Wisconsin Football: Five reasons why Jonathan Taylor can win the Heisman
By Joe Orlofski
2. Hype
NCAA experts and many news publications have been considering Taylor as one of the best running backs going into the 2018 season.
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There is a lot of hype around the Heisman, and usually, players who are unknown at the beginning of a season rarely win. Even if those players have a great season, like Taylor did as a freshman, they finish behind the big named quarterbacks who are often more “in the public eye”.
But this year is different. People know who Jonathan Taylor is. People know what he is capable of. And maybe most importantly, they believe he (along with the offensive line and Alex Hornibrook) could lead the Badgers to their first College Football Playoff appearance.
Sports Illustrated, as of January 2018, ranked Taylor second in Heisman odds behind running back Bryce Love out of Stanford. Obviously, these rankings and odds will change, but as of now, SI gave Taylor the odds of 8/1, coming in very close to Love’s 7/1.
A lot of quarterbacks will make this interesting, but it seems like the pre-season hype for the Heisman comes down to the two running backs.
Unlike last year, people will be watching what Taylor does every step of the way, and that hype, if proven correct, could help Tayor win the trophy.