College Football

2023 college football awards predictions: Who will win Heisman, other top honors?

Updated Dec. 7, 2023 9:19 p.m. ET

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Rob Rang

NFL Draft Analyst

The bowl games don't begin until Dec. 16, but college football enthusiasts eager to continue their passionate debates will have plenty of opportunity to do so this weekend when the sport reveals a host of its annual awards winners on Friday, followed by the Heisman Trophy ceremony on Saturday.

[Complete list of Heisman Trophy winners]

As the most prestigious individual award in sports, the Heisman Trophy deserves its showcase, but Friday night's festivities also promise to be entertaining. 

Befitting a season in which there were plenty of close calls and tight races, the competitions in 2023 for top quarterback, running back, wide receiver, lineman, and more are much more competitive than most years, all but begging for predictions.

I'm here to oblige.

Here are my picks for who will win some of the major awards this weekend, with some notes on what I see as a scout in the top prospects.

Let's take a look …

HEISMAN TROPHY

Finalists: QB Jayden Daniels, LSU; WR Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State; QB Michael Penix Jr., Washington; QB Bo Nix, Oregon

Summary: With its ceremony not until Saturday night, the Heisman Trophy will be the last of the awards given, but there is no sense in burying the lede, which is why it is placed here. Timing is everything, after all. And that especially applies this year. If the majority of the Heisman Trophy voters waited until the conclusion of the Pac-12 championship game to cast their vote, Penix might have the edge, as he outplayed Nix for the second time this season and punched the Huskies' ticket to the College Football Playoff. Of course, neither Harrison — who is the best NFL prospect among the finalists — nor Daniels played in a conference title game and that may hurt their chances if voters waited. But I have my doubts that will matter given how the dynamic dual-threat Daniels carved up the SEC with both his arm and legs, leading the country with 40 touchdown passes in just 12 games and rushing for 10 more. Penix might learn the same sad lesson Saturday night that the Florida State Seminoles learned last Sunday — at least to some, team wins matter less than individual highlights. 

Projected Winner: Jayden Daniels, LSU

Heisman Trophy Odds: Jayden Daniels, Michael Penix Jr., more

MAXWELL AWARD/WALTER CAMP PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Finalists: Jayden Daniels, LSU; Michael Penix Jr., Washington; Bo Nix, Oregon

Summary: To be clear, these are two different awards. But the winners have been the same in eight of the past 10 years, including last year with USC QB Caleb Williams. The only exception since 2013 came two years ago, when the Maxwell Trophy picked Alabama quarterback Bryce Young and the Walter Camp Award selected Michigan State running back Kenneth Walker III. These two awards have also closely matched the Heisman Trophy, choosing the same winner each year since 2018, when it selected Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa rather than Oklahoma's Kyler Murray. I'd like to think that at least one of the awards acknowledged the poise and downfield accuracy Penix demonstrated in guiding Washington to the playoff, but given the past uniformity of these awards, the smarter money is on Daniels winning a clean sweep.

Projected Winner: Daniels

DAVEY O'BRIEN AWARD (TOP QB)

Finalists: Jayden Daniels, LSU; Michael Penix Jr., Washington; Bo Nix, Oregon

Summary: It isn't often that the Davey O'Brien Award is different from the awards mentioned above, but last year was an exception with TCU's Max Duggan being acknowledged over Williams, suggesting that this committee does take team wins into account. As such, I think this could be where Penix — the nation's leader with 4,218 passing yards — gets his kudos. Even in a strong class of NFL-caliber quarterbacks, Penix's accuracy on intermediate and deep passes stands apart, a trait that an award specifically for this position may also value more than the others.

Projected Winner: Penix

DOAK WALKER AWARD (TOP RUNNING BACK)

Finalists: Ollie Gordon II, Oklahoma State; Omarion Hampton, North Carolina; Cody Schrader, Missouri

Summary: If there is one honor where statistics seem to matter with voters, it is the Doak Walker Award. Seven of the past 10 winners have eclipsed the 2,000-yard rushing mark, with most of them leading the country. As such, while former walk-on Shrader's improbable rise is inspirational, and Hampton did a great job of taking the pressure off star quarterback Drake Maye, the smart money is on Gordon. The burly 6-foot-1, 211-pound true sophomore currently leads the country with 1,614 rushing yards and is second in rushing touchdowns with 20 (Michigan's Blake Corum has 24), averaging 6.3 yards per attempt. 

