College Football Teams With The Most Heisman Trophy Winners

The Heisman Trophy is the oldest and most prestigious award in college football. Created by the Downtown Athletic Club in 1935, it is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Since 2003, the award has been presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust.

Among the 89 Heisman Trophy winners, 20 (22.47%) ended up becoming the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft.

Seven Heisman winners were forced to vacate their trophies due to NCAA policy violations. The most recent victim of the NCAA rules was legendary USC running back Reggie Bush, who was forced to vacate his 2005 Heisman Trophy when it was discovered that he and his family accepted cash and gifts from marketing agents.

Since then, college athletes have been able to earn money based on their name, image, and likeness but the NCAA has refused to reinstate Bush’s Heisman Trophy or his 2005 season records.

For the purposes of this list, we will recognize Bush’s 2005 season, which makes USC the school with the most Heisman Trophy winners.

The Trojans have eight Heisman winners in school history. Most recently, quarterback Caleb Williams won the Heisman in 2022 and had a chance to become just the second player in NCAA history to win back-to-back Heisman Trophies. Former Ohio State running back Archie Griffin is the only player to ever accomplish the feat after taking home the award in 1974 and 1975. In fact, Griffin had a chance to win three Heismans in a row but was 731 points away from winning the award as a freshman in 1973.

Here are the schools with the most Heisman Trophy winners.

1. USC — 8 Heisman Winners
2. Ohio State — 7 Heisman Winners
3. Oklahoma — 7 Heisman Winners
4. Notre Dame — 7 Heisman Winners
5. Auburn — 3 Heisman Winners
6. Army —3 Heisman Winners
7. Florida — 3 Heisman Winners
8. Florida State — 3 Heisman Winners
9. Michigan — 3 Heisman Winners
10. Nebraska — 3 Heisman Winners
11. LSU — 3 Heisman Winners

1. USC — 8 Heisman Winners

Heisman Winners:

• Mike Garrett (1965)
• O. J. Simpson (1968)
• Charles White (1979)
• Marcus Allen (1981)
• Carson Palmer (2002)
• Matt Leinart (2004)
• Reggie Bush (2005)
• Caleb Williams (2022)

The USC Trojans have had more Heisman Trophy winners than any other school. Some of the most iconic college football players have won the award in a Trojans’ uniform, including O.J. Simpson (1968), Marcus Allen (1981), Reggie Bush (2005), and Caleb Williams (2022).

During the height of the program in the early 2000s, three Trojans took home the award in a span of four years under head coach Pete Carroll. Carson Palmer started the run with a Heisman win in 2002 before Matt Leinart and Bush won the award in back-to-back seasons in 2004 and 2005.

T2. Ohio State — 7 Heisman Winners

Heisman Winners:

• Les Horvath (1944)
• Vic Janowicz (1950)
• Howard Cassady (1955)
• Archie Griffin (1974 & 1975)
• Eddie George (1995)
• Troy Smith (2006)

Ohio State is one of the most storied programs in college football history, so it might come as a surprise to some that the Buckeyes have only had two Heisman winners since 1976.

Archie Griffin is the most decorated college football player ever and the only player in history to win the Heisman Trophy twice. He won the award as a junior in 1974 and became the only repeat winner by taking it home again in 1975.

Since then, only running back Eddie George and quarterback Troy Smith have struck the famous Heisman pose.

T2. Oklahoma — 7 Heisman Winners

Heisman Winners:

• Billy Vessels (1952)
• Steve Owens (1969)
• Billy Sims (1978)
• Jason White (2003)
• Sam Bradford (2008)
• Baker Mayfield (2017)
• Kyler Murray (2018)

Oklahoma has become a springboard for quarterbacks in recent years. Four Sooners QBs have won the Heisman Trophy since 2000 and three of them have gone on to become the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft. Jason White kicked off the string of Oklahoma quarterbacks to win the Heisman Trophy in 2003 but he was never drafted and retired from football in 2005.

Sam Bradford continued the tradition of excellence by running away with the award in 2008 while Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray won the Heisman in back-to-back seasons in 2017 and 2018 under head coach Lincoln Riley.

