We have two more segments to cover in the 2015 college football preview. Tomorrow just before kickoff, you will be able to read, if you care, my predictions about the 2015 college football playoff. I will probably be very wrong and you are more than welcome to tell me that. Before we get into who I believe will be crowned champions in January, let’s talk about the guys who can help get their teams there.

The Heisman Trophy has been awarded to a quarterback in 13 of the last 15 seasons, including last year’s winner Marcus Mariota of Oregon. However, the other positions always seem to be in the mix. We have recently seen running backs, wide receivers and even defensive players in the final voting. We will try to cover all of those while looking at favorites, darkhorses and nobodies for the Heisman.

Quarterbacks

FAVORITE: At the quarterback position, I have the TCU quarterback Trevone Boykin as the favorite. He has shown great improvement through his career and returns most of his offensive pieces, including receivers Josh Doctson and Kolby Listenbee. His ability as a runner to go along with his arm accuracy makes him the biggest threat in the country. He even has a receiving touchdown:

DARKHORSE: My top darkhorse is Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson. If Watson was a certainty to stay healthy in 2015, he may be my Heisman frontrunner. The rising sophomore finished his first season completing 68 percent of his passes with 14 touchdowns and just two interceptions. He also added five rushing touchdowns, including one during his first significant role when he was put in at Tallahassee. Watson helped get the Tigers to overtime but couldn’t pull out the win. He got his first start in the week after against North Carolina and threw for 435 yards and six touchdowns on 27 for 36 passing. However, he only got to play in eight games while only starting in three of them. His health will be key to Clemson’s success but Watson could take the Tigers into the playoff.

NOBODY: The name may be known by many but it will only be because he was named to the preseason Davey O’Brien watch list. Paxton Lynch is entering his third season as the starter in Memphis. The rising junior has shown major improvement and could put himself in the talks with the best at the end of the season. From his freshman to sophomore season, Lynch added four points to his completion percentage and threw for 1,000 more yards, 13 more touchdowns and one less interception. The 6’7″ quarterback added 13 more touchdowns on the ground in 2014. He doesn’t have the weapons that many of the other great quarterbacks have but his skill cannot be overlooked. He may even get a chance at a “Heisman moment” when the Tigers host Ole Miss on October 17th.

Running Backs

FAVORITE: There are some great sophomore running backs in the SEC but I give the edge to Ohio State junior Ezekiel Elliot. His performance over the final three games of the season will have people talking for years to come. Elliot finished the season with 2,098 yards from scrimmage last year with 18 touchdowns. His performance against some top defenses in the biggest games of the year has put him on the top of many award lists. If the Buckeyes see even more improvement from Elliot in 2015, he will be an easy pick for the Heisman.

DARKHORSE: James Conner of Pittsburgh may be the most underrated running back in the country. Don’t believe me? Watch this.

Conner finished last season with 1,765 yards and 26 touchdowns on the ground. Those are the best rushing stats in Pittsburgh since Tony Dorsett was there. Conner is just a junior and needs 4,000 yards to catch Dorsett on the school’s all-time rushing record but Conner is fully capable of it. Dorsett won the 1976 Heisman with 2,150 yards and 22 touchdowns. That is not out of the realm of possibilities for Conner in 2015. He may not getting the same number of carries as Dorsett did but Conner’s average yards per carry is nearly a full yard higher than Dorsett’s after his sophomore season. Luckily for Conner, he doesn’t need to match the great Tony Dorsett to win the Heisman. If he comes anywhere close though, he should be considered.

NOBODY: It is hard to call somebody a nobody in a Power 5 conference but I have yet to see this guy on any Heisman lists so it counts. Michigan State freshman L.J. Scott comes into a great offense and could earn a starting spot by week two. He is listed as the number three back for the Spartans entering this weekend but don’t expect that to last long. He is behind two second year players and should see ample playing time against Western Michigan on Friday. Scott is 6’3″, 233 pounds and has been compared to Le’Veon Bell in both his physical appearance and running style. Scott could be this year’s Nick Chubb once he gets the starting job.

Wide Receivers

FAVORITE: It is hard to see any certainty on what will happen with Duke Williams this season but for now, he is still my favorite receiver in the country. We saw Williams make some crazy catches last season but only finished with 45 receptions for 730 yards and five touchdowns. This season, Auburn looks like they will be passing the ball more and Williams will be the number one target for the Tigers. It doesn’t hurt that he is Tiger quarterback Jeremy Johnson’s roommate. Williams will get the looks and see major production this season. (if he gets on the field)

DARKHORSE: Malachi Dupre is a huge play maker down in Baton Rouge. The LSU receiver caught just 14 catches last season but averaged 22.4 yards per reception while five of them went for touchdowns. This season, he looks to be the go-to guy in LSU’s (barely existent) passing game. If Les Miles can get consistent play from quarterback Brandon Harris, Dupre could find his way into Heisman talks.

NOBODY: Devonte Boyd played in all 13 games as a freshman for UNLV last season, catching 65 passes for 980 yards and four touchdowns. The Rebels had one of the worst offenses in the country in 2014 but Boyd was a huge bright spot in the 2-11 season. Quarterback Blake Decker comes back for his second season where he should show major improvement. If they 18 passes that were intercepted last season all go to Boyd, he could put up ridiculous numbers to help an offense in need.

Defense

FAVORITE, DARKHORSE, EVERYBODY: There are a lot of good defensive players but only one stands out as a guy that can win the Heisman to me. Arizona’s junior linebacker Scooby Wright finished ninth in the voting last season, receiving four second-place votes and 21 total points. He finished 2014 with 163 total tackles including 31.0 for a loss and 16.0 sacks. He also gave us one of the best plays of the entire season.

That’s just stupid. And to think Wright is just now going into his junior year is even more ridiculous. This kid is phenomenal and will be in the Heisman talks all season.

I think that UCLA linebacker Myles Jack and Ohio State defensive end Joey Bosa are the next two in line but if a defensive player is going to win the trophy this season, it will be Wright.

Final Heisman standings

  1. Trevone Boykin, TCU, QB
  2. Ezekiel Elliot, Ohio State, RB
  3. Nick Chubb, Georgia, RB
  4. Jeremy Johnson, Auburn, QB
  5. James Conner, Pittsburgh, RB
  6. Deshaun Watson, Clemson, QB
  7. Scooby Wright III, Arizona, LB
  8. Corey Clement, Wisconsin, RB
  9. J.T. Barrett, Ohio State, QB
  10. Cody Kessler, USC, QB

Caleb Turrentine is a contributor and a show host at WVUA-FM. Follow him on Twitter, @CalebTurrentine.