Jabrill Peppers Proving That He's A Heisman Candidate

Heading into this season there were some who thought Jabrill Peppers had a shot at becoming a Heisman candidate, and now he’s proving that he really is one.

We’re three games into the season, and it’s become pretty clear that Michigan football has an early Heisman candidate in Jabrill Peppers.

Peppers, a redshirt sophomore, did some incredible things through the non-conference portion of the schedule to garner even more attention than he was receiving in the offseason. That includes leading the Wolverines with 28 total tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss (which is also best in FBS), 2.5 sacks, three quarterback hurries and a forced fumble.

On Monday Peppers became the first player in the Big Ten to be named defensive player of the week and special teams player of the week after Michigan’s comeback win over Colorado.

To go along with everything he’s been doing defensively, Peppers also has 278 all-purpose yards, which includes a 54-yard punt return for a touchdown against Colorado last week.

After the Week 3 action, Peppers found himself ranked No. 5 on Paul Myerberg’s (USA Today) and Chris Johnson’s (Sports Illustrated) Heisman watch lists. Bruce Feldman (FOX Sports) has Peppers at No. 4.

Said Feldman of Peppers:

The former five-star recruit backed up Jim Harbaugh’s claim that he’s the most versatile football player in the country as the Wolverines rallied to beat Colorado. Peppers had nine tackles, 3.5 TFLs, a quarterback hurry, 24 yards rushing and 180 return yards (that included a 56-yard punt return for a TD).

Peppers is pulling off a very rare statistical double right now: he leads the nation in TFLs (9.5) and also is tops in punt return yardage (173 on a 21.6-yard average).

On this trajectory, Peppers is a Heisman candidate, no doubt. It won’t be long until the focus shifts to him being in that top three territory, possibly becoming a favorite to win it by late in the season. That probably won’t happen if Peppers’ workload remains the same. No worries, though, as Michigan revealed against the Buffaloes that he’s got a role on offense too.

Peppers getting the opportunity to produce on offense takes care of two problems for his potential run at the Heisman.

First, it adds the third element that virtually all contenders like Peppers need; it’s nearly impossible to get the necessary support by just being a stud on defense and an electric kick/punt returner. Second, it helps mask any setbacks that might come along defensively. Is Peppers to be expected to finish this season with 38 tackles for loss? Absolutely not.

I’m not going to attempt to apply must-have numbers for Peppers if he’s going to have a continued presence in this Heisman conversation, but the formula as I understand it is going to be working even more heavily in his favor soon.