2026 Heisman Trophy: Jeremiah Smith remains favorite in Polymarket odds after Week 7

Seven weeks into the 2026 college football season, a new Polymarket prediction market lists five players currently with 5% or greater odds to win the Heisman Trophy. Ohio State superstar wide receiver Jeremiah Smith remains the favorite with 43% odds as of 9:00 am ET on Oct. 21. He contributed a 68-yard, one-touchdown performance against No. 5 Indiana on Saturday. Smith sits just ahead of Miami QB Darian Mensah (23%) and Ole Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss (10%), who boast the second and third best odds. It appears as if it will now be an uphill battle for Smith to win the award, however, as star quarterback Julian Sayin is now out for an indefinite amount of time due to an injury to his throwing arm. $19.99 gets you a FULL year of On3 | Rivals national coverage Given the evolving nature of prediction markets, Polymarket’s Heisman Trophy odds will continue to fluctuate over the next two months before the Heisman winner is crowned on Saturday, Dec. 12 in New York City. With that in mind, here are Polymarket’s current Heisman Trophy odds. 1. WR Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State – 43% Jeremiah Smith was held to a season-low 68 receiving yards in Ohio State‘s 19-15 road victory at No. 5 Indiana, but he did catch a 38-yard touchdown with 12:46 remaining to give the Buckeyes a 19-7 lead. It marked his first touchdown against the Hoosiers, as he was held scoreless in both the 2024 regular season game and the 2025 Big Ten Championship game. The current Heisman Trophy favorite has caught a touchdown pass in six of his seven games this season, including his last four in a row. After being held scoreless against Kent State in Week 3, Smith has caught nine touchdown passes across Ohio State‘s past four games. If Smith were to win the Heisman Trophy, he’d become just the sixth receiver to win the award. 2. QB Darian Mensah, Miami – 23% After being held to just 227 passing yards in Miami‘s win over Clemson in Week 5, Darian Mensah returned to form on Saturday against Florida State. The Duke transfer tossed three touchdowns in the Hurricanes’ 43-35 2OT win over the Seminoles. He did, however, toss his first interception of the season in the win. Miami is now 6-0, ranked No. 1 in the country, and looks to be the favorite to win its first ever ACC Championship. Mensah is just one of two FBS QBs this season with at least 13 touchdown passes, one interception or less, and a completion percentage of at least 68%. Miami will look to keep its undefeated season rolling on Saturday against a reeling Pitt team. 3. QB Trinidad Chambliss, Ole Miss – 10% Saturday’s game between No. 9 Ole Miss and No. 13 Missouri served as a quarterback battle between former teammates in Trinidad Chambliss and Austin Simmons. Chambliss won the battle easily, passing for 241 yards and three touchdowns in the win. He scored another touchdown on the ground, bringing his total on the day to four. He now has the third-best Heisman Trophy odds heading into Week 8. Chambliss has hit the 250-plus yard passing mark in just three of his six games this season, but continues to play winning football for Pete Golding‘s team. He currently ranks 11th in the country with an 83.5 QBR. Chambliss and the Rebels will look to hand No. 19 Texas its third consecutive loss this Saturday. 4. WR Malachi Toney, Miami – 6% Malachi Toney opened his sophomore season with a 234-yard performance against Stanford, picking up right where he left off in his stellar freshman campaign. Since then, Toney has recorded at least 100 receiving yards in three of his past five games. In Saturday night’s 2OT win over Florida State, Toney hauled in 11 receptions for 154 yards and two touchdowns. His second touchdown came in 2OT, which served as the deciding score for the ‘Canes. He’s up to the fourth-best Heisman odds this week. With Mensah and Toney leading the way, the Hurricanes are seeking a second consecutive College Football Playoff appearance. Following its matchup against Pitt on Saturday, Miami is slated for a matchup against Bill Belichick‘s North Carolina ahead of its blockbuster meeting with No. 4 Notre Dame on Nov. 7. 5. WR Jesse Legree, Oregon State – 5% One of the biggest breakout stars of the 2026 college football season has been Oregon State freshman wide receiver Jesse Legree. Legree, who was a three-star recruit this past cycle, has recorded at least 100 receiving yards in all seven of his games this season. He is the first player in Oregon State history to record this feat. His strong play continued over the weekend in the Beavers’ 48-30 win over Washington State. Legree recorded eight receptions for 108 yards and two touchdowns in the victory, which marked the Beavers’ fifth in a row. Legree currently has the fifth-best odds to win the Heisman Trophy. He became the first receiver to hit the 1,000-yard receiving mark this season, and leads the FBS in both receiving yards (1,040) and receiving touchdowns (14). 