Prestigious
trophy awarded each year to the most outstanding college football player in the
United States.
It's presented by the
Downtown Athletic Club (DAC) in
New York City, The award is named after John W. Heisman, the first athletic director of the DAC, it has been awarded every year since 1936.
The winner of the award is determined by the votes of 870 sportswriters and telecasters, as well as the votes of all previous Heisman Trophy winners. The favorites are scrutinized throughout the year, and colleges develop marketing campaigns to promote their own athletes. Notre Dame quarterback Joe Theismann even changed the pronunciation of his last name to ryhme with Heisman, in an attempt to sway voters (it didn't work).
The award suffers a lot of criticism, because it is almost always awarded to an offensive player (maybe because offensive stats are easier to quantify), and because many feel that voters from each region (East, Midwest, South, and Far West), are biased towards players in their own region, and because voters from the eastern U.S. don't stay up late enough to see west coast games.
Quick Heisman Trivia Answer: Archie Griffin of Ohio State is the only player to win two Heisman Trophies.
Heisman Trophy Winners
1935 Jay Berwanger Chicago
1936 Larry Kelly Yale
1937 Clint Frank Yale
1938 Davey O'Brien Texas Christian
1939 Nile Kinnick Iowa
1940 Tom Harmon Michigan
1941 Bruce Smith Minnesota
1942 Frank Sinkwich Georgia
1943 Angelo Bertelli Notre Dame
1944 Les Horvath Ohio State
1945 Doc Blanchard Army
1946 Glenn Davis Army
1947 Johnny Lujack Notre Dame
1948 Doak Walker Southern Methodist
1949 Leon Hart Notre Dame
1950 Vic Janowicz Ohio State
1951 Dick Kazmaier Princeton
1952 Billy Vessels Oklahoma
1953 Johnny Lattner Notre Dame
1954 Alan Ameche Wisconsin
1955 Howard Cassady Ohio State
1956 Paul Hornung Notre Dame
1957 John David Crow Texas A&M
1958 Pete Dawkins Army
1959 Billy Cannon Louisiana State
1960 Joe Bellino Navy
1961 Ernie Davis Syracuse
1962 Terry Baker Oregon State
1963 Roger Staubach Navy
1964 John Huarte Notre Dame
1965 Mike Garrett USC
1966 Steve Spurrier Florida
1967 Gary Beban UCLA
1968 O.J. Simpson USC
1969 Steve Owens Oklahoma
1970 Jim Plunkett Stanford
1971 Pat Sullivan Auburn
1972 Johnny Rodgers Nebraska
1973 John Cappalletti Penn State
1974 Archie Griffin Ohio State
1975 Archie Griffin Ohio State
1976 Tony Dorsett Pittsburgh
1977 Earl Campbell Texas
1978 Billy Sims Oklahoma
1979 Charles White USC
1980 George Rogers South Carolina
1981 Marcus Allen USC
1982 Herschel Walker Georgia
1983 Mike Rozier Nebraska
1984 Doug Flutie Boston College
1985 Bo Jackson Auburn
1986 Vinny Testaverde Miami
1987 Tim Brown Notre Dame
1988 Barry Sanders Oklahoma State
1989 Andre Ware Houston
1990 Ty Detmer Brigham Young
1991 Desmond Howard Michigan
1992 Gino Torretta Miami
1993 Charlie Ward Florida State
1994 Rashaan Salaam Colorado
1995 Eddie George Ohio State
1996 Danny Wuerffel Florida
1997 Charles Woodson Michigan
1998 Ricky Williams Texas
1999 Ron Dayne Wisconsin
2000 Chris Weinke Florida State University
2001 Eric Crouch Nebraska
2002 Carson Palmer USC
2003 Jason White Oklahoma
2004 Matt Leinart USC
2005 Reggie Bush USC
2006 Troy Smith The Ohio State University
2007 Tim Tebow Florida
2008 Sam Bradford Oklahoma
2009 Mark Ingram Alabama
2010 Cam Newton Auburn