In Week 5, we had what felt like 5 or 6 of those patented Heisman Moments. In Week Five. Colorado superstar hit the Heisman pose after an interception. Cam Ward did a Houdini impression in the closing minutes of Miami’s game against Virginia Tech, evaded pressure, flipped to an outlet, and set up the game-winning touchdown. Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty made Washington State look like tackling dummies on the field while running for more than 200 yards for the second time in 4 games. And Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe torched Georgia’s defense in a game for the ages.

The Heisman Trophy was handed out 4 separate times over the weekend.

Let’s start with Ward, who played like he knew he could erase any mistake against Virginia Tech. Ward had 2 interceptions and a fumble (on the opening drive no less). But he also completed 8 of his 11 passes for 2 touchdowns and 88 yards in just the fourth quarter to lead Miami to a come-from-behind victory.

Trailing 34-31, Ward was nearly sacked but pulled this out of the hat instead.

Miami scored the go-ahead touchdown on the next play and survived a controversial last-second Hail Mary attempt that was ruled incomplete.

As for Hunter, the Colorado receiver and defensive back was a stud throughout a dominant road victory over Central Florida. In the third quarter, he made arguably the best play he’s made all season. Keep in mind the athleticism necessary to cover the kind of ground he covered in the time it took him to do so.

And, of course, he had a specific celebration lined up for right after the play.

In a 45-24 win over Washington State, Jeanty ran wild. He had 2 more runs that gained at least 50 yards, his fifth and sixth such runs in 4 games this season. Navy is the only other team in college football with 6 runs of at least 40 yards. Jeanty is the best home-run-hitter in the sport right now because he’s nearly impossible to bring down.

And, finally, we had Milroe.

What a night for the Alabama passer.

The first quarter was flawless. Alabama ran 18 plays, gained 198 yards, and scored 21 points. Milroe hit all 8 of his passes. The Bulldogs had no answer for the Crimson Tide quarterback, who seldom faced pressure and was able to make plays with his legs toward the boundary.

There were a couple of plays near the red area that were just next-level. There was a pressure evade that pushed Alabama inside the 20. And there was a dot of a throw to Jam Miller on Alabama’s second possession.

Milroe hit his first 11 passes and, after being wasteful with the football for much of the second and third quarters, rediscovered the edge in the fourth.

At this point in time, we have a 4-horse race for the Heisman, with a large gap between the top 4 and everyone else. Being where we are in the season, there’s still plenty of time for someone to bridge the gap, but 4 players have clearly separated themselves.

Below is the updated Heisman Trophy race entering Week 6. (You can find last week’s picture here.)

Editor’s note: This week, subjective rankings will continue to be used. Before, the “rank” represented the order of average odds to win the award. Going forward, the rank you see will reflect how a vote for the Heisman would look at that exact moment in time. 

1. Cam Ward, Miami QB (LW: 1)

Week 5 results: 38-34 win over Virginia Tech

Week 5 stats: 24-of-38, 343 passing yards, 4 passing touchdowns, 2 interceptions, 57 rushing yards, 1 rushing touchdown

Season stats: 70.2% completion, 1,782 passing yards, 18 passing touchdowns, 4 interceptions, 146 rushing yards, 2 rushing touchdowns

One big number: 16 big-time throws (per PFF)

Current odds: +500 (via FanDuel)

Up next: at Cal

Only New Mexico’s Devon Dampier has more big-time throws than Ward through 5 games, who has created highlight after highlight after highlight throughout the start of his Miami career. Ward leads all FBS passers in EPA, is on pace to completely rewrite the Miami record book this season, and he was timely in the Hurricanes’ comeback win over Virginia Tech.

2. Travis Hunter, Colorado WR/DB (LW: 3)

Week 5 results: 48-21 at Central Florida

Week 5 stats: 9 receptions, 89 receiving yards, 1 touchdown, 2 tackles, 1 interception

Season stats: 46 receptions, 561 receiving yards, 6 receiving touchdowns, 16 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 3 pass breakups, 2 interceptions, 1 forced fumble

One big number: 10 receptions of 20+ yards

Current odds: +750 (via FanDuel)

Up next: BYE

Hunter is tied for the Big 12 lead in 20-yard receptions through 5 weeks of the season. On the other side of the football, he has only allowed 1 reception of 20 yards or more in coverage.

