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College Football: Top 5 RBs most likely to win 2017 Heisman Trophy

By Andrew Miller

PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 02: Running back Saquon Barkley #26 of the Penn State Nittany Lions celebrates with tight end Mike Gesicki #88 after making a 7-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter against the USC Trojans during the 2017 Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 2, 2017 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 02: Running back Saquon Barkley #26 of the Penn State Nittany Lions celebrates with tight end Mike Gesicki #88 after making a 7-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter against the USC Trojans during the 2017 Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 2, 2017 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /
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College football’s running backs generally don’t have the same luck in the Heisman Trophy race as quarterbacks but there’s still a few great options.

The Heisman Trophy has been dominated by quarterbacks of late. The only running backs that have won the award in the last decade are Alabama rushers Derrick Henry and Mark Ingram. Current Alabama running back Bo Scarbrough has the best chance at winning the Heisman this year but there looks to be better options as well.

Dark horses for the award are hard to figure out because of the pure amount of difficulty that comes with winning the Heisman as a running back on a mediocre team. Even LSU’s Leonard Fournette was not able to ever claim the award because the Tiger offense did not have the efficiency around him to get the running room needed — LSU also didn’t really ever reach expectations during Fournette’s career.

That type of thing could change for LSU with former offensive coordinator Cam Cameron gone and first-year coordinator Matt Canada ready to take charge. Moreover, playing in a Power Five conference is almost always required for not only running backs to be considered, but all positions in general.

The first running backs that are normally looked at for preseason odds for the Heisman Trophy come from National Championship contenders. Being a part of a team like Alabama, Ohio State, Florida State, Oklahoma, USC, etc., in 2017 gives a big edge. Not only does it always put those teams’ running backs in the spotlight but they also have more running room on a consistent basis.

Before we get on to the list, these are some of the honorable mentions. Stanford’s Bryce Love can get a real dark horse contender if the Cardinals can get back to the top of the Pac-12. Georgia’s Nick Chubb is among the early Heisman favorites but has a lot of competition from Sony Michel for touches. And Florida State’s freshman rusher Cam Akers is an appealing option. It’s just too hard to consider a freshman running back a Heisman favorite already.

Who are the top five favorites at running back for 2017?

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