High five! Week 1 gave us five straight days of college football to kick off the season. And just like the results on the field, our opening Heisman voting was all over the map. Nineteen different players picked up at least one vote. Quarterbacks are back on top of the list. Go ahead and flip us off if you want, but you still won’t find anyone from Tuscaloosa or Austin on our list this week. The Last Word on College Football braintrust has spoken. Let’s get to our Week 1 Heisman list. We’ve also charted which stocks are on the rise and which are slipping.
Week 1 Heisman Poll: Talkin’ Season Pays Off
Honorable Mention: Thomas Castellanos, QB, Florida State Seminoles
If you’re gonna take a swing at the king, you better not miss. Thomas Castellanos was not shy in the offseason. He was bold and proclaimed that Nick Saban was no longer there to save Alabama. He said he was not being hateful, but was instead showing confidence in his new teammates. Florida State is coming off a brutal 2024 that saw them go from 13-1 in 2023 to 2-10. We were all thinking the same thing: this is not a great look. The Seminoles are about to get smashed. What happened? We found out that Castellanos may have had a point. Florida State knocked off Alabama on Saturday afternoon. Castellanos was not a superstar on Saturday; his numbers were pretty pedestrian. He completed 9 of 14 passes for 152 yards and added 78 rushing yards and a touchdown on 16 carries. But it is his words that earn him his Honorable Mention this week.
#5 Haynes King, QB Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (NR)
We had a tie for fifth place this week. They go to two quarterbacks who will carry their teams with their arms and legs. Haynes King seems like he has been in school for 10 years, ok, it’s only year six. King has found his home at the Technical College on North Avenue. He has a chip on his shoulder and embodies the toughness that Brent Key has worked to instill in the Yellowjacket program. King is a big reason why Georgia Tech is a dark horse to play spoiler in the ACC this year. They are a pain, just ask Georgia. King accounted for 299 yards and four total touchdowns Friday, leading Georgia Tech to a 27–20 win in Boulder. He finished with 156 rushing yards, putting an exclamation on the night with his 45-yard game-winning score in the final minute. He also added 143 passing yards.
#5 LaNorris Sellers, QB South Carolina Gamecocks (NR)
King shared the #5 spot with another super dual-threat quarterback, LaNorris Sellers. Sellers is the pride of Florence, South Carolina, and put the Gamecocks on his back in 2024 to lead them to a 9-3 record. His success as a true freshman and his appearance on Netflix during the offseason have placed higher expectations on Sellers and the Gamecocks. South Carolina has a lot of holes to fill on the line, at receiver, and in the backfield. Sellers led the Gamecocks to a win against Virginia Tech on Sunday. It wasn’t always pretty, but it showed that South Carolina will have to rely heavily on their young signal caller for success. The stat line wasn’t eye-popping. Sellers completed 12 of 19 passes for 209 yards and a touchdown, and rushed for 24 yards and a touchdown. But his opening drive touchdown run, throwing a defender off his back to pick up a first down late in the game, and his 64-yard bomb to Nick Harbor show why Sellers landed on our list.
#4 John Mateer, QB Oklahoma Sooners (NR)
John Mateer and Oklahoma got plenty of preseason love. Mateer followed offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle from The Palouse to Norman this offseason. Sooners fans are waiting to see if Mateer can transfer his 2-Pac magic into the SEC. Mateer and the Sooners took care of business on Saturday night, dismissing Illinois State. The test will come this Saturday when the Michigan Wolverines come to Norman in one of the top games of the weekend. This is a statement game for Mateer, Oklahoma, and the SEC. The game will reveal whether Mateer and the Sooners are ready to return to the elite of college football or simply settle in as the new “Nebraska of the SEC.” The SEC failed to make a statement in Week 1. Sure, LSU knocked off Clemson. But Texas and Alabama both had poor showings on the road. A win against Michigan can help start to answer many of those questions.
#3 Cade Klubnik, QB Clemson Tigers (⬇️ 1)
Our Week 0 leader took a small tumble in our Week 1 poll. Cade Klubnik and Clemson fell to LSU at home on Saturday night. Klubnik played well, but even his head coach agreed it wasn’t good enough. “Gotta be better. Gotta be better,” Dabo Swinney said. “He did some good things, competed his tail off, but did not play as well as he’s capable of.” Klubnik completed 19 of 38 passes for 230 yards with one interception. The loss, though, showed that Klubnik may have to be the key for the Tigers to have success in 2025. Clemson had an anemic performance on the ground, finishing the game with only 31 yards rushing. One game will not define the season for Klubnik or the Tigers. They will be favored to repeat as champions in the ACC, even with Miami and Florida State both looking impressive in their Week 1 wins.
#2 Jeremiah Smith, WR The Ohio State University Buckeyes (NC)
Jeremiah Smith is not going to win the Heisman if he has to go up against the Texas Longhorns every week. Last year in the Cotton Bowl, Texas held Smith to just one catch for three yards. On Saturday, it was more of the same. He dropped two early passes and finished the game with just six catches for a measly 43 receiving yards. Well, Smith and Ohio State will not be playing Texas every week. Smith is one of the most talented players and receivers in college football. No doubt he will not be able to put up some eye-popping numbers over the next couple of weeks as the Buckeyes host Grambling State and the Ohio Bobcats.
#1 Garrett Nussmeier, QB LSU Tigers ( ⬆️ 3)
Garrett Nussmeier climbs to the top of our Week 1 Heisman Poll. Nuss and the Tigers snapped a 0-5 opening-game skid by taking down Clemson in Death Valley. Nussmeier showed poise and patience, leading LSU to a strong second-half performance. He finished 28-for-38 for 230 passing yards and the game-winning touchdown. Nussmeier was aided by a stout LSU defense and a complementary running game. With questions surrounding the traditional favorites in Tuscaloosa and Austin, Nuss and LSU are in a prime position to make a run for the Hesimasn, in the SEC, and CFB in 2025.
Main Photo: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