3. Jalen Milroe, Alabama QB (LW: 4)

Week 5 results: 41-34 win over No. 2 Georgia

Week 5 stats: 27-of-33, 374 passing yards, 2 passing touchdowns, 1 interception, 117 rushing yards, 2 rushing touchdowns

Season stats: 72.9% completion, 964 passing yards, 10 passing touchdowns, 1 interception, 273 rushing yards, 8 rushing touchdowns

One big number: 108 points responsible for

Current odds: +210 (via FanDuel)

Up next: at Vanderbilt

Milroe leads all FBS quarterbacks in rushing touchdowns. His 108 total points produced through the first 5 weeks of the season are the second-most of any play in the FBS, and he’s already had a bye week. With DeBoer and offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan, the Alabama quarterback has become fully unlocked. He and the Tide offense are a little prone to periods of dormancy, but when the offense is humming, Milroe has become arguably the most dangerous quarterback in college football

4. Ashton Jeanty, Boise State RB (LW: 9)

Week 5 results: 45-24 win over Washington State

Week 5 stats: 26 carries, 259 rushing yards, 4 rushing touchdowns, 1 reception, 7 receiving yards

Season stats: 82 carries, 845 rushing yards, 10.3 yards per attempt, 13 rushing touchdowns, 6 receptions, 19 receiving yards

One big number: 43 missed tackles force

Current odds: +1100 (via FanDuel)

Up next: vs. Utah State

Jeanty leads the nation in forced missed tackles, per PFF. He’s averaged 7.2 yards per rush after first contact and has already produced 13 touchdowns in just 4 games. Jeanty has rushed for at least 200 yards twice, and he’s on pace to challenge for the NCAA’s all-time single-season rushing record. Sure, 4 games into a season offers a smaller sample size, but 2 of those games have come against schools that just last year belonged to a Power conference.

5. Jaxson Dart, Ole Miss QB (LW: 2)

Week 5 results: 20-17 loss to Kentucky

Week 5 stats: 18-of-27, 261 passing yards, 1 passing touchdown, 0 interceptions

Season stats: 77.4% completion, 1,815 passing yards, 13 passing touchdowns, 2 interceptions, 112 rushing yards, 3 rushing touchdowns

One big number: 92.7 passer grade (per PFF)

Current odds: +1800 (via FanDuel)

Up next: at South Carolina

Kentucky did the same thing to Ole Miss that it did to Georgia. The Wildcats narrowly missed an upset win over the Bulldogs, then pulled one off in Oxford. There’s a conversation to be had about how and why Kentucky has been able to do what it has done that looks kindly upon Georgia and Ole Miss. But Dart’s numbers in the postgame make a convincing enough point. He is still the highest-graded qualified quarterback in the FBS by PFF. He has the seventh-best QBR (86.5). And he’s still top-10 in EPA. Ole Miss had a positive net success rate in the loss. Kentucky just limited the bites at the apple, and Ole Miss was wasteful with the chances it did have.

6. Nico Iamaleava, Tennessee QB (LW: 6)

Week 5 results: N/A

Week 5 stats: N/A

Season stats: 69.3% completion, 892 passing yards, 7 passing touchdowns, 2 interceptions, 117 rushing yards, 1 rushing touchdown

One big number: 13.8 EPA

Current odds: +1800 (via FanDuel)

Up next: at Arkansas

Iamaleava is on pace for a modest season from a numbers standpoint. Over a 12-game sample, he’s set to be under 2,700 passing yards and under 25 passing touchdowns. Those numbers on their own simply won’t get him to the Heisman Trophy ceremony as a finalist. If Tennessee ends the regular season as the best team in the country, he’ll have an argument, but his EPA will be held against him as a case that Tennessee isn’t leaning on Iamaleava the way, for instance, Miami is leaning on Ward. Iamaleava ranks 63rd in EPA. Ward is first. And Ward has the traditional counting stats.

