College football betting, odds: Michael Penix Jr. now significant Heisman Trophy favorite after Washington's win over Oregon
The Heisman Trophy odds have shifted dramatically after Week 7 of the college football season.
Entering the weekend, Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. was a slight favorite to win the Heisman. He was listed at +200 ahead of USC quarterback and reigning Heisman winner Caleb Williams (+225) and Oregon quarterback Bo Nix (+600).
As of early Sunday afternoon, Penix is now a -145 favorite at BetMGM. The next-closest in the odds are Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy and Oklahoma quarterback Dillon Gabriel, both of whom are listed at +1000.
Two results from Saturday caused the odds to move heavily in Penix’s favor. The biggest factor, of course, was Washington’s thrilling 36-33 win over Oregon. Washington improved to 6-0 with the win and Penix out-dueled Nix. He threw for 302 yards and four touchdowns, including the winner to Rome Odunze with 1:38 left in regulation.
Nix didn’t play poorly. He threw for 337 yards and two touchdowns, but the loss caused him to drop to +3000. The Ducks are now 5-1.
Elsewhere, Williams had arguably his worst performance in a USC uniform in the Trojans’ 48-20 loss at Notre Dame. Williams threw three first-half interceptions, all of which directly led to Notre Dame touchdowns. He also had a fourth-quarter fumble that was returned for a Notre Dame touchdown. In all, Williams went 23-of-37 for 199 yards, a touchdown and the three interceptions.
As a result, Williams dropped all the way down to +3500 in the odds. USC is now 6-1 overall but still 4-0 in Pac-12 play. With games against Utah, Washington, Oregon and UCLA ahead, Williams will have plenty of chances to make up ground if he wants to become just the second player to win the Heisman in back-to-back years. Ohio State’s Archie Griffin is the only one to accomplish that feat, doing so in 1974 and 1975.
Beyond Penix, McCarthy and Gabriel, there are three other quarterbacks ahead of Nix and Williams on the odds board. Florida State’s Jordan Travis and LSU’s Jayden Daniels are both listed at +1300, just ahead of North Carolina’s Drake Maye at +1400.
Travis has helped Florida State get off to a 6-0 start. In Saturday’s 41-3 win over Syracuse, he threw for 284 yards and a touchdown and also scored twice on the ground. Daniels has been putting up huge numbers for LSU, which is now 5-2 after a 48-18 win over Auburn on Saturday. Daniels threw for 325 yards and three touchdowns and added 93 rushing yards in the win.
Maye, meanwhile, threw for 273 yards and four touchdowns in UNC’s 41-31 win over Miami. With the victory, UNC improved to 6-0 on the season. It’s the first time the Tar Heels are 6-0 to open a season since they went 8-0 back in 1997.
Below are the updated Heisman Trophy odds, via BetMGM:
Washington QB Michael Penix Jr.: -145
Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy: +1000
Oklahoma QB Dillon Gabriel: +1000
Florida State QB Jordan Travis: +1300
LSU QB Jayden Daniels: +1300
North Carolina QB Drake Maye: +1400
Oregon QB Bo Nix: +3000
USC QB Caleb Williams: +3500
Georgia QB Carson Beck: +4000
Texas QB Quinn Ewers: +5000
Ohio State QB Kyle McCord: +5000
Michigan RB Blake Corum: +5000
Alabama QB Jalen Milroe: +5000
Penn State QB Drew Allar: +6000