6. QB CJ Carr, Notre Dame – 4% Notre Dame had its 16-game winning streak snapped at the hands of the BYU Cougars over the weekend. Irish quarterback CJ Carr, however, still boasts better odds to win the Heisman Trophy than BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier. In the loss, Carr completed 27/49 passes for 261 yards. He was held without a touchdown in the game. It marked the first time in his career he ever finished a game without passing or rushing for a score. Sitting at one loss on the season, Notre Dame will now be walking a tightrope over its final five regular season games. That includes a monstrous showdown against now-No. 1 ranked Miami on Nov. 7. It will serve as a rematch from last season’s game, which was Carr’s first as a starter. In that loss, Carr passed for 221 yards and two touchdowns. 7. QB Bear Bachmeier, BYU – 3% Led by sophomore quarterback Bear Bachmeier, BYU is up to No. 2 in the AP Poll for the first time since 1984. Bachmeier was stellar in the Cougars’ 28-24 win over No. 2 Notre Dame Saturday night, recording three total touchdowns. His six-yard touchdown pass to tight end Walker Lyons with 1:47 remaining gave BYU its 28-24 lead, which it would hold onto. He now boasts the seventh-best Heisman odds. No BYU QB has won the Heisman since Ty Detmer (1990). Bachmeier has recorded a rushing touchdown in four of his six games this season, and is up to 15 touchdowns overall this year. With all sights on its first ever College Football Playoff appearance, No. 2 BYU is slated for matchups against UCF and Arizona State over the next two weeks ahead of its clash with No. 10 Utah on Nov. 7. T8. QB Arch Manning, Texas – 2% Texas quarterback Arch Manning has been… underwhelming… this season, to say the least. The Longhorns are now riding a two-game losing streak (both to unranked opponents), which has them in jeopardy of missing the College Football Playoff for the second consecutive year. A costly Manning interception cost them their game against Oklahoma, and a costly fumble cost them their game against Florida over the weekend. Following the loss, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian revealed that ‘everything would be evaluated’ on the offensive side of the ball. “We’re not playing good offensive football right now, so everything is going to be evaluated,” Sarkisian said, via Inside Texas. Texas‘ backup quarterback is redshirt freshman K.J. Lacey, who has appeared in two games this season. He was a four-star recruit in the Class of 2025. T8. QB Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State – 2% Although Oklahoma State suffered its second loss of the season over the weekend, quarterback Drew Mestemaker continued to play at an extremely high level for the Cowboys. Mestemaker hit the 300-plus passing yard mark for the fifth consecutive game in the 35-32 loss to No. 20 Houston, along with passing for three touchdowns. It marked the third time this season he’s hit that mark. Mestemaker has soared to the top of multiple 2027 NFL Draft boards due to his strong quarterback play this season. However, the quarterback still has his sights (although unlikely) on a Big 12 Championship. If he does go in the top-10 of the Draft, he’d be the first OK State quarterback to do so T8. QB Jayden Maiava, USC – 2% In his final season as a Trojan, Jayden Maiava is putting up some big-time numbers for Lincoln Riley‘s program. Maiava passed for 301 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions on Saturday, securing a 31-23 win over Penn State in front of a White-Out crowd. USC is now ranked No. 16 in the AP Poll, sitting at 6-1 on the season. Maiava has hit the 300-plus passing mark in three games this season, and boasts 2,045 passing yards (second-most in FBS) overall. USC certainly has a big challenge looming, as it is slated to face three of the top-three teams in the Big Ten over its final five games (No. 3 Ohio State, No. 6 Indiana, and No. 12 UCLA). 18+ Only. Restrictions and eligibility requirements apply. Not available in all jurisdictions. Trading is risky. 100% loss can occur. See polymarket.com/tos for more information. The Polymarket US App serves as an independent software provider and affiliate of Polymarket US and Polymarket Clearing, the CFTC-regulated exchange and clearing organization.