The first step in Auburn quarterback Jackson Arnold fulfilling his redemption arc after a lost season at Oklahoma last year seems to be already in motion. After just two games, both of them wins, Arnold is already being floated as a potential Heisman Candidate for this season.
Fox Sports analyst Robert Griffin III shared his Week 2 Heisman Trophy candidates, in which Arnold dropped two spots to No. 6.
"Arnold has been excellent for Auburn through the first two weeks of the season, tossing all three of his touchdowns this season in a dominant 39-point win over Ball State in Week 2," Fox Sports wrote.
"2025 stats: 359 passing yards, 3 passing TDs, 77.8% competition percentage."
South Florida's Byrum Brown topped the list, with Florida State's Tommy Castellanos coming next. They were followed by Miami's Carson Beck, Baylor's Swayer Robertson, and LSU's Garrett Nussmeier. Notice a trend? They are all quarterbacks.
Arnold dropped just 2 spots from Griffin's Week 1 chart at No. 4, but it was an even steeper drop of 5 ranks for Nussmeier. Griffin ranked the LSU QB his No. 1 in his Week 1 rankings, and dropped him straight to No. 5 in Week 2, despite LSU's 23-7 win over LA Tech.
The real kicker is the list missing so many key Heisman competitors such as Clemson's Cade Klubnik, South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers, Oklahoma's John Mateer, and Texas' Arch Manning. All these QBs are hot favorites in most other Heisman lists.
All that said, these are still Week 2 rankings. We have 11 more to go. Plenty of other shockers will come along the way.