All three quarterbacks went on to be drafted first overall, joining running back Billy Sims, who won the award in 1978 before being drafted with the No. 1 pick by the Detroit Lions in 1980.

Altogether, the Sooners have watched four former Heisman winners eventually become No. 1 NFL Draft picks, more than any other school on the list.

T2. Notre Dame — 7 Heisman Winners

Heisman Winners:

• Angelo Bertelli (1943)
• John Lujack (1947)
• Leon Hart (1949)
• John Lattner (1953)
• Paul Hornung (1956)
• John Huarte (1964)
• Tim Brown (1987)

Notre Dame hasn’t had a Heisman Trophy winner in 36 years but the Fighting Irish are still tied for the second-most winners all-time with seven. Wide receiver Tim Brown was the last Fighting Irish player to win the award in 1987. Prior to that, a Notre Dame hadn’t won the award in 23 years.

One of college football’s most historic programs, six Notre Dame players won the award from 1943 to 1964, including Green Bay Packers’ legend Paul Hornung.

5. Alabama — 4 Heisman Winners

Heisman Winners:

• Mark Ingram (2009)
• Derrick Henry (2015)
• Devonta Smith (2020)
• Bryce Young (2021)

Four Alabama players have won the Heisman Trophy since 2009 under head coach Nick Saban. Just three years into Saban’s tenue, Mark Ingram won the program’s first Heisman Trophy and led the Crimson Tide to the 2009 national title. Ingram’s victory was the closest vote in Heisman Trophy history, making him the first running back to win the award since Ron Dayne in 1999.

Another bruising Alabama running back, Derrick Henry rushed for 1,986 yards and rushed for 200 yards or more four times that season, joining the likes of Herschel Walker and Bo Jackson.

More recently, the Crimson Tide enjoyed back-to-back Heisman winners in 2020 and 2021. In 2020, DeVonta Smith became the first wide receiver win the Heisman since Desmond Howard to win the award. He led the country that season with 1,511 yards and finished with 17 touchdowns. Meanwhile, Young claimed the trophy the following season by throwing for 4,322 yards and 43 touchdowns as a sophomore.

T6. Auburn — 3 Heisman Winners

Heisman Winners:

• Pat Sullivan (1971)
• Bo Jackson (1985)
• Cam Newton (2010)

While the Auburn Tigers have only produced three Heisman winners, the namesake of the trophy actually belongs to former Tigers’ head coach John Heisman. Pat Sullivan was the first Tigers’ player to win the award in 1971. Two other former Auburn players are likely remembered for setting the college football world on fire.

Bo Jackson became Auburn’s first and only running back to rush for over 4,000 yards during their collegiate career. A two-sport athlete, Jackson edged out Chuck Long for the Heisman in one of the closest votes in Heisman history in 1985. That season, Jackson rushed for 1,786 yards and 17 touchdowns as a senior.

Then 25 years later, Cam Newton captured the attention of college football fans around the nation. In 2010, Newton threw for 2,589 yards and 28 touchdowns and only six interceptions while also rushing for 1,409 yards and 20 scores. That season, Auburn went undefeated and won its first national championship since 1957.

T6. Army —3 Heisman Winners

Heisman Winners:

• Felix “Doc” Blanchard (1945)
• Glenn Davis (1946)
• Pete Dawkins (1958)

Army might not be one of the top football programs in the country but it has a storied history. The Black Knights have won five national championships and produced three Heisman Trophy winners.

Led by Felix “Doc” Blanchard and Glenn Davis, Army went 27-0-1 and claimed three consecutive national titles from 1944-1946. Blanchard edged out Davis for the Heisman in 1945 but Davis claimed the award the following season. According to Heisman.com, Davis is the closest player to ever win two Heisman Trophies without accomplishing the feat, missing out on the 1945 Heisman by just 125 points.

Meanwhile, Pete Dawkins won the program’s third Heisman in 1958 after leading Army to an undefeated season.

