The Dynamic Dozen is slightly quarterback heavy with seven listed, but a variety of players made the list as well including two running backs, two wide receivers, and a defensive end.

The Dynamic Dozen has yet to pick a winner during the preseason, but 2012 Heisman finalist Collin Klein was ranked 10th on the preseason list last season and the early 2011 rankings, just six weeks through the season, had eventual winner Robert Griffin III as the frontrunner. 

The list consists of the 12 most dynamic Heisman Trophy contenders. It is based on the contenders that along with having gaudy numbers also make dynamic and meaningful plays on the field. This is not a predictor, but is a useful guide for Heisman candidates.

1. QB Johnny Manziel Texas A&M 166 (32)
2. LB Manti Te'o Notre Dame 139 (20)
3. QB Collin Klein Kansas State 82 (4)
4. QB Braxton Miller Ohio State 57 (4)
5. WR Marqise Lee USC 39 (1)
6. QB Tajh Boyd Clemson 12 (1)
7. RB Kenjon Barner Oregon 6
8. QB Jordan Lynch Northern Illinois 3
9. LB Jarvis Jones Georgia 2
10. RB Ka'Deem Carey Arizona 1
11. RB Stepfan Taylor Stanford 1
Number one votes in parentheses.

Date, Opponent, Game Result, Total Yards, Touchdowns
Sat Sept 1, L 18-17 Iowa, 173, 1
Sat Sept 8, W 35-7 Tenn-Martin, 274, 4
Sat Sept 15, W 41-40 at Army, 467, 5
Sat Sept 22, W 30-23 Kansas, 369, 2
Sat Sept 29, W 55-24 Central Michigan, 402, 4
Sat Oct 6, W 35-23 at Ball State, 316, 4
Sat Oct 13, W 45-3 Buffalo, 361, 4
Sat Oct 20, W 37-7 at Akron, 354, 4
Sat Oct 27, W 48-34 at Western Michigan, 410, 6
Sat Nov 3, W 63-0 UMass,348, 3
Wed Nov 14, W 31-24 Toledo, 569, 3
Fri Nov 23, at Eastern Michigan
Fri Nov 30, MAC Championship
Totals: 4,086 total yards (1,504 rushing) & 38 touchdowns

Overall Record: 10-0 
Record vs BCS Top 25: 3-0
Total yards: 2,768
Total touchdowns: 31
Interceptions: 3

Overall record: 8-2
Record vs BCS Top 25: 2-2
Total yards: 3,794
Total touchdowns: 33
Interceptions: 6

1. QB Collin Klein Kansas State 206 (53)
2. QB Johnny Manziel Texas A&M 102 (5)
3. LB Manti Te’o Notre Dame 70 (2)
4. RB Kenjon Barner Oregon 63
5. QB Braxton Miller Ohio State 34
6. WR Marqise Lee USC 23 (2)
7. QB Marcus Mariota Oregon 8
8. QB Colby Cameron Louisiana Tech 3
9. RB Giovani Bernard North Carolina 2
10. RB Montee Ball Wisconsin 1
10. QB Tajh Boyd Clemson 1
Number one votes in parentheses.

Collin Klein:
Sat Nov 17, at Baylor
Sat Dec 1, vs Texas

Johnny Manziel:
Sat Nov 17, vs Sam Houston St
Sat Nov 24, vs Missouri

Manti Te'o:
Sat Nov 17, vs Wake Forest
Sat Nov 24, at USC

Kenjon Barner:
Sat Nov 17, vs Stanford
Sat Nov 24, at Oregon State
Sat Dec 1, Pac-12 Championship

1. Collin Klein 26 (6)
2. Johnny Manziel 18 (3)
3. Marqise Lee 10 (2)

Oregon Ducks running back Kenjon Barner (5-11 192 Sr) has soared into the Heisman discussion with his eye popping school-record 321 rushing yards and five touchdowns last Saturday in the 62-51 win over the USC Trojans. 

With his numbers and recent stellar performance, you would think that he would now be the Heisman leader, but he has shared the spotlight on offense with a backfield of other talented players like QB Marcus Mariota and RB/WR De'Anthony Thomas. He was not even on the radar of many Heisman lists until recent weeks. 

Barner has awesome speed that goes great in the Oregon spread offense and he finds gaps well with a good burst through the hole. He is second in the nation for rushing yards per game (143.89) and tied nationally for most points per game.

''Kenjon is a phenomenal player. I think he just proved that to everybody, that he's one of the best players in the country,'' LaMichael James (former Oregon RB) said. ''I think he's the best player, that's not plural, that's singular. And I think he deserves the Heisman..."(AP)

According to polls, Kansas State quarterback Collin Klein still has a strong lead in the current Heisman race. However, he suffered an undisclosed injury last game and is questionable for this weekend, but coach Bill Snyder expects him to play. 

Listed in the combined poll results below are polls from HeismanPundit/CBSSports.com, ESPN, and USA Today combined together. There are 928 official voters for the Heisman Trophy. 

1. QB Collin Klein Kansas State 204 (55)
2. RB Kenjon Barner Oregon 97 (4)
3. LB Manti Te'o Notre Dame 69 
4. QB AJ McCarron Alabama 62 (2)
5. QB Braxton Miller Ohio State 50
6. WR Marqise Lee USC 16
7. QB Johnny Manziel Texas A&M 9
8. QB Tajh Boyd Clemson 5 (1)
9. QB Teddy Bridgewater Louisville 1
Number one votes in parentheses.

