Heisman Favorites 2026: The Preseason Board

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The 2026 Heisman race opens with a clear preseason favorite – Notre Dame quarterback CJ Carr – and a chase pack stacked with the sport’s biggest names: Oregon’s Dante Moore, who turned down a projected top-five draft slot to return; Ohio State’s Julian Sayin, quarterbacking the preseason No. 1; and Arch Manning, finally armed with a roster to match the surname.

The standard caveat applies double for the Heisman: preseason favorites have a rough recent record. Fernando Mendoza wasn’t on top of anyone’s August board last year – then Indiana went 16-0 and he collected the trophy. The award follows the season, not the summer.

Here’s the full preseason board, the tier behind the favorites, and the factors that actually decide it by December.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL 2026
Heisman Favorites 2026: The Preseason Board
Carr, Moore, Sayin, Manning – and how the race gets won
THE FAVORITE
CJ Carr
Notre Dame QB – 24 TD, 6 INT in year one
THE FIELD
QB-heavy
Nine of the top ten contenders play quarterback
LAST YEAR
Fernando Mendoza
Indiana QB won it during the 16-0 run
CEREMONY
December
Finalists invited to New York
The 2026 preseason Heisman board
The names to know before kickoff
Player The case
CJ Carr, QB, Notre Dame The consensus preseason favorite – 2,741 yards, 24 TD, 6 INT as a first-year starter, now the first returning starting QB of the Marcus Freeman era on a No. 4 team built for a run
Dante Moore, QB, Oregon Passed up a projected top-five draft slot to return; led the nation in touchdown passes of 20+ yards for a No. 2-ranked team
Julian Sayin, QB, Ohio State Quarterback of the preseason No. 1 – with Jeremiah Smith catching his passes, Columbus could send two finalists to New York
Arch Manning, QB, Texas The sport’s biggest name finally has a loaded supporting cast – and the SEC stage all season
Josh Hoover, QB, Indiana The TCU transfer replacing the reigning winner on the reigning champs – the highest-pressure QB job in America
The next tier Gunner Stockton (Georgia), Darian Mensah (Miami), Marcel Reed (Texas A&M), Bryce Underwood (Michigan) – each one hot September from the top five
How the race actually gets decided
What history says about winning it
Factor Why it matters
Team success Winners almost always come from playoff-bound teams – the trophy follows the title race
The signature month November games against ranked opponents are where Heismans are won and lost – schedules matter as much as talent
The moment Every winner has one indelible national-TV performance voters replay in December
Preseason favorites beware Mendoza wasn’t the preseason favorite last year; the award routinely goes to someone off the August board
HEISMAN NOTES
The Wright wildcard
If courts and conferences ever clear NFL returnees to play, college football’s eligibility fight could eventually put pro-seasoned players in this conversation – a storyline to file away.
Receivers can win it
Travis Hunter’s 2024 win broke the QB monopoly – Jeremiah Smith is this year’s best non-QB bet.
Watch the openers
Week 1’s marquee games – Clemson-LSU, ND-Wisconsin at Lambeau – are the first real audition tapes.

The Favorite: Carr, and the Notre Dame Setup

Carr’s case is efficiency plus opportunity: a 24-to-6 touchdown-to-interception debut season, continuity as the first returning starter of the Freeman era, and a No. 4 team – ranked per the preseason AP poll – motivated by last year’s playoff snub. His audition starts immediately at the Lambeau opener, a standalone national Sunday window.

The Chasers: Moore, Sayin, Manning, Hoover

Moore’s return to Oregon over the draft is the offseason’s boldest Heisman bet on himself. Sayin operates the sport’s most talented offense – with teammate Jeremiah Smith a legitimate threat to become the second non-QB winner in three years. Manning has the name, the stage and finally the roster. And Hoover inherits the most fascinating job in the sport: replacing the reigning winner on the reigning champion.

How It Actually Gets Won

Three things decide every race: a team in the playoff contention, a defining November performance, and a signature moment voters can replay. That’s why the schedule is part of the handicap – and why the smart money holds something back for a name nobody’s discussing in August, which is exactly what last year’s winner was.

Quick Answers

Who is the Heisman favorite for 2026?

Notre Dame QB CJ Carr enters the season as the consensus preseason favorite, with Oregon’s Dante Moore and Ohio State’s Julian Sayin closest behind.

Can a non-quarterback win?

Yes – Travis Hunter did in 2024, and Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith is this year’s strongest non-QB candidate.

When is the Heisman awarded?

Mid-December in New York, after conference championship weekend – with finalists announced days before.

The Bottom Line

The 2026 preseason Heisman board: Carr the favorite, Moore-Sayin-Manning the chase pack, Hoover the pressure case, and Jeremiah Smith the field’s best non-QB. History’s reminder: last year’s winner wasn’t on the August list at all. This page refreshes as the race takes shape.