Is Notre Dame QB Sam Hartman a top 10 Heisman Trophy candidate? A look at the betting odds
Each day that brings us closer to Aug. 26 also brings us closer to the potential reality of Notre Dame having a legit preseason Heisman Trophy candidate for what feels like the first time in ages. That’s because, well, in a sports era that’s cycles through news like tissues during allergy season, it has been ages.
Notre Dame has not sent anybody to New York as a finalist for the most coveted award in college football since linebacker Manti Te’o went in 2012. That’s in part because since then, the Irish haven’t had a player who three months before the end of the regular season looked like someone who could very well get himself to the Big Apple for the big trophy presentation.
Enter Wake Forest graduate transfer quarterback Sam Hartman.
On3 Sports’ Jesse Simonton has Hartman as his No. 7 favorite to win the most hardware that goes to the best player in the sport. Here’s why.
“The ACC’s all-time record holder in passing touchdowns is now the QB1 at Notre Dame, which instantly makes Sam Hartman a possible Heisman Trophy candidate in 2023.
“No longer at Wake Forest, Hartman’s talent will be shown on a bigger stage, especially against a schedule that features huge showdowns with Ohio State, USC and Clemson — all Top 10 teams. The Irish have a new OC, but they’ve reloaded the receiver room and have one of the better offensive lines in the country.
“Hartman has put up gaudy stats against lesser competition, but if he has similar production while helping Notre Dame contend for a College Football Playoff spot this fall then the senior QB will absolutely be in the mix for the nation’s most prestigious award.“
This is Simonton’s full top 10.
Top 10 Heisman Trophy candidates in 2023 per On3’s Jesse Simonton
- Caleb Williams, QB, USC
- Jordan Travis, QB, Florida State
- Quinn Ewers, QB, Texas
- JJ McCarthy, QB, Michigan
- Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
- Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
- Sam Hartman, QB, Notre Dame
- Michael Penix Jr., QB, Washington
- Cade Klubnik, QB, Clemson
- Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
Notre Dame has to face three of the players on that list, one from each of the aforementioned top-10 teams per Simonton; Williams, Klubnik and Harrison Jr. The Heisman has been handed out to a quarterback in six of the last seven seasons with the lone exception being Alabama wide receiver DeVonta Smith in 2020.
A Notre Dame player has not won the Heisman Trophy since wide receiver Tim Brown in 1987. The Irish have seven all-time winners, which ranks second behind USC. The Trojans pulled out of a tie with the Irish, Ohio State and Oklahoma with Williams’ win last year.
Here are the current betting odds as of June 12 per FanDuel SportsBook. The top 10 features seven of the 10 players included by Simonton in his own top 10 and three new ones.
FanDuel 2023 Heisman Trophy betting odds (June 12)
Williams (+500)
Penix Jr. (+1200)
Bo Nix, QB, Oregon (+1200)
Travis (+1200)
Daniels (+1500)
Maye (+1500)
Hartman (+1500)
Carson Beck, QB, Georgia (+2000)
Ewers (+2000)
Kyle McCord, QB, Ohio State (+2000)