Date, Opponent, Rush Yards, Touchdowns
Sat Sept 1, Arkansas State, 66, 2
Sat Sept 8, Fresno State, 201, 3 
Sat Sept 15, Tennessee Tech, 57, 1 
Sat Sept 22, Arizona, 86, 0
Sat Sept 29, at Washington State, 195, 4 (1 Rec TD)
Sat Oct 6, Washington, 122, 0
Thu Oct 18, at Arizona State, 143, 3 
Sat Oct 27, Colorado, 104, 2
Sat Nov 3, at USC, 321, 5
Sat Nov 10, at California
Sat Nov 17, Stanford
Sat Nov 24, at Oregon State
Season totals: 143.89 rush yards per game, 1,295 rush yards, 7.2 yards per carry, and 20 total touchdowns. 

1. Collin Klein 28 (9)
2. Kenjon Barner 13 (1)
3. Marqise Lee 10 (1)

Key Stats: 70.9 percent completion, 2,264 total yards, and 28 total touchdowns.

Important Games Remaining: Sat Nov 3 vs Oklahoma State and Sat Dec 1 vs Texas. 

Key Stats: 78 total tackles, five interceptions, and two forced fumbles.

Important Games Remaining: Sat Nov 24 at USC.

Key Stats: 74.3 completion percent, 2,427 passing yards, and 27 total touchdowns.

Important Games Remaining: Sat Nov 10 at Oklahoma State and Sat Nov 17 vs Oklahoma. 

Young true sophomore QB Teddy Bridgewater is a bright talent for the Louisville Cardinals. According to a New York Times article, he places four pieces of bubble gum in his socks to help him relax (see back of post card below to the left). 

Louisville is helping feed the hype behind "Bubble Gum" Bridgewater and even sent out some pieces of gum to the media (see picture directly to the left). They spelled my last name wrong, but that's fine. Chewing on the gum is helping me relax as I finish this article. 

Bridgewater is completing 70.7 percent of his passes with 2,110 passing yards and 14 total touchdowns. He passed for 416 yards in his last game against Cincinnati. 

Jones is the only player to be named Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week twice so far this season. He had a career high 13 tackles (12 unassisted), two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and three sacks in Georgia's 17-9 win over rival Florida last week.

Heisman talk about the Oregon Ducks multi-playmaker may have slowed down, but he can still make awesome plays with his ridiculous speed. Thomas made another one just last week against outmatched opponent Colorado.   

Here is a list of the 12 most dynamic Heisman Trophy contenders through week four of the 2012 college football season. It is based on the contenders that along with having gaudy numbers also make dynamic and meaningful plays on the field. This is not a predictor, but there is useful information given on the Heisman race. The watch will be updated near season's end and reduced to around four to six contenders. 

The Dynamic Dozen includes a variety of position players with quarterbacks leading the way at five listed. After just four weeks, there are no definitive front-runners, but Heisman hype is beginning to pick up for some. However, there are a few players from the preseason list that have risen while there are many newcomers in addition. 

Many of the favorites from my preseason Dynamic Dozen Heisman Trophy contenders have fallen out including all of the top five and eight total. USC quarterback Matt Barkley may be the biggest disappointment of the preseason favorites early on; he has had four interceptions with only two touchdowns in his last two games. Wisconsin running back Montee Ball has been a huge surprise to everyone as well with dismal numbers this season (3.9 yards per carry). 

Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o recently had his name thrown into Heisman consideration. He is a picture perfect tackler that is morphing into a good all around linebacker as exemplified by his two interceptions against Michigan last Saturday. Te'o is possibly the most valuable defensive player in the country along with Georgia linebacker Jarvis Jones which is also in the Dynamic Dozen. Of course as everyone knows, a defensive player winning the Heisman Trophy is a longshot, but if Te'o maintains his current pace, it will be hard to keep him out of New York. 

I have another player included, offensive lineman Barrett Jones from Alabama, that is an even farther stretch than the linebackers listed. I highly doubt he will win the trophy, but he is one of the best college football players in the nation and is worth mentioning. There has been some rumbling about Jones as a Heisman candidate. 

As previously stated, the list is quarterback heavy as usual for a Heisman race. Four of the top five are QBs with Kansas State's Collin Klein coming in at number one. "Optimus" Klein is also number two on Heisman Pundit and ranked third on ESPN Heisman Watch. Kansas State's victory over Oklahoma helped the talented athlete garner some national attention. I had Klein on preseason watch despite him going under the radar on many others and he was not even included on the preseason Walter Camp Player of the Year watch list. 

West Virginia QB Geno Smith has some of the most impressive numbers in the nation early on, but the Mountaineers' schedule gets more difficult so it will be interesting to see if he can maintain his output. Florida State's EJ Manuel jumped into the Heisman conversation after the Seminoles' win over the Tigers in which he had a stellar outing (482 total yards vs Clemson). Smith is number one and Manuel number two in the Heisman race according to ESPN. 
 

"The Heisman Memorial Trophy annually recognizes the outstanding college football player whose performance best exhibits the pursuit of excellence with integrity. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard work..." (Heisman.com) 

Kansas State QB Collin Klein is no. 1 in the Dozen.

K-State Coach Bill Snyder on Klein, "The growth has been across the board. It is not just focused in one area. I think he has grown in every aspect of the game..."

RB/WR De'Anthony Thomas is no. 4 in the Dozen.