One trophy in all of college sports holds a prestige that no other award can touch.

No, not the Hobey Baker Award (college hockey player of the year).

The John Heisman Memorial Trophy, given once a year to the most outstanding college football player (or the best player on Southern California) by members of the Downtown Athletic Club.

The list of winners showcases the best that college football has to offer. Past winners include NFL greats Barry Sanders, Roger Staubach and Marcus Allen. But it also includes a who-who's of "Really? They won the Heisman?" That list consists of legends such as: Gino Torretta, Danny Wuerffel and Ty Detmer.

That is not a knock on the Heisman, because every award in sports rewards the flash-in-the-pan season. Also, all athletic awards have the same trait: They announce front runners and never deviate.

This year's Heisman was no different.

Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith and Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson were on everyone's preseason list. Both players lived up to the hype, but Peterson began to eke ahead of Smith in recent weeks.

Then, Peterson -- who is as unlucky as a five-leaf clover -- broke his collarbone in a game against Texas Tech, ending his season and allowing the next-best players to vie for the Heisman.

So here are the players battling for the second best athlete in college football:

1. Troy Smith, QB, Ohio State (1,715 yards, 21 touchdowns)

With the injury to Peterson, Smith has become the odds on favorite to win. ESPN.com has already given him all 15 of its first-place votes, so to say that it's his to lose is an understatement. Smith has been spectacular at times this season but he has a built in disadvantage: He doesn't have a conference championship game. Every other player on this list plays one more game than Smith, so he needs to wow the voters before December.

2. Steve Slaton, RB, West Virginia (1,059 yards, nine touchdowns)

Slaton might be the most dynamic running back in the most prolific running attack in college football. The Philadelphia native (Conwell-Egan grad) has recorded more than 2,000 yards rushing in his two years in Morgantown, W. Va. It might actually be possible that Slaton became faster in the offseason. But his chances are not that good, because lately it seems that the Heisman voters are not willing to give the award to underclassmen.

3. Ray Rice, RB, Rutgers (1,124 yards, 12 touchdowns)

As I mentioned two weeks ago, Rice has been the catalyst for the resurgence of Rutgers football. The 5-foot-9 sophomore rushed for more than 1,100 yards last season and is on pace for almost 2,000 yards this season. He's a nice story, but like Slaton, he's a sophomore. Remember this: He will be the leading Heisman candidate next season before jumping ship to the NFL. Yes, he's that good.

4. Brady Quinn, QB, Notre Dame (1,938 yards, 18 touchdowns)

As much as I don't like the guy, I do respect his talent. It is debatable that if Quinn wasn't on the Irish, he wouldn't be in this position, but that would be underestimating his talent. The way Quinn has played over his career, he could be the next Torretta, or he could be Staubach.

If this were a career award, Quinn's 10,274 yards passing and 76 touchdowns would make him the clear favorite, but unfortunately it's based on only the 2006 season.

Upset of the Week

A little bit of a change-up this week, because of the under-whelming situation that is the NCAA Div. I football lineup. So I've decided to pick an upset instead of the best game.

For this upset, I tap the SEC for one of the more intriguing games of the season, as No. 8 Tennessee travels to Columbia, S.C., to play the unranked Gamecocks.

The Volunteers are coming off a close call against unranked Alabama at home and have not been playing really well defensively. That doesn't bode well when you're about to face a Steve Spurrier-coached team.

Plus, the old ball coach used to own the Volunteers at Florida. Sometimes these trends carry over, sometimes they don't. I'm putting my money on the idea that Spurrier will figure out how to beat the Vols.

South Carolina 20, Tennessee 17