Heisman Trophy names Daniels, Harrison Jr., Nix as finalists

LSU's Jayden Daniels, Oregon's Bo Nix and Washington's Michael Penix Jr., transfer quarterbacks who all played at least five college seasons, and Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. were announced as finalists of the Heisman Trophy Monday night.

The Heisman has been awarded to the nation's most outstanding college football player since 1935. This year's winner will be announced Saturday in New York. The top four vote-getters, determined by more than 870 voters, including members of the media and former Heisman winners, are selected as finalists.

With Nix and Penix, the Pac-12 has two Heisman finalists for the first time since 2010, when Stanford's Andrew Luck was runner-up to Auburn's Cam Newton and Oregon running back LaMichael James finished third in voting .

The Pac-12 is in its final season with its current members before 10 schools, including Oregon and Washington, leave for the Big Ten.

Daniels is trying to become the third LSU player to win the Heisman and the first since Joe Burrow in 2019 – another transfer quarterback in his second season in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Daniels had one of the most prolific seasons in Southeast Conference history for the 13th-ranked Tigers (9-3), his second at LSU and his fifth overall after starting his career at Arizona State, passing for 3,812 yards and 40 touchdowns and rushing for 1,134 yards and 10 TDs.

While Daniels moved from the Pac-12 to the SEC and found stardom, Nix took the opposite route. After three years at Auburn, the former five-star recruit transferred to Oregon in 2022 and became one of the best players in the country, leading the eighth-ranked Ducks (11-2) to the Pac title game -12.

Nix completed 77.2% of his passes, which is slightly behind the major college football record, and threw for 4,145 yards and 40 touchdowns.

Harrison, the Buckeyes' star, has 67 catches for 1,211 yards and 15 touchdowns, and his trip to New York makes No. 7 Ohio State (11-1) a Heisman finalist in five of the last six seasons. His overall numbers lagged behind those of some of the nation's other star receivers, but he was the most consistent threat to a Buckeyes offense that was breaking in a new starting quarterback and suffering injuries to its role players. support all season long.

Penix is ​​in his sixth college season after four injury-filled years at Indiana. He transferred to Washington in 2022 to play for coach Kalen DeBoer, his former offensive coordinator at Indiana, and guided the second-ranked Huskies to 23 wins, a Pac-12 title and their second appearance in the football playoffs. college with 4,218 yards and 33 touchdowns. This year.

The Huskies face Texas in the CFP semifinals, with the winner facing either Michigan or Alabama in the final.