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Your first impression matters only until your second one. After a brilliant season at North Texas and a much-hyped transfer, Oklahoma State's Drew Mestemaker began life in Stillwater with an absolute dud. Playing against the Tulsa team that ended Mike Gundy's tenure a year earlier, Mestemaker was harassed constantly and unable to find lanes for scrambling. He was mostly relegated to checkdowns and averaged just 4.5 yards per dropback with more interceptions (two) and sacks (two) than touchdowns (one). The Cowboys lost 24-10, and the bloom immediately came off the rose.
Seven days later, he and the Cowboys beat a top-10 team. Mestemaker ripped off a 75-yard run on OSU's first offensive snap and overcame a pair of tipped interceptions -- one that was returned for a score, the other to the OSU 1 -- by simply continuing to smash the big-play button. He completed passes of 52, 39, 34, 33 and 24 yards, and with the game in the balance he took off and windmilled his way into the end zone for the winning score.
It has been almost four years since Oregon lost to a team that didn't go on to reach the national title game. Congrats in advance to the Pokes on their CFP run. And congrats to Mestemaker for winning Week 2's Heisman of the Week.
Heisman is running its Heisman Hopefuls Fan Vote�all season, with a platform that provides statistics, EA Sports ratings and other information. In that vein, I am once again awarding the Heisman every week of the season and doling out weekly points, F1-style (in this case, 10 points for first place, nine for second, and so on).�After Malachi Toney's win in Week 1,�Mestemaker gets the nod this time.
This was the most difficult week I can remember for sussing out the nation's best performances. There are certain defaults I lean on -- if you produce 200 yards from scrimmage, or throw for 400-plus yards, or combine 200-plus passing yards with 100-plus rushing yards, or return multiple kicks for touchdowns, or make four or more havoc plays (tackles for loss, forced fumbles, passes defended), you're honorable mention at worst. But adding up all the automatics would have produced a list of about 40 players. No one wants to read that. So my apologies to South Carolina's Vicari Swain and James Madison's Michael Scott (two punt return TDs each), Virginia Tech's�Mylachi Williams�(4.5 havoc plays), Memphis' Hunter Tipton (229 receiving yards), Colorado State's Hauss Hejny and Jacksonville State's Caden Creel (each with 200-plus and 100-plus), and Tulane's Jaylin Lucas (214 rushing yards). You'd have all made it in a normal week.
1.�Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State
Stats: 26-for-43 passing for 317 yards, two TDs and two INTs, plus 109 non-sack rushing yards and a TD against Oregon
We grew accustomed to seeing video game passing numbers from Mestemaker last season, but the rushing was new. As a first-time starter at North Texas, he threw for 608 yards against Charlotte and 469 against Rice on his way to a 4,379-yard, 34-TD campaign. But he topped 50 non-sack rushing yards only once and enjoyed only one run over 20 yards. Oregon's defense could not have been prepared for what OSU threw at it Saturday, and the result was one of the sport's biggest and most unique stunners -- no school carrying a losing streak of double-digit games had ever ended said streak against a top-10 team -- in quite a while.
2.�Devon Dampier, Utah
Stats: 18-for-24 passing for 261 yards, two TDs and one INT, plus 59 non-sack rushing yards and two TDs against Arkansas
Back in 2012, at the peak of their "We'll try absolutely anything on offense" run, Todd Berry's Louisiana-Monroe trotted out a two-quarterback look -- one righty, one lefty -- in a wild track meet against Baylor. It was glorious, and since I'm talking about it 14 years later, it evidently made quite an impression.
Well, here's how Utah began its decimation of Arkansas on Saturday night:
That's a double pass, from quarterback Devon Dampier to quarterback Byrd Ficklin to running back Wayshawn Parker. At another point, Ficklin took a handoff from Dampier before making an option pitch ... to Dampier. Utah got funky, and I'm here for it. But even while handing some passing and rushing yards to Ficklin, Dampier still put together a stunning set of single-game stats as the Utes crushed the Razorbacks.
3.�Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State
Stats: eight catches for 164 yards and a touchdown against Texas
For three-quarters of the Ohio State-Texas game, Smith looked as if he would be a no-brainer for Heisman of the Week. He ripped through the Texas defense, man-against-boys style, and he made a mockery of Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp's decision to constantly single cover him. But Smith and the Buckeyes couldn't stick the landing: He went without a catch for the game's final 24 minutes, and OSU blew a 23-3 lead. So he has to settle for third.
4.�Nate Sheppard, Duke
Stats: 24 carries for 147 yards and a touchdown, plus 41 receiving yards and two TDs against Illinois
Sheppard produced 1,418 yards from scrimmage as a freshman during Duke's surprising ACC title run, so it was easy to expect a fun season from him in 2026. But he's currently on pace for 2,800 yards from scrimmage after a second straight huge game to start 2026. He scored Duke's last three touchdowns in a 31-27 upset of Illinois, and he's one of two players to make this top 10 in both weeks thus far.
5.�Jesse Legree, Oregon State
Stats: eight catches for 240 yards and two TDs against Texas Tech
Last year, Legree was scoring six touchdowns with four interceptions as a two-way contributor for St. Frances Academy in Baltimore. His only listed power conference offer came from Pittsburgh, but he chose to go west and play for JaMarcus Shepard's Oregon State. And in his second college game, he was almost single-handedly responsible for an upset of a CFP contender.
