Ohio State-Texas marks latest battle between Heisman hopefuls - ESPN

On Saturday night, one of the most anticipated games of the young 2026 college football season will take center stage as No. 1 Ohio State travels to Austin to face No. 4 Texas.

The game will obviously have major ramifications on early-season polling and the playoff seeding picture. But could it play a role in the Heisman Trophy race as well? The star power for both teams is off the charts. Thirty percent of the 10 players with the highest preseason odds to win the award will be on the gridiron at Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium, with Arch Manning at quarterback for the Longhorns and quarterback Julian Sayin and wide receiver Jeremiah Smith teaming up in the passing game for the Buckeyes.

According to ESPN Research, the high-profile nonconference clash will mark just the fourth game in the past 10 seasons in which three or more players in the top 10 of the Heisman odds list squared off in August or September.

So how did those games play out, and did successful campaigns for the players involved follow? Does winning a head-to-head matchup filled with Heisman hopefuls give prospective award contenders a leg up down the road?

The answer… isn't definitive. We're working with a sample size of three. But there isn't zero evidence either. Here's how those previous matchups played out.

Déjà vu, anyone? The last time at least three players in the top 10 Heisman odds list matched up was last year, when the Buckeyes and Longhorns met in Week 1, with the same trio of Manning (favorite at +650), Smith (fourth, 11-1) and Sayin (tied for eighth, 22-1) all drawing preseason buzz.

So how did that go? Well, the game itself didn't prove to be particularly entertaining — Ohio State came out on top 14-7 in a defense-minded affair. The