Heisman drama? Nah — the trophy is Lamar Jackson’s all the way

Lamar Jackson moved so startlingly fast to the front of this season’s Heisman Trophy race, it almost didn’t seem real. And once the Louisville sophomore quarterback with video-game speed and athleticism had the lead, there wasn’t a player in America who was going to catch him.

Spoiler alert: Jackson will win the Heisman, to be presented Saturday night in New York, and he’ll lead the voting by a landslide margin.

Of course, many stories have been written throughout the week that would have you believe otherwise. There’s a growing narrative that Jackson’s late-season stumble — he was bottled up at Houston and picked off three times against Kentucky, and the Cardinals were upset in both games — opened the door for someone else, most likely Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson, to win the award.

It’s just not true.

Jackson has had a vise grip on the Heisman for weeks, if not months. He’ll be first or second on the vast majority of ballots. Many of the thousand-plus Heisman voters will vote for Watson first, but just as many will have the College Football Playoff-bound junior third or not on their three-name ballot at all.

Michigan multi-position star Jabrill Peppers and a pair of Oklahoma players — quarterback Baker Mayfield and wideout Dede Westbrook — round out the five-man list of finalists, for those of you scoring at home.

Each of us who votes for the Heisman is barred from sharing our pick before Saturday’s presentation. By the way, that policy is ridiculous. What is this, an issue of national security? The more we voters write about whom we’re picking, the more buzz there is to sustain this iconic award.

Anyway, so you definitely won’t learn from me that at least one No. 1 vote has been cast for Jackson, the only player in FBS history to throw for 3,300 yards and rush for 1,500 in a season. He’ll almost surely soar past 5,000 total yards — and add to his 51 total touchdowns — in the Cardinals’ bowl game against LSU.

“The effect Lamar has had on our program is unparalleled,” said his coach, Bobby Petrino. “He is a great competitor who has used his abilities and strengths to become the best player in the nation, in my opinion.”

That opinion spread fast and far in September.

Leading into the season, one major offshore wagering site listed 20 players in all and 11 quarterbacks, including Watson and Mayfield — and both DeShone Kizer and Malik Zaire from Notre Dame —as having better odds than Jackson to win the Heisman. But after Jackson had eight total touchdowns in the first half of the opener against Charlotte, he moved up the list to fourth among QBs.

During Louisville’s third game, when he rushed for four touchdowns in an astonishing 63-20 blowout of second-ranked Florida State, Jackson became the clear favorite. The home fans’ “Heisman!” chants sounded like a coronation. Former college great Michael Vick tweeted that Jackson was “five times” better than Vick had been at Virginia Tech.

Watson and Clemson beat Jackson and Louisville head-to-head Oct. 1 in one of the best games of the season. Both quarterbacks were at the tops of their games that night, but Jackson was unforgettably good as he led his team to 26 straight points to erase a 28-10 halftime deficit. The better team ended up winning, but Jackson came out of that game looking more impressive than ever.

Look, I’m a real Watson fan. He got my No. 1 vote for last year’s Heisman. I think he has a chance to be a very good NFL quarterback — maybe better in the long run than Jackson. He just doesn’t have a chance Saturday night.

Follow me on Twitter @slgreenberg.

Email: sgreenberg@suntimes.com