Is This the Year Two Wide Receivers Are Heisman Trophy Finalists?

Everyone loves a good Heisman Trophy race. And in 2026, we may have a Heisman race for the ages. There are quarterbacks aplenty, a few running backs who could shake things up, two defenders lurking on the periphery and a couple of stud wide receivers who are very much in the conversation. Speaking of the wide receivers, both Miami's Malachi Toney and Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith entered the Heisman chat with monstrous performances in their programs' respective Week 1 wins. The huge season-opening efforts got us thinking. Could this be the year we break historical precedent and get two wide receiver finalists for the Heisman? Has there ever been two wide receiver finalists in the Heisman Trophy vote? No, but there have been seasons with one wide receiver finalist, and four receivers have won the Heisman. But the award's 90-year history has largely resembled that of the sport itself. With nonexistent passing games and the rise of the wishbone offense came an influx of running back and fullback finalists and winners in the Heisman's early days, stretching from the 1930s to the '50s. Things began to change in the 1960s, '70s and '80s. Former Tulsa star and College Football Hall of Famer Howard Twilley in 1965 became the first wideout to post a 100-plus reception season and become a finalist for the Heisman Trophy when he finished as a runner-up to USC running back Mike Garrett. Seven years later, it finally happened. Johnny Rodgers, starring in Tom Osborne's I-formation offense that would go on to lead the Big Eight in passing a few times later on in the 1970s, won the Heisman Trophy while moving around the line of scrimmage like a chess piece. Passing games started to rev up from there, and so did the cases for receivers to win the Heisman. Notre Dame's Tim Brown claimed the award in 1987, then Michigan's Desmond Howard in 1991. Most recently, Alabama's DeVonta Smith (2021) and Colorado's Travis Hunter (2024) have claimed the award while playing receiver—in Hunter's case, receiver and cornerback. Yet, not even when there were as many as five Heisman finalists (11 times) and six (twice), the sport still never saw two receivers among the final group in its history. Since 1982, the year in which finalists were first invited to New York to participate in the televised ceremony, there have been 11 wide receiver finalists (counting the winners). It begs the question. What kind of wide receiver season does it take to win or be a finalist for the Heisman Trophy? What does a wide receiver need to have to be a factor in the Heisman Trophy race, you ask? Oh, only some of the greatest seasons in the history of the sport, is all. Seriously though, there are some eye-popping numbers up there, from Moss to Fitzgerald all the way to Smith. It doesn't hurt to play for a Power 4 program, as 10 of these 11 players did. It also doesn't hurt to be versatile like Brown or Howard, each of whom returned punts, kicks and even played snaps in the backfield. But competing for the Heisman or winning the Heisman takes more than just numbers that jump off the page. It takes monster performances in the biggest of games, it takes memorable moments within those performances and it takes narrative. If there's a compelling narrative behind a player in the running for the Heisman, it makes the player that much more attractive in the eyes of the voters. Consider DeVonta Smith's Heisman-winning campaign for the 2020 Crimson Tide. Not only was his season historically great, but it also came in a challenging year amid the COVID-19 pandemic playing against a tougher schedule and required him to remain productive even as defenses were zeroing in on him after teammate Jaylen Waddle injured his ankle in October. Remember those monster performances in the biggest games? Well, in six games against Top 25 opponents alone, Smith tallied 58 receptions for 930 yards and 13 touchdowns, bigger numbers than some receivers totaled for the entirety of that season. Oh, and he left the Heisman voters a lasting image when he broke the single-game program receptions record with 15 catches for 184 yards and two scores in Alabama's SEC title game victory over Florida, which came two days before the deadline to cast votes. So yeah, it takes monster numbers, monster performances, highlight-reel moments and yes, compelling storylines. Do Toney and Jeremiah Smith have what it takes? Why Malachi Toney and Jeremiah Smith could become Heisman finalists Simply pull up the tape of their respective Week 1 performances for the best evidence. Toney can run darn near every route on the route tree and his shiftiness in the open field blends perfectly with new quarterback Darian Mensah's quick-strike accuracy in the Air Raid–esque Miami offense. Toney put Stanford's defensive backs in the blender en route to a program-record 234 receiving yards and three touchdowns—three Heisman poses, too—in the Hurricanes' season-opening win Friday. This is a guy who caught 109 balls and dropped just one pass all season last year. As a freshman. So, he has the monster performances and highlight-reel moments within those performances covered, we'd say. As for a compelling narrative, the Hurricanes have some interesting games on the schedule in November, when the Heisman race really starts to heat up. If Toney can come up with a big play or two within a big performance to help Miami win against Notre Dame, Duke and Virginia Tech, it'll be a real feather in his cap for the Heisman. Smith's Week 1 performance vs. Ball State was as much a statement toward a Heisman campaign as it was to NFL scouts. Smith, in an eight-catch, 151-yard, two-touchdown performance, gave us not one, but two highlight-reel moments. He took the top off the Ball State defense with a 48-yard contested catch touchdown in the first quarter, showing off a blend of explosiveness and physicality all in one fell swoop. Then, he hit the scouts with some finesse in the second quarter, dusting a Ball State corner on a back-line crosser in the end zone, then getting both feet inbounds for a touchdown that's good on Saturdays and Sundays. Jeremiah Smith breaks out the Heisman pose after his second TD 👀😤(via @CFBONFOX) pic.twitter.com/t3DNvZuZKm Smith, like Toney, conducted much of his business in the first half of his team's blowout victory. But there are plenty of games on the Buckeyes' schedule, such as next week's tilt with Texas as well as October games against Oregon and Indiana, that will demand a full 60 minutes from the talented wideout. So grab your popcorn and cue up the Heisman-worthy performances! Why Malachi Toney and Jeremiah Smith won't become Heisman finalists If one of Smith or Toney doesn't end up in New York in December, it may be because of both historical precedent and present-day circumstances. We've already seen that the award's early days were dominated by running backs and fullbacks. Well, the award has most recently been dominated by quarterbacks, who have won 20 of the last 25 Heisman Trophies dating back to 2000. So if Toney and Smith are putting up monster numbers and dominating the Saturday headlines, chances are their quarterbacks, Mensah and Ohio State's 2025 Heisman finalist Julian Sayin, will be, too. So there's clearly a recent historical precedent at play that could work against the two star receivers. The present-day circumstances might as well. Take a glance at any early prognostication of the 2026 Heisman race and you'll see 12 or so players with a legitimate chance, if things break right, to earn an invite to New York and a chance at the trophy. Even if the natural ebbs and flows of a season begin to whittle the field down, we're still talking about a race that could go six or seven strong to the end. That could make it difficult for even one wide receiver to become a finalist, let alone two. But Week 1 was a firm reminder that one simply never knows what's going to happen in the wacky, wild world of college football. In other words, doubt Toney and Smith at your own risk. PODCAST: Listen to 's college sports podcast, , hosted by Pat Forde, on Apple and Spotify. Watch the show on SI's college YouTube channel or on SI TV. This article was originally published on www.si.com as Is This the Year Two Wide Receivers Are Heisman Trophy Finalists?.