John Mateer could vault back to the forefront of the Heisman race in Week 7. If he plays, of course.
The Oklahoma quarterback is just two weeks removed from surgery on his right throwing hand after he suffered a broken bone in the team’s win over Auburn.
Advertisement
The initial estimation for Mateer’s post-surgery absence was approximately a month; a timeline that would have him missing Saturday’s game against arch-rival Texas. Oklahoma coach Brent Venables said he was unsure of Mateer’s status for the game on his coaches show Monday night.
“I don’t know when John Mateer will be back,” Venables said (via On3).
Tuesday morning, ESPN reported that it was “possible” Mateer could play on Saturday.
You can bet that Texas is preparing for Mateer to play — even if it may be a long shot. Oddsmakers clearly think Mateer is going to miss the game. Texas is a 2.5-point favorite despite being unranked after falling to 3-2 after a loss to Florida in Week 6.
Advertisement
[Yahoo Sports TV is here! Watch live shows and highlights 24/7]
Mateer is currently 30-1 to win the Heisman Trophy after he was the favorite in the immediate aftermath of the Auburn win. He’s missed a bye week and a game against Kent State in the meantime. Fourteen players currently have better odds than Mateer, including Arizona State QB Sam Leavitt and Notre Dame QB CJ Carr.
If Mateer does play on Saturday and Oklahoma gets the win, he’s going to be one of the Heisman favorites once again. Through four games, Mateer has passed for 1,215 yards and six TDs while also rushing for five more touchdowns and 190 yards. Running back Tory Blaylock only passed Mateer for the team’s rushing lead because he had 78 yards in that blowout win over Kent State.
But even if Mateer doesn’t play against Texas and returns in a week, there’s still a plausible path to the Heisman Trophy. Travis Hunter missed large portions of two games a season ago on the way to the Heisman. And if Oklahoma loses to Texas without him but pushes toward a spot in both the SEC title game and the College Football Playoff with him back on the field, he’ll continue to show just how vital he is to the Sooners’ chances. If you’re bullish on Oklahoma and Mateer, you may never have a better time to buy low on his Heisman stock.
Advertisement
Here are the other players we’re watching in Week 7:
Missouri RB Ahmad Hardy (25-1): The Louisiana-Monroe transfer is no longer flying under the radar. He’s been the best running back in college football this season with 730 yards through five games and has been a yards-after-contact machine. A couple tackle-busting highlight runs in an upset win over Alabama would make Hardy a serious Heisman Trophy candidate.
USC QB Jayden Maiava (30-1): Maiava has been one of the most efficient QBs in college football this season. He’s completing over 70% of his passes and averaging over 11 yards per throw with just one interception. If Maiava picks apart a stingy Michigan defense on Saturday night, he could be on his way to following the Heisman finalist footsteps of many Lincoln Riley-coached quarterbacks.
Advertisement
Illinois QB Luke Altmyer (Off the board): Oddsmakers clearly don’t consider Altmyer even a longshot Heisman contender. That’s likely because of Indiana’s 63-10 demolition of the Illini earlier this season. But Illinois bounced back incredibly well from that defeat with a win over USC and has a huge chance for an upset with a home game against Ohio State on Saturday. Through six games, Altmyer has completed nearly 74% of his passes for 1,573 yards and 12 TDs with no interceptions. Those stats alone make it head-scratching why he isn’t at least listed at 100-1.
Utah QB Devon Dampier (40-1): If you assume Texas Tech is the clear frontrunner in the Big 12, the race for the second spot in the Big 12 title game begins this week when the Utes host No. 21 Arizona State. Dampier didn’t play well in the loss to Texas Tech, but was he fully healthy? He wasn’t a full practice participant as Utah and coach Kyle Whittingham tried to be obtuse about his game status all week. Dampier threw four touchdowns in Utah’s win over West Virginia on Sept. 27 and has 13 total touchdowns over five games.
This news was originally published on this post .
About the author
Did Shohei Ohtani just post the greatest game in MLB history?