6.�Kamario Taylor, Mississippi State
Stats: 16-for-22 passing for 227 yards and four TDs, plus 91 non-sack rushing yards against Minnesota
Along with Sheppard, Taylor makes his second appearance on this list after MSU's stunning road domination of Minnesota. His Bulldogs scored touchdowns on all four of their first-half possessions, and only some second-half conservatism prevented him from a potential 300-100 day.
7.�Arch Manning, Texas
Stats: 23-for-37 passing for 195 yards, one TD and one INT, plus 40 non-sack rushing yards and a 20-point comeback against Ohio State
The stats alone obviously don't tell the story in this one. Manning and the Longhorns' offense stunk for most of three quarters but pulled off a perfect trio of late touchdown drives to seize a shocking comeback win. Manning's superpower is his ridiculous adaptability, and with wideouts�Ryan Wingo and Cam Coleman both battling through frustrating days, Manning led the comeback by going through Emmett Mosley V�and tight ends.
8.�Caden Veltkamp, Florida Atlantic
Stats: 24-for-31 passing for 391 yards and four TDs against Navy
FAU's tempo is going to give Veltkamp a chance to post some huge numbers this season, and his Owls got off to a great start as American Conference dark horses with a prolific win over what should be a rock-solid Navy team.
9.�CJ Carr, Notre Dame
Stats: 16-for-20 passing for 253 yards and four touchdowns against Rice
Playing for a marquee program will earn Carr plenty of credibility in the Heisman race, but a weak schedule could hold him back. He was nearly perfect against Rice, but the game got out of hand quickly and he threw only 20 passes. Games against Miami and BYU will obviously be Carr's primary Heisman moment opportunities.
10.�Anthony Palano, Boston College
Stats: nine tackles, two TFLs, two interceptions, a sack and two run stops against Rutgers
BC got solid offensive output in its annual Red Bandanna Game�win over Rutgers, but the Eagles probably don't hold on without the constant disruption provided by Palano. The Washington State transfer has immediately become their best defensive player.
Braden Atkinson, Oregon State (31-for-51 passing for 413 yards, two TDs and one INT against Texas Tech)
DeSean Bishop, Tennessee (20 carries for 147 yards and two TDs, plus 15 receiving yards against Georgia Tech)
Cam Brown, Michigan (seven punts, six inside the 20 against Oklahoma)
Vernell Brown III, Florida (three catches for 43 yards and a TD, plus two punt return touchdowns against Campbell)
Kevin Jennings, SMU (14-for-16 passing for 337 yards and five TDs against UC Davis)
Marco Jones, Texas A&M (four tackles, one sack, one forced fumble and a 55-yard pick six against Arizona State)
Dylan Riley, Boise State (19 carries for 206 yards, plus 11 receiving yards against Memphis)
Austin Simmons, Missouri (19-for-29 passing for 292 yards and three TDs against Kansas)
Princewill Umanmielen, LSU (five tackles, four TFLs, three sacks and a run stop against Louisiana Tech)
Taylor Wein, Oklahoma (six tackles, three TFLs, three run stops, one sack and a forced fumbles against Michigan)
Let's give a quick shout to Augustana's Gunnar Hensley, who is already up to 1,139 passing yards and eight touchdowns through three games after Saturday's 371-yard performance against Minot State in Division II. Additionally, Alcorn State's Jaylon Tolbert threw for 485 yards and five TDs in an overtime win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. But we have to give this week's smaller-school nod to Brungard. It probably won't be the last time this season.
The reigning Walter Payton Award winner in FCS was ruthlessly efficient in YSU's 70-13 win over Duquesne. He completed 20 of 23 passes for 290 yards and a school-record six TDs, and as is customary he also rushed for 111 yards and another two scores. And he did this all despite playing only one series in the second half. The Penguins scored TDs on all eight of his drives, and then he was done for the day.
If Duquesne could have scored a few more points to keep him in the game, Brungard might have had a chance to put up some downright shocking numbers.
The race has only just begun, and there are lots of ties, but through two weeks here are your points leaders. I've bolded the players who are also in the top 10 in DraftKings' Heisman odds.
1T. Kamario Taylor, Mississippi State (13 points)
1T. Nate Sheppard, Duke (13 points)
3T. Malachi Toney, Miami (10 points)
3T. Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State (10 points)
5T. Mason Heintschel, Pitt (nine points)
5T. Devon Dampier, Utah (nine points)
7. Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State (eight points)
8. Jordan Ross, LSU (seven points)
9. Jesse Legree, Oregon State (six points)
10. Trinidad Chambliss, Ole Miss (five points)
DraftKings' list leads with Miami quarterback Darian Mensah (+550), who ranked seventh in Week 1 and will have plenty of opportunities to make an impression moving forward, followed by Smith, Manning, Carr and Chambliss. Sheppard's not on the list just yet, but Kamario Taylor has quickly moved up to 11th on the list, and with Mississippi State's schedule, he'll have plenty of opportunities to impress.