7. Dillon Gabriel, Oregon QB (LW: 7)

Week 5 results: 34-13 win at UCLA

Week 5 stats: 31-of-41, 278 passing yards, 3 passing touchdowns, 1 interception

Season stats: 81.5% completion, 1,192 passing yards, 9 passing touchdowns, 1 interception, 49 rushing yards, 2 rushing touchdowns

One big number: 5.8-yard average depth of target

Current odds: +1600 (via FanDuel)

Up next: vs. Michigan State

We saw this discussion with Bo Nix a season ago. The Oregon quarterback put together a statistically magnificent season, but because a huge chunk of his diet consisted of catch-and-run plays for his (open) receivers, he was labeled a “check-down merchant” in comparison to Jayden Daniels (10.5 ADoT) and Michael Penix Jr. (10.7 ADoT). The same kind of conversation might play out here if Gabriel finds himself going head-to-head with a player like Ward (9.7 ADoT) or Milroe (10.9 ADoT). The offenses ask different things, but that nuance gets lost in translation when the narrative is “look at all the big plays.” Gabriel’s ADoT is the third-shortest among qualified FBS passers so far this season.

8. Cade Klubnik, Clemson QB (LW: 10)

Week 5 results: 40-14 win over Stanford

Week 5 stats: 15-of-31, 255 passing yards, 4 passing touchdowns, 1 interception, 48 rushing yards, 1 rushing touchdown

Season stats: 66.4% completion, 984 passing yards, 12 passing touchdowns, 2 interceptions, 106 rushing yards, 4 rushing touchdowns

One big number: 89.1 QBR

Current odds: +2500 (via FanDuel)

Up next: at Florida State

Klubnik and the Clemson offense are rolling. Against Stanford, Klubnik accounted for 5 more total touchdowns — his second game this season with 5 or more. Since the Georgia loss, Clemson’s offense has put up 165 points with Klubnik throwing it and running it. The interception against Stanford was his first since the Georgia game. And he took his first sack since the Georgia game. Klubnik has the fourth-best QBR in the FBS.

9. Carson Beck, Georgia QB (LW: 8)

Week 5 results: 41-34 loss at No. 4 Alabama

Week 5 stats: 27-of-50, 439 passing yards, 3 passing touchdowns, 3 interceptions

Season stats: 62.9% completion, 1,119 passing yards, 10 passing touchdowns, 3 interceptions, 64 rushing yards, 0 rushing touchdowns

One big number: 4 turnovers

Current odds: +2500 (via FanDuel)

Up next: vs. Auburn

In the biggest game of Georgia’s season, the Dawgs’ quarterback gave it away 4 times. He fumbled once and was picked off 3 times, including in the endzone in the final minute of the game to seal the deal. In the first half, Beck looked uncomfortable and like he was struggling to see the full picture. Zabien Brown baited him into that throw at the end of the game — a pass he didn’t need to try given the situation. He finished with his best game of the season in terms of yardage, but with the way Alabama let off the accelerator, there’s a little fool’s gold in the numbers here for Georgia.

10. Quinn Ewers, Texas QB (LW: 5)

Week 5 results: 35-13 win over Mississippi State

Week 5 stats: DNP

Season stats: 73.4% completion, 691 passing yards, 8 passing touchdowns, 2 interceptions, 1 rushing yard, 0 rushing touchdowns

One big number: 16

Current odds: +2000 (via FanDuel)

Up next: BYE

Arch Manning, who wears No. 16, has done nothing to help Ewers’ Heisman candidacy. The starting quarterback for the Longhorns has missed the last 2 complete games and Manning has filled in to throw for 582 yards and 4 touchdowns while completing 68% of his passes and rushing for another score. Texas probably looked at Mississippi State and thought it would be better served holding Ewers out 1 more week to get to the bye. You want your leader for the Red River Rivalry on Oct. 12. If Ewers doesn’t play in that game, or plays poorly, he’s likely to fall off this board entirely.