John David Booty, QB, USC - The last two starting quarterbacks for USC were Heisman winners and first round picks, and Booty has what it takes to follow in the footsteps of Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart.

After waiting behind Leinart for two seasons, Booty took the starting role last season, and threw for 3,347 yards and 29 touchdowns. He threw for three or more touchdowns seven times, and threw for at least 250 yards seven times as well. His numbers might have been considered disappointing by some standards, but leading receiver Dwayne Jarrett was less than 100 percent during part of the season, and the running game had trouble finding its footing.

But Booty had a breakout game in the Rose Bowl against Michigan, throwing for 391 yards and four touchdowns in USC’s 32-18 win over the Wolverines. That’s part of the reason he’s mentioned as a top Heisman contender despite losing his a great deal of his receiving corps and co-offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin, who is now the head coach of the Oakland Raiders.

Junior Patrick Turner has the talent to be the next great Trojans receiver, and sophomores Vidal Hazelton and Travon Patterson are moving up on the depth chart, along with redshirt freshman David Ausberry. With all that talent Booty has to work with, along with tight end Fred Davis, he should be able to replicate and even better his 2006 numbers. And, if so, USC will have a great chance at another national title, and Booty may well earn a trip to New York.

Colt McCoy, QB, Texas - This Colt is definitely a thoroughbred. As a redshirt freshman last season, McCoy had some big shoes to fill, following in the footsteps of Vince Young, who had led the Longhorns to the 2005 national title.

McCoy came through, producing one of the best seasons for any quarterback in Texas history. He threw for 2,570 yards and 29 touchdowns, and tossed only seven interceptions. He threw at least two touchdown passes in ten of Texas’ 13 games, including a Longhorn record six in a rout of Baylor on October 14. He suffered a stinger against Kansas State, and missed most of that game, which Texas eventually lost by three, and he was also hobbled in a loss against arch-rival Texas A&M. Those two losses killed off the Longhorns’ Big 12 and national title hopes, but McCoy rebounded with a 308-yard, two touchdown performance in an Alamo Bowl win over Iowa.

Texas figures to be a top-five, national title contender in 2007, and with that, McCoy figures to be in the hunt for the Heisman. Wide receivers Limas Sweed, Billy Pittman, and Quan Cosby will be McCoy’s primary targets, and if he gets the ball to them on a regular basis, big things can happen. If the ‘Horns are in the title hunt into late November, McCoy’s stock as a Heisman candidate will definitely be high.

P.J. Hill, RB, Wisconsin - Hill had a quiet freshman season for a team that may have had the quietest 12-1 campaign in college football history.

Hill redshirted while Brian Calhoun tore it up in 2005, but ran wild when he got his chance last season. He had seven 100+ yard games in Wisconsin’s first eight contests, including a 249-yard performance against Northwestern. His production slowed down in the last five games, as he had only one more 100+ yard game, but he still finished with 1,569 yards and 15 rushing touchdowns.

The Badgers will enter 2007 as a favorite for the Big Ten title, and a potential top-five team. That means Hill will have a target on his back, and teams will be gunning to stop him. But the big back should be able to have another productive season, and if Hill can replicate his 2006 numbers, and the Badgers win the Big Ten title, Hill could be a Heisman finalist.

Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville - If Brohm had declared for the draft as a junior, he would’ve been a top-five pick, and potentially the #1 pick. He very well could have, and he wouldn't have been faulted for leaving after coach Bobby Petrino bolted for the Atlanta Falcons. Instead, the talented gunslinger decided to stay for his senior season and play under first-year coach Steve Kragthorpe.

Despite missing two and a half games early in the season, Brohm still threw for 3,049 yards and 16 touchdowns, leading the Cardinals to their best season in school history. Louisville won the Big East title and defeated Wake Forest in the Orange Bowl. Brohm threw for 300+ yards six times in 2006.

Brohm may be working under a new coach, but that won’t deter him or the Cardinals from having a successful season. Brohm has his three top targets back in wide receivers Mario Urrutia and Harry Douglas and tight end Gary Barnidge.

Brohm has battled injuries in the last two seasons, so staying healthy will be a key to his Heisman campaign and Louisville’s chances at repeating as Big East champs. Brohm may well be the #1 pick in the 2008 draft, and it’d no doubt be a good way to close out an excellent Louisville career.

Ray Rice, RB, Rutgers - Without Ray Rice, Rutgers might still be an afterthought in the Big East. But with the aid of the talented back, the Scarlet Knights have gone from doormat to winner.

Rice ran for 1,120 yards in his freshman season in 2005, as Rutgers went to a bowl game. But last season, he emerged as one of the nation’s premier backs, and was a big reason why the Scarlet Knights were one of the nation’s best feel-good stories last year as they started 9-0 and were ranked in the top ten, challenged for the Big East title until the end, and finished 11-2 with a Texas Bowl victory over Kansas State. He ran for over 100 yards ten times in Rutgers’ 13 games, and had three 200+ yard games. All told, he ran for 1,794 yards, which was second in the nation, and scored 20 touchdowns, which was also second in the States.

Rice no longer has Brian Leonard in the backfield to help pave the way, but that won’t deter him for having a third straight 1,000 yard season. The offense should be improved, as quarterback Mike Teel should better his numbers from 2006. If Teel does indeed improve, that will take some of the pressure off of Rice, and allow him the chance to shine freely. And if the offense is indeed better, Rutgers hopes at being a top-15, Big East title-contending team are all the better, and so are Rice’s Heisman chances.

Ian Johnson, RB, Boise State - Not many people knew who Ian Johnson was going into last season, but the nation knows who he is now.

The Boise State back had quite the 2006 campaign. After playing very little as a freshman in 2005, Johnson had quite a breakout season as a sophomore, playing an integral role in the Broncos busting into the BCS party. A 240-yard, five TD performance in a rout of Oregon State in the second week put him on the map, and he took off from there, and ran for at least 88 yards in each game he played, including eclipsing the 100-yard mark nine times. Along with the five TD game, he scored four touchdowns twice and three times once.

He capped off his season with a 101-yard, one touchdown performance in the Fiesta Bowl against Oklahoma, but the biggest play he made in that game was the biggest play in Boise State history, as he scored the game-winning two-point conversion in overtime to upset the Sooners 43-42. And, to put an even better capper on that wonderful New Year’s night, he proposed to his girlfriend on national TV (and she accepted, of course).

This season, the Broncos will be breaking in a new quarterback with the departure of Jared Zabransky, so Johnson will be counted on to shoulder a big workload once again. If he is to be a serious contender for the Heisman, Boise State is going to have to come close to matching their 2006 season, which might be hard with Colt Brennan and Hawaii poised to take WAC supremacy from them.

Still prepping for college fantasy football the hard way? Read top insight from Fantasy College Blitz.