Miami Hurricanes’ Cam Ward one of four finalists for Heisman Trophy
Cam Ward is officially a finalist for the Heisman Trophy.
Whether he becomes the third player in Miami Hurricanes history to win the award will be revealed this weekend.
The other finalists along with Ward, which were announced Monday night: Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter, Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty and Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel.
Ward, who transferred to Miami after spending his first two college football seasons at FCS level Incarnate Word and then two more at Washington State, had a record-setting year in his lone campaign with the Hurricanes. He set the single-season school records for passing yards (4,123) and touchdowns (36). His 67.4 percent completion rate stands to be the UM single-season and career record as well (Tyler Van Dyke holds both of those marks — 63.7 percent for his career, 65.8 percent in the 2023 season).
Jeanty leads the nation with 2,497 rushing yards and is tied for the national lead with 29 rushing touchdowns. He is averaging 7.26 yards per carry and is a major reason why Boise State went 12-1, won the Mountain West and received a first-round bye in the 12-team College Football Playoff.
Hunter, who played wide receiver and cornerback for Colorado, finished second nationally with 14 receiving touchdowns and sixth with 1,152 receiving yards while also recording four interceptions and 11 pass breakups on defense.
Gabriel has completed 73.2 percent of his passes for 3,558 yards and 28 touchdowns while leading Oregon to a perfect 13-0 record heading into the College Football Playoff.
The winner will be announced on Saturday at 8 p.m., with the ceremony broadcast on ESPN.
Ward is the eighth Hurricane to be named a finalist and the first since Ken Dorsey and Willis McGahee in 2002.
The only other players in UM history to ever win the Heisman Trophy were Vinny Testeverde in 1986 and Gino Toretta in 1992.
Ward is also a finalist for three other national awards: the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award, the Manning Award and the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award. He was already named the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year by the conference as well as the league’s offensive player of the year by the Associated Press.
This story was originally published December 9, 2024 at 7:01 PM.
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