playBill ConnellySep 15, 2026, 07:00 AM ETCloseBill Connelly is a writer for ESPN. He covers college football, soccer and tennis. He has been at ESPN since 2019.Multiple AuthorsOpen Extended ReactionsYour first impression matters only until your second one. After a brilliant season at North Texas and a much-hyped transfer, Oklahoma State’s Drew Mestemaker began life in Stillwater with an absolute dud.
Playing against the Tulsa team that ended Mike Gundy’s tenure a year earlier, Mestemaker was harassed constantly and unable to find lanes for scrambling. He was mostly relegated to checkdowns and averaged just 4.5 yards per dropback with more interceptions (two) and sacks (two) than touchdowns (one). The Cowboys lost 24-10, and the bloom immediately came off the rose.Seven days later, he and the Cowboys beat a top-10 team. Mestemaker ripped off a 75-yard run on OSU’s first offensive snap and overcame a pair of tipped interceptions — one that was returned for a score, the other to the OSU 1 — by simply continuing to smash the big-play button.
He completed passes of 52, 39, 34, 33 and 24 yards, and with the game in the balance he took off and windmilled his way into the end zone for the winning score.play0:46Drew Mestemaker goes airborne for wild Oklahoma State TDIt has been almost four years since Oregon lost to a team that didn’t go on to reach the national title game. Congrats in advance to the Pokes on their CFP run. And congrats to Mestemaker for winning Week 2’s Heisman of the Week.Heisman is running its Heisman Hopefuls Fan Vote all season, with a platform that provides statistics, EA Sports ratings and other information. In that vein, I am once again awarding the Heisman every week of the season and doling out weekly points, F1-style (in this case, 10 points for first place, nine for second, and so on).
After Malachi Toney’s win in Week 1, Mestemaker gets the nod this time.This was the most difficult week I can remember for sussing out the nation’s best performances. There are certain defaults I lean on — if you produce 200 yards from scrimmage, or throw for 400-plus yards, or combine 200-plus passing yards with 100-plus rushing yards, or return multiple kicks for touchdowns, or make four or more havoc plays (tackles for loss, forced fumbles, passes defended), you’re honorable mention at worst. But adding up all the automatics would have produced a list of about 40 players. No one wants to read that.
So my apologies to South Carolina’s Vicari Swain and James Madison’s Michael Scott (two punt return TDs each), Virginia Tech’s Mylachi Williams (4.5 havoc plays), Memphis’ Hunter Tipton (229 receiving yards), Colorado State’s Hauss Hejny and Jacksonville State’s Caden Creel (each with 200-plus and 100-plus), and Tulane’s Jaylin Lucas (214 rushing yards). You’d have all made it in a normal week.This week’s Heisman winner: Drew Mestemaker1. Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma StateStats: 26-for-43 passing for 317 yards, two TDs and two INTs, plus 109 non-sack rushing yards and a TD against OregonWe grew accustomed to seeing video game passing numbers from Mestemaker last season, but the rushing was new. As a first-time starter at North Texas, he threw for 608 yards against Charlotte and 469 against Rice on his way to a 4,379-yard, 34-TD campaign.
But he topped 50 non-sack rushing yards only once and enjoyed only one run over 20 yards. Oregon’s defense could not have been prepared for what OSU threw at it Saturday, and the result was one of the sport’s biggest and most unique stunners — no school carrying a losing streak of double-digit games had ever ended said streak against a top-10 team — in quite a while.play1:29Oklahoma State stuns No. 6 Oregon 39-31The rest of the top 102. Devon Dampier, UtahStats: 18-for-24 passing for 261 yards, two TDs and one INT, plus 59 non-sack rushing yards and two TDs against ArkansasBack in 2012, at the peak of their “We’ll try absolutely anything on offense” run, Todd Berry’s Louisiana-Monroe trotted out a two-quarterback look — one righty, one lefty — in a wild track meet against Baylor. It was glorious, and since I’m talking about it 14 years later, it evidently made quite an impression.Well, here’s how Utah began its decimation of Arkansas on Saturday night:Utah cookin’ up in the playbook 🔥Ficklin with a 36yd pass to Parker !!📺 ESPN pic.twitter.com/lgj9HJ6l4i— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) September 13, 2026 That’s a double pass, from quarterback Devon Dampier to quarterback Byrd Ficklin to running back Wayshawn Parker.
At another point, Ficklin took a handoff from Dampier before making an option pitch … to Dampier. Utah got funky, and I’m here for it. But even while handing some passing and rushing yards to Ficklin, Dampier still put together a stunning set of single-game stats as the Utes crushed the Razorbacks.3. Jeremiah Smith, Ohio StateStats: eight catches for 164 yards and a touchdown against TexasFor three-quarters of the Ohio State-Texas game, Smith looked as if he would be a no-brainer for Heisman of the Week.
He ripped through the Texas defense, man-against-boys style, and he made a mockery of Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp’s decision to constantly single cover him. But Smith and the Buckeyes couldn’t stick the landing: He went without a catch for the game’s final 24 minutes, and OSU blew a 23-3 lead. So he has to settle for third.4. Nate Sheppard, DukeStats: 24 carries for 147 yards and a touchdown, plus 41 receiving yards and two TDs against IllinoisSheppard produced 1,418 yards from scrimmage as a freshman during Duke’s surprising ACC title run, so it was easy to expect a fun season from him in 2026.
But he’s currently on pace for 2,800 yards from scrimmage after a second straight huge game to start 2026. He scored Duke’s last three touchdowns in a 31-27 upset of Illinois, and he’s one of two players to make this top 10 in both weeks thus far.5. Jesse Legree, Oregon StateStats: eight catches for 240 yards and two TDs against Texas TechLast year, Legree was scoring six touchdowns with four interceptions as a two-way contributor for St. Frances Academy in Baltimore.
His only listed power conference offer came from Pittsburgh, but he chose to go west and play for JaMarcus Shepard’s Oregon State. And in his second college game, he was almost single-handedly responsible for an upset of a CFP contender.6. Kamario Taylor, Mississippi StateStats: 16-for-22 passing for 227 yards and four TDs, plus 91 non-sack rushing yards against MinnesotaAlong with Sheppard, Taylor makes his second appearance on this list after MSU’s stunning road domination of Minnesota. His Bulldogs scored touchdowns on all four of their first-half possessions, and only some second-half conservatism prevented him from a potential 300-100 day.7.
Arch Manning, TexasStats: 23-for-37 passing for 195 yards, one TD and one INT, plus 40 non-sack rushing yards and a 20-point comeback against Ohio StateThe stats alone obviously don’t tell the story in this one. Manning and the Longhorns’ offense stunk for most of three quarters but pulled off a perfect trio of late touchdown drives to seize a shocking comeback win. Manning’s superpower is his ridiculous adaptability, and with wideouts Ryan Wingo and Cam Coleman both battling through frustrating days, Manning led the comeback by going through Emmett Mosley V and tight ends.8. Caden Veltkamp, Florida AtlanticStats: 24-for-31 passing for 391 yards and four TDs against NavyFAU’s tempo is going to give Veltkamp a chance to post some huge numbers this season, and his Owls got off to a great start as American Conference dark horses with a prolific win over what should be a rock-solid Navy team.9.
CJ Carr, Notre DameStats: 16-for-20 passing for 253 yards and four touchdowns against RicePlaying for a marquee program will earn Carr plenty of credibility in the Heisman race, but a weak schedule could hold him back. He was nearly perfect against Rice, but the game got out of ha
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