Handicapping the Heisman v. 1.0

The college football season is a month old, and many of the Heisman contenders we expected in the preseason have performed mostly how we expected.

But rarely is a Heisman winner established in September. Doug Flutie of Boston College may be the only one. Flutie had six touchdowns in the opening month in 1984. Last year, not many even listed Mark Ingram as a possibility at this point in the season. It wasn't until the South Carolina game in mid-October that Ingram made his run.

This year, Ingram is again very much in contention along with a host of quarterbacks.

Here are the top contenders:

Mark Ingram, Alabama RB. Despite knee surgery, Ingram looks as powerful as last season when he wore down opponents en route to a national championship and Heisman Trophy. While history suggests it's nearly impossible to win back-to-back Heismans, Ingram has shown against Duke and Arkansas that barring a Bama loss, it'll be tough to knock him from the podium. Take the win at Arkansas. Ingram had 157 yards, including a 54-yard touchdown in the first quarter and a late score, to help Alabama to a 24-20 victory. Odds to win: 4:1

Denard "Shoelace" Robinson, Michigan QB. Robinson wasn't on anybody's preseason list of contenders. But his play out of the blocks, particularly against UConn and Notre Dame, put him in the Michigan record books and breathed hope back into a program. Without Robinson, the only talk about Michigan would be how soon Rich Rodriguez will be fired. Odds to win: 5:1

Terrelle Pryor, Ohio State QB. The lanky long-strider for the Buckeyes is extending the kind of play he started in last season's Rose Bowl. The only trouble is OSU has only played one quality team - Miami - and Pryor might not be able to bolster his numbers against Big Ten opponents until the Bucks play Wisconsin or Iowa. But he has more than 1,200 offensive yards and 13 touchdowns. Odds to win: 5:1

Andrew Luck, Stanford QB. Luck's stock has risen alongside the Cardinal's undefeated start, not the least of which includes ESPN NFL Draft expect Mel Kiper, Jr. promoting him to the top spot on his "Big Board" of prospects. Odds to win: 7:1

Kellen Moore, Boise State QB. Moore's individual hopes are likely to be parallel with the Broncos' pursuit of a national championship. The same argument that's made about Boise's supposed hollow chance at playing for the BCS championship could be saddled to Moore. He isn't doing it against top-shelf opponents. Odds to win: 9:1

LaMichael James, Oregon RB. The speedy Duck tailback's hopes of a trip to NYC likely hinge on his team's record, presumably if the Ducks can stay undefeated. He's averaging 8.19 yards per carry and is second in the nation with 158.3 rushing yards per game. Odds to win: 12:1

Ryan Mallett, Arkansas QB. With a win over Alabama last week, the 6-foot-6, strong-armed Mallett would have been a favorite to win the trophy. But two late interceptions virtually erased his name from the conversation. If the Hogs win out and Bama loses, Mallett might sneak an invitation to New York (a.k.a making the top four), but he won't be a serious contender. Odds to win: 15:1

College football nuggets to pass the time

Three days until the official kickoff, here's a few items to get to the starting line...

Mark Ingram faces a daunting task to start this season: He's a returning Heisman Trophy winner. And returning Heisman winners are held to a higher standard than other contenders. It's human nature to compare a player to his own stats from the previous season. But it also adds an imaginary opponent to a player's competition for the coveted trophy.

Every season, there's a weekend where you might just want to make a dent in the honey-do list, and put the games in the background. What week will it be this year? Oct. 9? Here are some games that day: No. 1 Alabama at South Carolina, Indiana at No. 2 Ohio State, No. 21 LSU at No. 4 Florida, No. 11 Oregon at Washington State, Clemson at No. 18 North Carolina. Several decent games, but nothing that really moves the meter, barring an upset or an unexpected undefeated team.

How are blue bloods Notre Dame and Tennessee rebuilding with weak schedules? Forget all the tradition talk with the Irish and the military schools. They won't be taken seriously until they schedule multiple power conference teams that are ranked. Tennessee's reputation took a major hit when it pulled out of an agreement to play North Carolina. Is this designed to lengthen Derek Dooley's stay in Knoxville?

Speaking of Notre Dame, the Irish could have added an asterisk after word surfaced last week that they're working with NBC to schedule shorter commercial breaks, which would help Notre Dame's up-tempo offense. All this does is add to Notre Dame's elitist nature. If they are to play for a national championship one day, what will happen during the conventional commercial breaks? Of course, this could be much ado about nothing, and it might have little impact. Still, no other school would pull a stunt like this, so it's just another reason to believe the Irish think they're more important than everyone else.