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AP HEISMAN WATCH: Lamar Jackson of Louisville leads; race for 2nd is crowded

Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson remains the frontrunner in the Heisman Trophy race. (Winslow Townson / Associated Press)
By Ralph D. Russo Associated Press
Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson remains the frontrunner in the Heisman Trophy race. (Winslow Townson / Associated Press)

Even if Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson wins the Heisman Trophy in a landslide vote, there may still be a slew of finalists at the award presentation in New York on Dec. 10.

There are always at least three finalists for the trophy. Whether there are more is determined by point totals and the gap between vote-getters.

Jackson is on his way to a Heisman runaway. Online casino Bovada listed him at 1-to-20 to win the award. Next up were Michigan linebacker Jabrill Peppers and Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson at 12-to-1.

While only a meltdown from the spectacular sophomore over his last three games could bring Jackson back to the pack, there is potential for movement behind him and for the second- and third-place votes to be spread among a handful of contenders.

The AP’s Heisman panel is still mostly focused on two other quarterbacks behind Jackson: Washington’s Jake Browning and Watson. Texas running back D’Onta Foreman is surging and the latest dominant performance by the Alabama defense helped Jonathan Allen’s case.

Lamar Jackson, QB, Louisville (21 points): Jackson has 26 touchdown passes and 19 touchdowns scored, leaving him one short of becoming the seventh member of the FBS 20-20 club. Of the previous six players to have 20 TD passes and 20 touchdowns scored in the same season, three won the Heisman (Tim Tebow, 2007; Cam Newton, 2010; Johnny Manziel, 2012).

Jake Browning, QB, Washington (10 points): Number of note: Among quarterbacks with at least 200 passing attempts, none has thrown a higher percentage for touchdowns than Browning at 15.5.

Deshaun Watson, QB, Clemson (8 points): In the last five games, Watson is 114 of 167 (68.3 percent) for 1,501 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Jonathan Allen, DE, Alabama (2 points): Allen has scored two of Alabama’s 10 defensive touchdowns.

D’Onta Foreman, RB, Texas (1 point): Foreman has rushed for 591 yards in his last two games, the second-best two game stretch in school history to Ricky Williams’ 668 in 1998 – when he won the Heisman.