There has never been an MLB player like Shohei Ohtani, and he just authored his masterpiece — "The Ohtani Game" — on Friday in Game 4 of the NLCS.Facing a Milwaukee Brewers team that held the best record in MLB during the regular season, Ohtani posted three mammoth homers in a 3-for-3 night at the plate and struck out 10 in six-plus scoreless innings on the mound, almost single-handedly pushing the Dodgers to a 5-1 win that ended a series sweep.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement[Yahoo Sports TV is here! Watch live shows and highlights 24/7]He had the three hardest-hit balls of the game, and the 11 hardest-thrown pitches. He had the Dodger Stadium fans screaming. He had his teammates ranging from stunned silence to hilarious guffawing. He had his manager plotting to "ruin baseball." He had media scrambling to figure out what you even […]
Full Stop, End of Discussion: Shohei Ohtani Is the Best to Ever Do It
"The reason why I'm a two-way player is because that's who I am, and it's what I can do."That's what Shohei Ohtani said after his first postseason start in the National League Division Series. The singular superstar has put extra pressure on himself, an added burden, to brilliantly execute being that two-way player. For himself, and for the team.That drive and identity delivered a masterclass on Friday night. It's performances like that which put Ohtani firmly in the conversation as the best baseball player ever.In the Dodgers' 5-1 win over the Brewers that clinched a sweep in the NL Championship Series, Ohtani went 3-for-3 with three solo home runs and a walk at the plate. On the mound, he threw six-plus scoreless innings, allowed two hits and three walks while striking out 10. It will go down as the best […]
Full Stop, End of Discussion: Shohei Ohtani Is the Best to Ever Do It
"The reason why I'm a two-way player is because that's who I am, and it's what I can do."That's what Shohei Ohtani said after his first postseason start in the National League Division Series. The singular superstar has put extra pressure on himself, an added burden, to brilliantly execute being that two-way player. For himself, and for the team.That drive and identity delivered a masterclass on Friday night. It's performances like that which put Ohtani firmly in the conversation as the best baseball player ever.In the Dodgers' 5-1 win over the Brewers that clinched a sweep in the NL Championship Series, Ohtani went 3-for-3 with three solo home runs and a walk at the plate. On the mound, he threw six-plus scoreless innings, allowed two hits and three walks while striking out 10. It will go down as the best […]
Silva’s Fulham release clause ‘revealed’ amid Forest interest – Paper Talk
The top stories and transfer rumours from Sunday's newspapers...PREMIER LEAGUE Marco Silva's release clause at Fulham is believed to be £8 million as he emerges as a potential candidate for the vacant Nottingham Forest job - The Guardian.Real Madrid have identified Premier League duo Marc Guehi and Ibrahima Konate as their top defensive free agent targets, along with Bayern Munich's Dayot Upamecano - talkSPORT. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Sky Sports News' James Green provides the latest update on Marc Guehi's future after Oliver Glasner confirmed he will not sign a new contract and will depart the club next year Liverpool director of scouting and recruitment Dave Fallows has been lined up for a senior sporting leadership role at Chelsea - The Athletic. Bruno Fernandes will not be taken off penalty-taking duties despite missing two […]
Price, Aspinall through at German Darts Championship but Bunting, Wade out
Gerwyn Price and Nathan Aspinall were among those to book their places in round three of the German Darts Championship, but Stephen Bunting, James Wade and Josh Rock were all knocked out.Welsh duo Price and Jonny Clayton both impressed in big wins over Dutch opposition - the former seeing off Christian Kist 6-1, the latter beating Raymond van Barneveld 6-3. Aspinall continued his brilliant form by averaging 107.53 to power past Ross Smith 6-4, with the European Tour Rankings leader next facing Steve Lennon.Jermaine Wattimena was another impressive winner, as he overcame Wade 6-3 in a tie where both players averaged over 106.Ryan Joyce ended top seed Bunting's bid for a second successive European Tour title, defeating the Swiss Darts Trophy champion 6-4 to move through to a tie with Krzysztof Ratajski. Image: Top seed Stephen Bunting was knocked out […]
Soupeři českých týmů v Konferenční lize se v domácích soutěžích neprosadili
Polského vicemistra v Krakově zaskočil bývalý hráč Sparty Bulhar Minčev a druhý gól přidal Chorvat Perkovič. Raków vyšel naprázdno po dvou ligových výhrách a v tabulce je desátý. Na vedoucí Bialystok ztrácí už deset bodů.Rijeka je v desetičlenné tabulce chorvatské ligy na sedmém místě se ztrátou 11 bodů na první Dinamo Záhřeb. Vedoucí gól hostů dal v nastavení prvního poločasu dvacetiletý Angličan Adjei, který v létě přišel z Bournemouthu. Domácí ale stihli po změně stran vyrovnat.
Related
Did Shohei Ohtani just post the greatest game in MLB history?
