Ashton Jeanty Will Make You Fall in Love With Football Again

Ashton Jeanty takes the handoff.
[Play “Lacrimosa” over whispers, watch the universe bubble, the heavens form.]
Bodies, bodies, bodies hit the turf. Failed defenders, their face masks down, look up for long enough to watch Jeanty leave them behind. There he goes, into the wild blue yonder. There he goes, headed for six. This has happened before, and it will happen again. Inevitability is a monster truck. It roars until it scores.
Boise State’s junior running back has rocketed into the upper echelon of Heisman Trophy contenders over his first five games of the 2024 college football season. He’s done so on the strength of absurd numbers and even more absurd highlights. He’s rushed for—eyes bulge—1,031 yards and 16 touchdowns on an average of 10.9 yards per carry. He leads the Football Bowl Subdivision in each of those categories, and his stats would be even better had he not sat out the second half of two blowouts. Still, Jeanty is on pace to break Barry…