ATHENS — Travis Hunter, a former Collins Hill High standout, took home the 2024 Heisman Trophy, thanks to his two-way brilliance at Colorado. He beat out Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel and Miami quarterback Cam Ward.
With this year’s Heisman officially handed out, ESPN’s Mark Schlabach already has looked ahead and identified his “Way-too-early 2025 Heisman Trophy contenders.”
And Georgia running back Nate Frazier seems to fit the bill.
“If junior tailback Trevor Etienne declares for the NFL draft, Frazier should enter the 2025 season as the Bulldogs’ primary back,” Schlabach writes. “He showed plenty of promise as a freshman, running 129 times for 634 yards with eight scores. Frazier, from Compton, California, improved tremendously as a pass blocker and caught 10 passes out of the backfield. He lost a couple of untimely fumbles, though, so ball security will continue to be a focus going forward.”
Among the other SEC names mentioned are South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers, Florida quarterback DJ Lagway, Texas quarterback Arch Manning and Alabama wide receiver Ryan Williams.
While Jeanty finished second in this year’s voting, a running back has not won the Heisman since Alabama’s Derrick Henry in 2015. Jeanty and Henry each finished with more than 2,000 rushing yards. To this point in his freshman season, Frazier has 634 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on 129 carries. His most productive game came in a rout of UMass, where he ran for 136 yards and three touchdowns. He saw a noticeable uptick in usage when Etienne missed time with a rib injury.
Fumbles have been an issue but during the stretch run of the regular season, teammates were impressed with how Frazier stepped up.
“He’s done a great job. He did a great job tonight,” quarterback Carson Beck said after the win over Georgia Tech. “He’s done a great job this season. Date back all the way to August 31st, when we played Clemson and he went for however many yards he went for (83 on 11 carries); it was eye-opening, you know, and he showed that he was going to be able to produce for this team.
“With Etienne down, he’s really been able to step up for us.”
Etienne was healthy for the SEC Championship game, and he ran for 94 yards and two touchdowns. Etienne has another year of eligibility remaining.
The last Bulldog to win the Heisman was a running back, with Herschel Walker doing so in 1982. Quarterback Stetson Bennett was the last Heisman finalist from Georgia, as he finished fourth in 2022.
The Bulldogs have the chance to get Frazier some extra reps in practice this week as they get ready for the College Football Playoff. The Bulldogs take on the winner of Friday night’s Indiana-Notre Dame game in the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day.
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