Heisman Trophy Watch 2017: Field normalizing after Week 8

The freshman sensation at Wisconsin has been trampling over opposing defenses all season long. This week against Maryland, he joined an elite group of true freshman as he topped the 1000-yard rushing mark in just seven games. In terms of pure rushing, the youngster is outpacing the per-game averages of past Heisman winners.

Where Taylor could fall short, though, is the fact that he is almost exclusively a runner. He has had a catch in each of his past two outings, but Taylor did not haul in a single pass in any of his first five college games. He also does not participate on special teams, which would otherwise bolster his numbers.

Even then, Taylor is the top running back in the Big Ten in terms of rushing yards and touchdowns from scrimmage. The Badger back is outpacing even Penn State’s Saquon Barkley in that regard. If he continues the prolific scoring pace, Taylor will continue to bolster his claims on the Heisman.

Of course, going against Taylor is the fact that no true freshman has ever taken home the award. We have seen redshirt freshmen break that artificial barrier, but a first-year player might have more difficulty convincing Heisman voters to hand over the stiffarm trophy.

Ultimately, Taylor is likely going to have to wait until 2018 or 2019 to truly contend, though he has more than earned his spot among the top five vote-getters at this point of the year.