August is finally here. That seemingly endless wait until toe meets leather is drawing near. Of course, there is the matter of the Heisman Trophy to discuss. Is it too early to discuss the Heisman Trophy? Quite possibly. But, in the season of predictions, it’s never too early to discuss our way too early 2018 Heisman rankings.

Could this be the year of the running back? Although it may be true that a quarterback has won the award in eight of the last 10 seasons, this year is wide open. Yes, quarterbacks still dominate our list. Now, let’s get started with our initial Heisman poll for 2018.

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Note: Tiebreakers were settled by alphabetical order of the players last name.

Ranking	Player	Position	Team	Points
1	Bryce Love	RB		69
2	Jonathan Taylor	RB		45
3	Will Grier	QB		32
4	Khalil Tate	QB		27
5	Drew Lock	QB		10
6	Trace McSorley	QB		10
7	Tua Tagovailoa	QB		9
8	Jake Fromm	QB		7
9	J.K. Dobbins	RB		3
10	Damien Harris	RB		3
11	Justin Herbert	QB		3
12	Jake Browning	QB		1
13	Shea Patterson	QB		1
14	Deebo Samuel	WR		1
15	Kyle Shurmur	QB		1
16	Devin Singletary	RB		1
17	Jarett Stidham	QB		1
18	D’Andre Swift	RB		1

Top Five Candidates

1. Bryce Love

RB | Stanford                                                           Next Game: 8/31 vs San Diego State

Love shocked everyone by coming back to Stanford in 2018. With that, he is the odds-on favorite to win the 2018 Heisman Trophy. Given the fact that he played the second half of 2017 on a bad ankle, his 2,118 rushing yards is extremely impressive. He will get his Heisman campaign started against San Diego State.

2. Jonathan Taylor

RB | Wisconsin                                                      Next Game: 8/31 vs Western Kentucky

Taylor broke Adrian Peterson’s freshman rushing record a year ago with 1,977 yards. There is no reason to think that production will fall off with one of the best offensive lines in College Football. Wisconsin should once again be on the best team in the country this year. He should rack up yards in bunches against the Hilltoppers in week one.

3. Will Grier

QB | West Virginia                                                      Next Game: 9/1 vs Tennessee

Grier is the highest-ranked quarterback in our first Heisman rankings. He had a great year last season despite a late injury. West Virginia is a trendy pick to challenge Oklahoma in the Big 12 this season. A big part of that is because of Grier. He will have the highest profile game of the top five candidates in week one as he faces Tennesee in the opener.

4. Khalil Tate

QB | Arizona                                                      Next Game: 9/1 vs BYU

5. Drew Lock

QB | Missouri                                                      Next Game: 9/1 vs UT-Martin

Lock had an incredible 2017 with 44 touchdown passes. However, he did a lot of his damage against sub-par competition. Against Missouri State, Idaho, Connecticut, and Arkansas Lock threw 23 touchdowns and four interceptions. However, he only had 21 combined scores against the remaining eight teams on the schedule. For Lock to continue to be a Heisman contender in 2018, he will need to put up consistent numbers against all competition.