LSU's Jayden Daniels is the favorite to win Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy finalists, from left, LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels, Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., Oregon quarterback Bo Nix and Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. pose for a photo with the Heisman Trophy, Friday, Dec. 8, 2023, in New York. The Heisman Trophy will be announced Saturday, Dec. 9. Credit: AP/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez
Jayden Daniels stood behind the prize at the front of the ballroom and smiled during his photo op at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square. The LSU quarterback usually is anything but stationary, one big reason why he arrived in Manhattan favored to claim that prize — the Heisman Trophy.
“It would just be an honor and a blessing,” Daniels said Friday about the prospect of winning it Saturday night at the Jazz at Lincoln Center ceremony site. “To be up here with these other finalists, to have a chance to win a prestigious award, I can’t ask for anything else.”
Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr., Oregon quarterback Bo Nix and Ohio State receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. posed with Daniels and the trophy, then also individually with it. Each of those other three finalists would love to hear his own name called, too.
But Daniels, who easily won the AP Player of the Year vote over runner-up Penix, has been a dynamic dual threat, putting up numbers never seen before at this level of college football.
Take the Florida game on Nov. 11. LSU won, 52-35, and their 6-4 leader had 606 yards of total offense. He became the first FBS quarterback to throw for at least 350 yards and rush for at least 200 in a game.
The senior went 17-for-26 passing for 372 yards and three touchdowns and ran 12 times for 234 yards, including an 85-yard TD and a 51-yard score.
“Probably after the Florida game, that was when I was like, I have a real shot of being a finalist,” Daniels said.
Daniels is the only FBS QB to throw for at least 12,000 career yards and rush for at least 3,000. For him, that includes three seasons at Arizona State and two at LSU.
His passing numbers for the 9-3 Tigers include 3,812 yards with 40 touchdowns and four interceptions. The fast, elusive Daniels also has run for 1,134 yards and 10 TDs. He led the nation with 4,946 yards of total offense.
“Just his ability to extend plays really separates him,” Harrison said.
Penix leads the nation with 4,218 passing yards. The lefty led Washington to a 13-0 record and a spot in the College Football Playoff.
“No matter what happens [Saturday night], I’m just super- blessed and just super-excited for the opportunity to even be named in the finalists,” Penix said.
Nix lost twice to Penix’s Huskies, including in the Pac-12 title game. But the Oregon QB has thrown for 4,145 yards with 40 TDs and three INTs. He owns a 77.2 completion percentage.
“It would mean a lot [to win it],” Nix said, “but it’s definitely not going to make or break a career. There are a lot of great ones who’ve won it, a lot of great ones who haven’t.”
Harrison knows quarterbacks often win it. But the 6-4 son of Hall of Fame Colts receiver Marvin Harrison Sr. has excelled with 67 catches for 1,211 yards and 14 touchdowns.
“Complete,” Harrison said, describing himself. “There’s nothing I don’t think I can’t do on the football field.”
