Typically at this stage of the Heisman race, the amount of players eligible to win the award is narrowed down to five. However, this year, for the second time in history, there are six Heisman finalists to close out a very exciting year in college football.

The Heisman Trophy is awarded to the most impressive player in college football, and there are several players attempting to make the case that they are the best this year.

As a result, it was too hard for the committee to narrow the finalists down to five, and the top 6 are filled with top players from the SEC, and two players that will be seen in the national championship. It is the second time in history that there are six finalists, and the first time since it happened in 1994.

6 Heisman finalists this season, that's the most since there were also 6 in 1994 (Salaam, Ki-Jana Carter, McNair, Collins, Jay Barker, Sapp)

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 9, 2013

The six finalists for the Heisman Trophy are Jameis Winston, AJ McCarron, Johnny Manziel, Andre Williams, Tre Mason, and Jordan Lynch. As usual, the Heisman finalists have been narrowed down to primarily quarterbacks, along with two running backs.

The college bowl schedule was also released today, letting all of the teams and fans know where the teams would be heading during the off-season, and when the games would be played.

Andre Williams, who is talked about less than any of the others, plays for Boston College. He ran for 2,102 yards, and 17 touchdowns, including racking up 200 or more yards five times during this season.

Northern Illinois continued to make their case for a BCS bowl behind the play of Jordan Lynch, but fell short and was not able to defeat Bowling Green. However, Lynch has been impressive throughout the season and threw for 2,676 yards and 23 touchdowns, and ran for another 1,881 yards and 22 touchdowns. He also finished seventh in the Heisman voting last year.

NyC here income thanks to coaches, teammates DFO and media relation for making this possible!!#bobcole

— Jordan Lynch (@Jordanlynch06) December 9, 2013

Tre Mason has been able to make his case for the Heisman over the past couple of games especially, helping his Auburn Tigers defeat Alabama in the Iron Bowl, and then gave a very impressive performance against Missouri in the SEC Championship Game, running for 304 yards, and scoring 3 touchdowns.

Mason has not had the attention on him as much as some of the others this season, and was somewhat in disbelief when he heard the news. Upon hearing he was invited, he said “For me to be invited to the Heisman ceremony, I am honored and blessed. I couldn’t have done it without my teammates. This is an honor for all of them also.”

Happy for my man Tre Mason on being a Heisman finalist! He is very deserving. #WarEagle

— Coach Gus Malzahn (@CoachGusMalzahn) December 9, 2013

Proud of my bro @TreMason21 you deserved everything you got glad to be working for you! Hardwork pays off

— Chad Slade (@ChadSlade62) December 9, 2013

Jameis Winston is the leading contender for the Heisman Trophy, as the quarterback of a Florida State team that has demolished their competition throughout the season. He is also heading to the BCS National Championship with a record of 13-0, easily handling their opponents throughout the entire sesaon.

Winston ranks first in the NCAA in passing efficiency, passing yards per attempt and set the NCAA record for passing touchdowns by a freshman. He was also investigated for sexual assault recently for an incident that occurred almost a year go, and while he was not charged with anything, it has been a case that has been getting him a lot of attention recently. Of course, off the field drama is no stranger to Heisman hopefuls, with Reggie Bush and Cam Newton both experiencing similar situations in recent years.

The ACC has two Heisman finalists (1 winner), two BCS teams (1 playing for a title) and an NCAA record 11 bowl teams. Weak conference right?

— Perry Kostidakis (@perrykos) December 10, 2013

Is there really a need for SIX Heisman finalists? Let's be real. That group is Jameis Winston and five dudes getting a free trip to NYC.

— Josh Newman (@Joshua_Newman) December 10, 2013

Joining Winston are two of the top quarterbacks in the SEC, AJ McCarron of Alabama, and Johnny Manziel from Texas A&M, who won the award last year. Johnny Manziel was very impressive during the first part of the season, including almost beating Alabama, and leading a blowout against Vanderbilt. However, his Aggies lost the last few games of the season, hurting his chances of winning the award.

Three of six Heisman finalists are from the #SEC.

— SEC Sports (@SEC) December 9, 2013

AJ McCarron has 2 national championships already in the past three years, and much of the country is well aware of what has been done at Alabama already in the past 3 years. However, after their loss to Auburn, they will not be heading to the national championship this year. Despite his success with the team, this is the first time that McCarron has been invited as one of the Heisman finalists.

In SEC games, #Heisman finalist AJ McCarron had 86.4 opp-adjusted QBR, tied for the best in conference; Johnny Manziel was 3rd at 85.5.

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 10, 2013

After the six Heisman finalists have been announced, it is hard to know who will come away with the award for sure, although Jameis Winston has certainly been the favorite recently. His Florida State Seminoles will be playing against the Auburn Tigers in the BCS National Championship on January 6th in Pasadena, California.

Congratulations to the #Heisman Finalists: Jordan Lynch Johnny Manziel Tre Mason AJ McCarron Andre Williams Jameis Winston

— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) December 9, 2013

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