Notre Dame Football: Can Riley Leonard Be A Heisman Finalist?

Irish signal caller Riley Leonard has a (small) shot to be in the Heisman Trophy mix

Nov 23, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard (13) throws the ball during the first half against the Army Black Knights at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

As poorly as his season started with Notre Dame, quarterback Riley Leonard has quietly been one of the best quarterbacks and players in the country since week two. Many won;t give him his flowers because of one *awful* performance against Northern Illinois, but a season isn't defined by one game.

Leonard has been balling out over the last eight weeks and he is being recognized for it in a big way.

While it looks unlikely that Leonard will actually win the Heisman, earning a "spot at the table" is certainly within the realm of possibility. It is essentially a two horse race as it stands, with Colorado's do-it-all WR/CB Travis Hunter and Boise State's phenom RB Ashton Jeanty running away with it.

The other two remaining spots, however, are largely up for grabs and if Leonard can continue to put up points in a big way for the Notre Dame offense, he has as great of a chance as anyone to make it to the final four athletes that are chosen to be the Heisman finalists.

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In most seasons, being a dual-threat quarterback is nearly a must if you want to make a run at the Heisman (Murray, Daniels, Tebow, Williams, Jackson), but this season has been much different.

Miami and Oregon signal callers Cam Ward and Dillon Gabriel have been great this year, as has Riley Leonard. What Leonard lacks in passing stats, he certainly has made up for on the ground and that will not have been ignored by the voters.

Ward and Gabriel are both over 3,000 passing yards on the year with 34 and 22 passing touchdowns respectively, while Leonard has just 14 touchdowns through the air for Notre Dame.

Where Leonard has "made his money" at Notre Dame has been on the ground. Leonard has tallied 671 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns, as compared to 155 yards and four touchdowns from Gabriel and 177 yards and six touchdowns from Ward.

The Fighting Irish quarterback has an uphill climb to make it as a Heisman finalist, but if Notre Dame stomps USC and Leonard puts up some gaudy numbers - who knows?!