Heisman Trophy: Best Season Performances

The Heisman Trophy is college football’s most prestigious honor. Winning it solidifies a player’s legacy as one of the all-time greats of the game, regardless of how his statistics compare to other recipients.

And yet, not all Heisman seasons are created equal.

While it’s tough to compare players of different eras as seasons get longer, athletes get bigger, stronger and faster, and the game evolves, some Heisman-winning performances stand out above the rest.

All-Time Best Heisman Seasons

Here’s a look at the 10 players whose Heisman seasons rank as the best of the best:

2017 – Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma

A big part of any Heisman campaign is capturing the attention of the media. And Mayfield did it in a big way, though not exactly in a positive manner. After throwing for 386 yards and 3 touchdowns to beat Ohio State in Columbus in early September, Mayfield caused a controversy by planting an Oklahoma fan on the “O” logo at midfield of Ohio Stadium. Later that season, he was forced to issue another public apology for his behavior before and during a game against Kansas. In between, he passed for a school-record 598 yards against Oklahoma State, and led the Sooners to the Big 12 Championship Game. He finished the season with 4,627 passing yards and 43 touchdowns in becoming the first former walk-on to win the Heisman Trophy.  

2015 – Derrick Henry, Alabama

Henry was the definition of a workhorse back. He was a punishing runner who, at 6-3, 242 pounds would wear a defense simply by repetition. And he did a lot of that during his Heisman season. He carried the ball 393 times, averaging 26 per game, and scored at least 1 touchdown in each of Alabama’s 14 wins. He led the nation in carries, rushing yards and rushing touchdowns. He not only jumped to the top of Alabama’s list of 1,000-yard rushers, he broke Herschel Walker’s single-season SEC rushing record with 2,219 yards and 28 scores. Henry jumped to the head of the Heisman class by outdueling LSU’s Leonard Fournette in November, then sealed the deal by going for 271 yards on 48 carries in the Iron Bowl against Auburn. A month after picking up his award, Henry led the Crimson Tide to the national championship by scoring 3 touchdowns in the title game against Clemson.

2014 – Marcus Mariota, Oregon

One year before Henry won the Heisman in old-school smashmouth style, Mariota earned his bronze statue in a much more updated fashion. The Oregon quarterback led the nation in passing touchdowns, total offense and passing efficiency while throwing for 4,454 yards and 42 scores. He also ran for 15 scores for a Ducks team that went 13-2 and advanced to the national championship game. The first Hawaiian-born player to win the Heisman, Mariota was the model of consistency in 2014. He completed better than 58% of his passes and threw for 2 or more touchdowns in every game. And with only 4 interceptions, he posted one of the best touchdown-to-interception rates in NCAA history.

1998 – Ricky Williams, Texas

Williams could have entered the NFL Draft after winning the Doak Walker Award as a junior in 1997. But he decided to return in hopes of adding a Heisman to his collection and set a few records along the way. He got off to a good start by breaking his own school record with 6 touchdowns in the season-opener against New Mexico State. The following week against UCLA, he surpassed Earl Campbell as the Longhorns’ all-time rushing leader.  He added a single-game Texas mark with 350 rushing yards against Iowa State while setting an NCAA standard with his 67th career touchdown in that same game. He eventually added the Division I career rushing record (6,279), surpassing 1976 Heisman winner Tony Dorsett’s mark of 6,082 yards in style with a 60-yard touchdown run against Texas A&M. He finished the year with 2,184 rushing yards, 27 touchdowns and a landslide win in the Heisman voting.

2007 – Tim Tebow, Florida

Tebow was one of the most heralded recruits to arrive on campus and he played a key situational role in helping the Gators to a national championship in 2006. But it was the following season, after he took over the starting job, that he immediately began living up to his immense hype. And then some. Tebow became the first player in FBS history to throw and run for 20 touchdowns, tallying 32 through the air and 23 on the ground. He punctuated a sophomore season in which he finished with 3,286 passing and 895 rushing yards with a highlight-reel moment in the final regular season game against rival Florida State. The play started with Tebow avoiding a sack, then ended with him running over 4 defenders on the way into the end zone for a score that effectively clinched his Heisman.

1981 – Marcus Allen, Southern Cal

Allen was the fourth Trojan running back to win the Heisman in a 16-year span. Of the star-studded group that also includes Mike Garrett in 1965, OJ Simpson in 1968 and Charles White in 1979, Allen’s award-winning season was the best of the bunch. He ran for 2,342 yards and 22 touchdowns, both of which led the nation, as did his average of 212 yards per game. He rushed for more than 200 yards 8 times, setting an NCAA single-season mark. It was one of 14 records he set in 1981, including most rushing yardage in a season. Allen is still the only player to win a college national championship, a Heisman, a Super Bowl, an NFL MVP award and be named MVP of the Super Bowl.

2016 – Lamar Jackson, Louisville

Jackson ran for 1,571 yards and 21 touchdowns, which would have been a Heisman-worth performance on its own merits. But that was only half the story of his 2016 season. The sophomore quarterback also threw for 3,543 yards and 30 touchdowns while completing 59% of his passes. He averaged better than 120 yards on the ground and 281 yards through the air. And doing it with a flair that produced several memorable moments, including his “Heisman Hurdle” into the end zone over a Syracuse defender in a nationally televised Friday night game.

2010 – Cam Newton, Auburn

Newton’s numbers might have been slightly lower than those of Jackson’s. But they were still incredible. And unlike Jackson, whose team faltered down the stretch to finish 8-5, Newton did it while carrying Auburn to an undefeated season and national championship. The Auburn star threw for 2,854 yards and ran for 1,473 while combining to account for 51 touchdowns (30 through the air, 20 on the ground and 1 receiving) while completing 66% of his passes. Not only did Newton join Auburn’s list of 1,000-yard rushers, he set the record for most yards by a quarterback. Newton capped his only season with the Tigers by driving them 77 yards on 7 plays in the final 2:33 of the Fiesta Bowl against Oregon for the score that clinched the national title.

2019 – Joe Burrow, LSU

Burrow threw for 60 touchdowns during his Heisman season of 2019. He ran for 15 more, running his total up to 75. To put that number into perspective, consider that only 12 of the 125 teams that made up the Football Bowl Subdivision that year managed to score as many. Burrow was the trigger man for an LSU offense that was among the most prolific in college football history and arguably the greatest team in BCS/Playoff history. He completed an incredible 76.3% of his passes while throwing for 5,671 yards and leading the Tigers’ juggernaut to an undefeated national championship season. It’s a performance that helped him win by the widest margin in Heisman history.

1988 – Barry Sanders, Oklahoma State

Granted, the game has changed and Sanders played during an era in which the passing game was used to set up the run rather than the other way around as it is today. But even under those circumstances, what Sanders did at Oklahoma State in 1998 is truly remarkable. He averaged 238.9 rushing yards per game that season. He ran for 37 touchdowns, caught a touchdown pass and took both a kickoff and a punt return to the house. His regular-season total of 2,628 yards is still an NCAA record. And that doesn’t even include the 222 yards and 5 touchdowns he recorded against Wyoming in the Holiday Bowl because at the time, bowl stats weren’t included on players’ official records. With those numbers added, Sanders finished 2,850 yards and 44 touchdowns, a good career for most players. He did it in just 12 games.

Brett Friedlander

Award-winning columnist Brett Friedlander has covered the ACC and college basketball since the 1980s.