List of the Heisman Trophy Finalists by School

Last Modified Dec 9, 2024 14:11 GMT
Oklahoma Sooners, the most number of Heisman finalists. Source: @ou_football

The Heisman Memorial Trophy honors the best college football player each year who exhibits excellence in talent, effort, and dedication. It was created in 1935 by the Downtown Athletic Club and is now awarded by the Heisman Trophy Trust in the first week of December before postseason bowl games.

It was originally meant for the "most valuable college football player east of the Mississippi," but after John Heisman, the club's athletic director, passed away in 1936, the award was renamed in his honor.

List of the 163 Heisman Finalists by School, Since 1982

Number of FinalistsSchoolPlayers (Year)
11Oklahoma Brian Bosworth (1986), Josh Heupel (2000), Jason White (2003, 2004), Adrian Petersen (2004), Sam Bradford (2008), Baker Mayfield (2016, 2017), Dede Westbrook (2016), Kyler Murray (2018), and Jalen Hurts (2019)
11Alabama David Palmer (1993), Jay Barker (1994), Mark Ingram (2009), Trent Richardson (2011), AJ McCarron (2013), Amari Cooper (2014), Derrick Henry (2015), Tua Tagovailoa (2018), Mac Jones (2020), DeVonta Smith (2020), and Bryce Young (2021)
10Ohio StateKeith Byars (1984), Eddie George (1995), Orlando Pace (1996), Troy Smith (2006), Dwayne Kaskins (2018), Justin Fields (2019), Chase Young (2019), and C.J. Stroud (2021, 2022), Marvin Harrison Jr. (2023)
9Miami (FLA)Bernie Kosar (1984), Vinny Testaverde (1985, 1986), Steve Walsh (1988), Gino Torretta (1992), Warren Sapp (1994), Ken Dorsey (2001, 2002), and Willis McGahee (2002)
8Florida Emmitt Smith (1989), Danny Wuerffel (1995, 1996), Rex Grossman (2001), Tim Tebow (2007, 2008, 2009), and Kyle Trask (2020)
6Stanford John Elway (1982), Toby Gerhart (2009), Andrew Luck (2010, 2011), Christian McCaffrey (2015), and Bryce Love (2017)
6Michigan Jim Harbaugh (1986), Desmond Howard (1991), Charles Woodson (1997), Chris Perry (2003), Jabrill Peppers (2016), and Aidan Hutchinson (2021)
6USCRodney Peete (1988), Carson Palmer (2002), Matt Leinart (2004, 2005), Reggie Bush (2004), and Caleb Williams (2022)
5BYUSteve Young (1983), Robbie Bosco (1984, 1985), and Ty Detmer (1990, 1991)
5Notre DameTim Brown (1987), Tony Rice (1989), Raghib Ismail (1990), Brady Quinn (2006), and Manti Te’o (2012)
5Penn StateD.J. Dozier (1986), Blair Thomas (1989), Ki-Jana Carter (1994), Kerry Collins (1994), and Larry Johnson (2002)
4Florida StateCasey Weldon (1991), Charlie Ward (1993), Chris Weinke (2000), and Jameis Winston (2013)
4Nebraska Mike Rozier (1983), Tommie Frazier (1995), Eric Crouch (2001), and Ndamukong Suh (2009)
4Oregon Joey Harrington (2001), LaMichael James (2010), and Marcus Mariota (2014), Bo Nix (2023)
4Texas Ricky Williams (1998), Vince Young (2005), and Colt McCoy (2008, 2009)
3Auburn Bo Jackson (1985), Cam Newton (2010), and Tre Mason (2013)
3Boston CollegeDoug Flutie (1983, 1984), and Andre Williams (2013)
3Clemson Deshaun Watson (2015, 2016), and Trevor Lawrence (2020)
3Colorado Darian Hagan (1989), Eric Bieniemy (1990), and Rashaan Salaam (1994)
3Georgia Herschel Walker (1982), Garrison Hearst (1992), and Stetson Bennett (2022)
3LSUTyrann Mathieu (2011), Joe Burrow (2019), Jayden Daniels (2023)
3Pittsburgh Craig Heyward (1987), Larry Fitzgerald (2003), and Kenny Pickett (2021)
3Wisconsin Ron Dayne (1999), Montee Ball (2011), and Melvin Gordon (2014)
2Arkansas Darren McFadden (2006, 2007)
2Houston Andre Ware (1989), David Klingler (1990)
2Iowa Chuck Long (1985), Brad Banks (2002)
2Iowa StateTroy Davis (1995, 1996)
2Kansas StateMichael Bishop (1998), Collin Klein (2012)
2Louisville Lamar Jackson (2016, 2017)
2Marshall Randy Moss (1997), Chad Pennington (1999)
2Michigan StateLorenzo White (1985, 1987)
2Purdue Drew Brees (1999, 2000)
2TCULaDainian Tomlinson (2000), Max Duggan (2022)
2Tennessee Heath Shuler (1993), Peyton Manning (1997)
2Texas A&Mohnny Manziel (2012, 2013)
2UCLATroy Aikman (1988), Cade McNown (1997)
2West VirginiaMajor Harris (1988, 1989)
1Air ForceDee Dowis (1989)
1Alcorn StateSteve McNair (1994)
1Arizona StateJake Plummer (1996)
1Baylor Robert Griffin III (2011)
1Boise StateKellen Moore (2010)
1Georgia TechJoe Hamilton (1999)
1Hawaii Colt Brennan (2007)
1Holy CrossGordie Lockbaum (1987)
1Indiana Anthony Thompson (1989)
1Kentucky Tim Couch (1998)
1Mississippi Eli Manning (2003)
1Missouri Chase Daniel (2007)
1Northern IllinoisJordan Lynch (2013)
1Northwestern Darnell Autry (1995)
1Oklahoma StateBarry Sanders (1988)
1San Diego StateMarshal Faulk (1992)
1SMU Eric Dickerson (1982)
1Syracuse Don McPherson (1987)
1Temple Paul Palmer (1986)
1Utah Alex Smith (2004)
1Virginia Shawn Moore (1990)
1Virginia TechMichael Vick (1999)
1Washington Steve Emtman (1991)
1Washington StateRyan Leaf (1997)
1Washington HuskiesMichael Penix Jr(2023)

FAQs on Heisman Trophy

A. The Heisman Trophy is an annual award that honors the best college football player each year.

A. The Heisman Trophy was created in 1935 by the Downtown Athletic Club.

A. Oklahoma and Alabama share the record for having the most Heisman finalists, with 11 finalists each.

A. The Heisman Trophy is now awarded by the Heisman Trophy Trust.

A. Ohio State and Miami have had nine finalists since 1982, making them the schools with the second-highest number of finalists.

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