Heisman Watch: Christian McCaffrey, Derrick Henry moves closer to Leonard Fournette

Oct 17, 2015; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Utah Utes quarterback Travis Wilson (7) hands off to running back Devontae Booker (23) during the first half against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

Running backs has their way this week, making this a close race for the Heisman finalists.

As teams start to lose, there will be more Heisman hopes dashed. We saw two guys fall out of the race, and two more quickly taking their place. The running backs had a strong performance, and the quarterbacks continue to lead their teams to victory.

The gap certainly seems to be closing when it comes to the guys ranked 8-4, but chasing those in the top three will be a hard task to complete, as those are the ones who are the focal point of their offense, and no one has even come close to stopping those offenses.

The emergence of Christian McCaffrey on a national stage has elevated him to the Heisman watch, as a do-it-all kind of guy for Stanford, who is making a statement for the College Football Playoffs. Devontae Booker gets the nod as well, asserting his dominance in the Pac-12 with McCaffrey.

Next: Begin Heisman Rankings

One guy who is brand new to this list is Paxton Lynch, quarterback for the Memphis Tigers. It might be a C-USA opponent, but these Tigers are legit, being led by Lynch. We saw a true Heisman contender named Lynch a few years ago, with Jordan hailing from Northern Illinois. Although Paxton might not be too serious of a contender, he is still worthy of attention.

We saw Chad Kelly fall out of the ranks, after Ole Miss suffered their second loss of the season to an undefeated Memphis Tigers team. Nick Chubb also dropped out, as he was an honorary Heisman candidate last week, after hearing he would be out indefinitely with a knee injury.

Next: 10. Paxton Lynch