College football is on the rise and has been fun to watch this year. The Heisman race looks interesting, and the fate of some coaches are up in the air, which will lead to an exciting couple of weeks to close the college football season.

The Heisman finalists were released on Nov. 24 and the winner will be announced on Dec. 12. The five finalists are Alabama running back Derrick Henry, Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson, Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey, Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield, and Florida State running back Dalvin Cook.

In my opinion, Christian McCaffrey deserves to win the Heisman trophy. He is, in fact, the most valuable player on the Stanford team, and without him, the team wouldn’t be 10-2. However, the voting almost always leans toward a quarterback, so that’s why I believe Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson will win this year’s Heisman trophy.

Alabama running back Derrick Henry is simply a beast. The 6-foot-3 inch, 240-pound running back is a dominant force in the SEC and has a total of 22 touchdowns, 1797 rushing yards on 295 carries, and has lead his team, currently ranked number two in the country, to an 11-1 record. Henry is currently leading the Heisman voting.

Watson has led the number one ranked team in the nation to a perfect record, so far. Watson has really turned it on the past two weeks tallying 850 yards of total offense in his past two games. His recent performances have helped him extremely in the eyes of voters and the sophomore quarterback is currently second in the voting.

McCaffrey is an all-purpose runner, who is the backbone of his team’s success. He recently surpassed Reggie Bush’s single-season record for all-purpose yards.

Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield and Florida State running back Dalvin Cook have both had phenomenal years. Mayfield has thrown for 3,389 yards and 35 touchdowns, which has lead the Sooners to an 11-1 record, and Cook has rushed for 1,658 yards and 18 touchdowns, which has lead his team to a 10-2 record. However, both of these finalists don’t receive a lot of media spotlight and, in my opinion, will finish fourth and fifth in the voting.

The potential firing of LSU head coach Les Miles and the firing of Georgia head coach Mark Richt have created a whirlwind in the college football environment.

There were rumors that this would be Miles’ last year as he would be fired following this season. LSU was ranked number two in the country just three weeks ago, and Miles has helped to recruit the best athletes in the nation. LSU currently has the number one ranked recruiting class of incoming freshman. To put it plain and simple, Miles is good and his job should’ve never been in jeopardy.

Georgia fired their head coach of 15 years, Mark Richt, following the team’s final game of the season. Although Georgia was the favorite in the SEC East and came up short, the team still finished with a 9-3 record. In his stint with Georgia, Richt proved to be one of the best coaches in the country, and the fact that he got fired after a 9-3 season is simply ridiculous.

The ending to the college football season looks to be very exciting. With many teams fighting for the final spot in the playoff, electrifying football is sure to follow.

Alex Rasmussen is the Social Media Manager for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.