Projected Winner: Gordon

FRED BILETNIKOFF AWARD (TOP WIDE RECEIVER)

Finalists: Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State; Malik Nabers, LSU; Rome Odunze, Washington

Summary: A strong argument could be made for any of these future first-round NFL draft picks. Nabers and Odunze were the prime beneficiaries of Heisman finalist quarterbacks, each catching more passes for more yards than the more celebrated Buckeyes' wideout. Harrison, though, is just different. With all the attention he received from defenses and the media, alike, this NFL legacy's ability to put the Buckeyes on his back and carry them — including in a prime-time showdown with Penn State — might have sealed this award for him a month ago. 

Projected Winner: Harrison

JOHN MACKEY AWARD (TOP TIGHT END)

Finalists: Brock Bowers, Georgia; Dallin Holker, Colorado State; Cade Stover, Ohio State

Summary: If not for a high ankle sprain that required surgery and took him off the field for three games, Bowers might have run away with this award. In reality, he still probably did, posting 56 grabs for 716 yards and six touchdowns over just 10 games — essentially the same production that Holker and Stover provided their clubs over full seasons. Bowers is the best receiving tight end at the college level I've seen in 23 years as a professional talent evaluator.

Projected Winner: Bowers 

OUTLAND TROPHY (TOP OFFENSIVE/DEFENSIVE LINEMAN)

Finalists: Joe Alt, Notre Dame; Cooper Beebe, Kansas State; T'Vondre Sweat, Texas

Summary: The Outland Trophy prides itself on recognizing the biggest, "baddest" lineman on the planet, and with all due respect to Beebe and Sweat, this year that man is Alt, a 6-foot-8, 322-pound behemoth with the shockingly light feet and balance that NFL scouts dream about in a left tackle. Alt is an underclassman, though a player of his dimensions and talent should never be described as a "junior." If he elects to enter the 2024 NFL draft as expected, he won't make it out of the Top 10.

Projected Winner: Alt

RIMINGTON TROPHY (TOP CENTER)

Finalists: Jackson Powers-Johnson, Oregon; Drake Nugent, Michigan; Sedrick Van Pran, Georgia

Summary: In a solid year for centers, Van Pran takes the (pan)cake on my board for this award, edging out the aptly-named Powers-Johnson and Nugent, who, if he wins Friday night, will give Michigan its second consecutive Rimington Award winner, joining Olu Oluwatimi (now a member of the Seattle Seahawks). Van Pran was already named the recipient of the SEC's Jacobs Blocking Trophy as the best blocker in the conference. The three-year starter and consensus All-American did not allow a single sack this season and was the catalyst behind many of Georgia's best runs all year.

Projected Winner: Van Pran

CHUCK BEDNARIK AWARD (DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR)

Finalists: Laiatu Latu, Edge, UCLA; Dallas Turner, Edge, Alabama; Payton Wilson, LB, North Carolina State

Summary: Seven consecutive winners of this award have gone on to become first-round NFL draft picks and three of them (Jonathan Allen, Minkah Fitzpatrick, and last year's winner Will Anderson, Jr.) played at Alabama. That would suggest that Turner has the edge, but a disappointing showing in the Crimson Tide's only loss of the season and sporadic play last week against Georgia could open it up to the highly instinctive and versatile Wilson or Latu, who currently leads the country with 22 tackles for loss, as well as all Power 5 defenders with 13 sacks. Latu has also already won the Lombardi Award for most outstanding lineman.