T6. Florida — 3 Heisman Winners

• Steve Spurrier (1966)
• Danny Wuerffel (1996)
• Tim Tebow (2007)

T6. Florida State — 3 Heisman Winners

• Charlie Ward (1993)
• Chris Weinke (2000)
• Jameis Winston (2013)

Three Florida State players have won the Heisman Trophy, all of them quarterbacks. Charlie Ward took home the prestigious award in 1993 after leading the Seminoles to their first-ever national championship. While Ward went undrafted in the NFL, he is the only Heisman winner to ever play in the NBA, where he spent nine seasons with the New York Knicks.

Chris Weinke led the Seminoles to a national title in 1999 and followed that up by winning the Heisman Trophy in 2000.

As great as Ward and Weinke were, it was Jameis Winston who took the program to new heights in 2013. Winston won a national title in dramatic fashion in 2013, becoming the first redshirt freshman to win a Heisman Trophy and national title in the same season. He was the second freshman to ever win the award after Johnny Manziel, who took home the trophy as a freshman in 2012.

T6. Michigan — 3 Heisman Winners

• Tom Harmon (1940)
• Desmond Howard (1991)
• Charles Woodson (1997)

The Michigan Wolverines have won 11 national championships but the program boasts just three Heisman Trophy winners. In fact, a Wolverines’ player has not won the award since 1997.

Tom Harmon was the first Michigan man to win the award in 1940 but it took more than 50 years for the program to produce another Heisman winner. That became a reality when Desmond Howard used an electric 21-touchdown season to etch his name into the record books. Howard infamously struck the Heisman pose during the 1991 Ohio State-Michigan rivalry game, a celebration that has stood the test of time.

Six years later, another dynamic Wolverines’ player made history. Charles Woodson became the only defensive player ever to win the Heisman Trophy and was one of the few Heisman winners to log snaps on both sides of the ball. In 1997, he intercepted seven passes and finished with 231 receiving yards and a touchdown en route to propelling Michigan to a national championship.

T6. Nebraska — 3 Heisman Winners

• Johnny Rodgers (1972)
• Mike Rozier (1983)
• Eric Couch (2001)

Nebraska has the eighth-most FBS victories in college football history but the program has only produced three Heisman winners and none since 2001. The last time that happened, Eric Crouch turned in an excellent all-around season, throwing for 1,510 yards and rushing for 1,115 yards on the ground to claim the award. He ended his Nebraska career holding 32 school records and eventually was drafted in the third round of the 2002 NFL Draft as a wide receiver by the St. Louis Rams.

Arguably the greatest player in Nebraska football history, Rozier was the main weapon on one of the best offenses in the history of college football. In 1983, Nebraska averaged 52 points per game as Rozier rushed for 2,148 yards and 29 touchdowns while rushing for nearly eight yards per carry.

Meanwhile, Johnny Rodgers helped the Huskers win their first two national titles in 1970 and 1971 before becoming the program’s first Heisman Trophy winner in 1972. Known as “The Jet”, Rodgers finished with 1,978 all-purpose yards and 17 touchdowns, as Nebraska finished 8-2-1 on the year.

T6. LSU — 3 Heisman Winners

• Billy Cannon (1959)
• Joe Burrow (2019)
• Jayden Daniels (2023)

Jayden Daniels transferred to LSU after three years at Arizona State and the decision paid off in a big way this season. Unlike other Heisman winners, Daniels did not lead LSU to the national title or even win the SEC Championship. However, that didn’t take away from his incredible all-around campaign. Daniels was efficient as both a passer and runner in 2023, finishing with 2,812 yards and 40 touchdowns through the air and 1,134 yards and 10 scores on the ground.

Joe Burrow had arguably the greatest season in college football history in 2019. Not only did he lead LSU to the national championship, but he accounted for 65 touchdowns and finished with a 77.9 percent completion percentage on his way to winning the Heisman Trophy by a record number of votes. Burrow’s Heisman campaign was the most lopsided win ever, as he bested runner-up Jalen Hurts by an astounding 1,846 votes. Burrow set SEC records for passing yards (4,715) and touchdowns (48).

Billy Cannon won the Tigers’ first Heisman Trophy in 1959. At 6-1, 210 pounds, Cannon is said to have been able to run 9.5 in the 100-yard dash.

Heisman Trophy Winners by Year

Heisman Trophy Winners by School