tech (vs North Carolina)
7. Notre Dame (vs Boston College)
8. TCU (vs Colorado State)
9. Michigan State (vs Indiana)
10. LSU (at Ole Miss)
11. Arkansas (vs Mississippi State)
12. Florida State (vs Virginia)
13. Utah State (at Idaho)
14, Wyoming (vs New Mexico)
15. Buffalo (vs Akron)