Projected Winner: Latu

JIM THORPE AWARD (TOP DEFENSIVE BACK)

Finalists: Cooper DeJean, Iowa; Malaki Starks, Georgia; Trey Taylor, Air Force

Summary: The Thorpe Award runs quite the opposite of most on this list, with several recent winners — including the past four in a row — falling outside of the NFL's first round. Last year's winner, for example, was TCU's Tre'Vius Hodges-Tomlinson, who wasn't selected until the sixth round by the Rams. As such, no one should be stunned if a nationally underrated player like the Air Force's Taylor wins Friday night. After all, he only allowed 19 catches all season long, according to Pro Football Focus, and has intercepted three passes. Georgia's Starks is a quality safety with a bright future, as well. The star of this trio and certainly my choice as the best DB on this list, however, is DeJean, a highly instinctive playmaker who only watched his interceptions this past season slip to two (after snaring five in 2022) because opponents wisely ignored his side of the field. At 6-foot-1 and 210 pounds, DeJean has the size, smarts and physicality to project to safety, cornerback or nickelback in the NFL, potentially disrupting the Thorpe Award's recent trend of non-first-round selections.

Projected Winner: DeJean

TED HENDRICKS AWARD (TOP DEFENSIVE END)

Finalists: Jonah Elliss, Utah; Jalen Green, James Madison; Laiatu Latu, UCLA

Summary: I projected Latu to win the Bednarik Award as the best overall defender in college football, and think he should be a shoo-in for this award (and the Pac-12's Morris Trophy), as well. As mentioned previously, Latu leads the country with 22 tackles for loss, and he registered 13 sacks, as well. What is especially impressive about his production is that the Pac-12 is loaded this year with quality offensive tackles. Best of all, Latu is an inspirational story, starring for the Bruins after sustaining a neck injury at Washington that led him to consider retiring from football.

Projected Winner: Latu

LOU GROZA AWARD (TOP KICKER)

Finalists: Graham Nicholson, Miami (Ohio); Jose Pizano, UNLV; Will Reichard, Alabama

Summary: All three candidates are worthy of winning this award with the trio combining for just seven misses out of 218 kicks all season, including both field goal attempts (77) and PATs (141). All had long kicks of 50-plus yards and starred for teams that qualified for the postseason, with Nicholson and Reichard playing for the MAC and SEC champs, respectively. Nicholson's lone field goal miss this season came during the third quarter of Miami's MAC title win over Toledo, and he atoned for that 45-yard miss to the left with a 40-yarder in the final stanza to give the Redhawks the go-ahead score.

Projected Winner: Nicholson

RAY GUY AWARD (TOP PUNTER)

Finalists: Matt Hayball, Vanderbilt; Alex Mastromanno, Florida State; Tory Taylor, Iowa

Summary: No team annually relies on its defense and special teams more than Iowa. That makes perfect sense with a punter like Taylor, who led the country with 4,119 punting yards in 2023 and ranked third in yards-per-attempt (47.9), showcasing the kind of booming leg drive that could earn him an NFL draft selection this spring. Hayball boasted the longest punt of the trio with a 71-yarder this year, while Mastromanno's ability to sky punts led to 35 of his kicks being downed with no return, including 27 inside the opponents' 20-yard line.

Projected Winner: Taylor

AWARDS THAT HAVE ALREADY BEEN ANNOUNCED

Broyles Award (Top assistant coach): Phil Parker, defensive coordinator, Iowa

Dick Butkus Award (Top linebacker): Payton Wilson, North Carolina State

Paul Hornung Award (Most versatile player): Travis Hunter (CB/WR), Colorado

Burlsworth Trophy (Most outstanding player who began as a walk-on): Cody Schrader, Missouri

Campbell Trophy (Best combination of academics, community service and performance): Bo Nix, Oregon

Nagurski Trophy (Best defensive player): Xavier Watts, Notre Dame

Lombardi Award (Best lineman): Laiatu Latu, UCLA

Rob Rang is an NFL Draft analyst for FOX Sports. He has been covering the NFL Draft for more than 20 years, with work at FOX, Sports Illustrated, CBSSports.com, USA Today, Yahoo, NFL.com and NFLDraftScout.com, among others. He also works as a scout with the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League. Follow him on Twitter @RobRang.

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Rob Rang