USC quarterback Caleb Williams was the biggest transfer of the offseason, a five-star free agent who landed near Hollywood, raked in splashy NIL deals and symbolized this ever-changing era of college football.
It turns out he was worth all of the hype and then some.
Williams is the 2022 winner of The Athletic’s Heisman straw poll after using a late-season surge to pull away from the field and establish himself as the favorite to take home the most famous individual award in American sports.
TCU quarterback Max Duggan, who didn’t even start the season opener, finished his improbable Heisman campaign at No. 2, with injured Tennessee signal caller Hendon Hooker coming in at No. 3.
The Athletic uses the same voting protocol as that of the actual Heisman: three points for a first-place vote, two points for a second-place vote, one point for a third-place vote.
Heisman finalists will be announced Monday, and the Heisman ceremony will take place Saturday night in New York.
| Name | Team | POS | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | PTS | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Caleb Williams |
QB |
28 |
6 |
2 |
98 |
1 |
|
|
Max Duggan |
QB |
7 |
22 |
2 |
67 |
2 |
|
|
Hendon Hooker |
QB |
1 |
2 |
7 |
14 |
6 |
|
|
C.J. Stroud |
QB |
2 |
5 |
9 |
3 |
||
|
Bryce Young |
QB |
1 |
2 |
1 |
8 |
5 |
|
|
Stetson Bennett |
QB |
1 |
4 |
6 |
11 |
||
|
Drake Maye |
QB |
1 |
2 |
5 |
4 |
||
|
Bijan Robinson |
RB |
1 |
3 |
5 |
9 |
||
|
Jalen Carter |
DT |
1 |
2 |
4 |
12 |
||
|
Michael Penix Jr. |
QB |
4 |
4 |
8 |
|||
|
Brock Bowers |
TE |
1 |
1 |
3 |
14 |
||
|
Marvin Harrison Jr. |
WR |
2 |
2 |
13 |
|||
|
Mohamed Ibrahim |
RB |
2 |
2 |
10 |
|||
|
Blake Corum |
RB |
1 |
1 |
7 |
This is the sixth year of The Athletic’s straw poll. Each of the previous five winners of the poll ended up winning the actual Heisman: Baker Mayfield (2017), Kyler Murray (2018), Joe Burrow (2019), DeVonta Smith (2020) and Bryce Young (2021).
In the end, 14 players received votes in the final straw poll, as the race for No. 3 behind Williams and Duggan was wide open. All but one of the players received multiple votes.
The breakdown by position was eight quarterbacks, three running backs, one receiver, one tight end and one defensive lineman.
If Williams wins the Heisman, he will become the first winner from USC since Reggie Bush in 2005, a trophy that was vacated. Matt Leinart won in 2004 and Carson Palmer in 2002 for the Trojans. In addition, USC coach Lincoln Riley tutored Heisman-winning quarterbacks in his first two years as a head coach while at Oklahoma, when Mayfield and Murray received the award. One year later, Jalen Hurts finished No. 2.
Williams has completed 66.1 percent of his passes for 4,075 yards. His 47 total touchdowns are a single-season school record. So are his 4,447 yards of total offense. He has rushed for 372 yards, the most by a USC quarterback in the 70 years that records are available, according to the school.
His 37 touchdown passes are tied for the national lead, and he has thrown just four interceptions. His 282 points responsible for are also No. 1 nationally.
The sophomore suffered a hamstring injury in Friday’s Pac-12 title game, but he still managed to complete 28 of 41 passes for 363 yards with three touchdowns. However, he turned the ball over twice and was severely limited in running the ball.
Though USC’s run to the College Football Playoff ended with the 47-24 loss to Utah, Williams impressed enough — and had built up enough of a lead — that he still claimed the straw poll rather easily.
He chose the bright lights of L.A. and embraced all that came with restoring a fallen football power.
And after leading USC from 4-8 to 11-2 in one year, Williams looks well on his way to reaping all of the benefits of being the catalyst of the Trojans’ rise.
(Photo: Brian Rothmuller / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