There has never been an MLB player like Shohei Ohtani, and he just authored his masterpiece — "The Ohtani Game" — on Friday in Game 4 of the NLCS.Facing a Milwaukee Brewers team that held the best record in MLB during the regular season, Ohtani posted three mammoth homers in a 3-for-3 night at the plate and struck out 10 in six-plus scoreless innings on the mound, almost single-handedly pushing the Dodgers to a 5-1 win that ended a series sweep.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement[Yahoo Sports TV is here! Watch live shows and highlights 24/7]He had the three hardest-hit balls of the game, and the 11 hardest-thrown pitches. He had the Dodger Stadium fans screaming. He had his teammates ranging from stunned silence to hilarious guffawing. He had his manager plotting to "ruin baseball." He had media scrambling to figure out what you even […]
Full Stop, End of Discussion: Shohei Ohtani Is the Best to Ever Do It
"The reason why I'm a two-way player is because that's who I am, and it's what I can do."That's what Shohei Ohtani said after his first postseason start in the National League Division Series. The singular superstar has put extra pressure on himself, an added burden, to brilliantly execute being that two-way player. For himself, and for the team.That drive and identity delivered a masterclass on Friday night. It's performances like that which put Ohtani firmly in the conversation as the best baseball player ever.In the Dodgers' 5-1 win over the Brewers that clinched a sweep in the NL Championship Series, Ohtani went 3-for-3 with three solo home runs and a walk at the plate. On the mound, he threw six-plus scoreless innings, allowed two hits and three walks while striking out 10. It will go down as the best […]
Full Stop, End of Discussion: Shohei Ohtani Is the Best to Ever Do It
"The reason why I'm a two-way player is because that's who I am, and it's what I can do."That's what Shohei Ohtani said after his first postseason start in the National League Division Series. The singular superstar has put extra pressure on himself, an added burden, to brilliantly execute being that two-way player. For himself, and for the team.That drive and identity delivered a masterclass on Friday night. It's performances like that which put Ohtani firmly in the conversation as the best baseball player ever.In the Dodgers' 5-1 win over the Brewers that clinched a sweep in the NL Championship Series, Ohtani went 3-for-3 with three solo home runs and a walk at the plate. On the mound, he threw six-plus scoreless innings, allowed two hits and three walks while striking out 10. It will go down as the best […]
Silva’s Fulham release clause ‘revealed’ amid Forest interest – Paper Talk
The top stories and transfer rumours from Sunday's newspapers...PREMIER LEAGUE Marco Silva's release clause at Fulham is believed to be £8 million as he emerges as a potential candidate for the vacant Nottingham Forest job - The Guardian.Real Madrid have identified Premier League duo Marc Guehi and Ibrahima Konate as their top defensive free agent targets, along with Bayern Munich's Dayot Upamecano - talkSPORT. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Sky Sports News' James Green provides the latest update on Marc Guehi's future after Oliver Glasner confirmed he will not sign a new contract and will depart the club next year Liverpool director of scouting and recruitment Dave Fallows has been lined up for a senior sporting leadership role at Chelsea - The Athletic. Bruno Fernandes will not be taken off penalty-taking duties despite missing two […]
Price, Aspinall through at German Darts Championship but Bunting, Wade out
Gerwyn Price and Nathan Aspinall were among those to book their places in round three of the German Darts Championship, but Stephen Bunting, James Wade and Josh Rock were all knocked out.Welsh duo Price and Jonny Clayton both impressed in big wins over Dutch opposition - the former seeing off Christian Kist 6-1, the latter beating Raymond van Barneveld 6-3. Aspinall continued his brilliant form by averaging 107.53 to power past Ross Smith 6-4, with the European Tour Rankings leader next facing Steve Lennon.Jermaine Wattimena was another impressive winner, as he overcame Wade 6-3 in a tie where both players averaged over 106.Ryan Joyce ended top seed Bunting's bid for a second successive European Tour title, defeating the Swiss Darts Trophy champion 6-4 to move through to a tie with Krzysztof Ratajski. Image: Top seed Stephen Bunting was knocked out […]
Soupeři českých týmů v Konferenční lize se v domácích soutěžích neprosadili
Polského vicemistra v Krakově zaskočil bývalý hráč Sparty Bulhar Minčev a druhý gól přidal Chorvat Perkovič. Raków vyšel naprázdno po dvou ligových výhrách a v tabulce je desátý. Na vedoucí Bialystok ztrácí už deset bodů.Rijeka je v desetičlenné tabulce chorvatské ligy na sedmém místě se ztrátou 11 bodů na první Dinamo Záhřeb. Vedoucí gól hostů dal v nastavení prvního poločasu dvacetiletý Angličan Adjei, který v létě přišel z Bournemouthu. Domácí ale stihli po změně stran vyrovnat.
Be the first to leave a comment