Since Chicago’s Jay Berwanger was recognized as the most outstanding college football player in 1935 as the first Heisman Memorial Trophy winner, fans and football pundits have followed the award closely. The award has risen in stature through the years and schools with the most Heisman Trophy winners receive a similar lofty esteem as national championship winners.

With college football’s top individual award now approaching a century of drama, debate and excitement, not one school has emerged to be the clear-cut leader in generating Heisman winners. As a matter of fact following the 2023 season, four colleges were in a first place tie for capturing the most Heisman Trophies. Read on to discover the colleges with the most Heisman Trophy winners and the programs emerging to be contenders for the top spot..

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USC is the Heisman Leader

With the Heisman Trust reinstating Reggie Bush’s 2005 Heisman, the Trojans jumped to the top of the standings for college football’s most prestigious individual award. USC had climbed to a tie for first place when Trojan QB Caleb Williams captured the award in 2022.

Along with USC, schools such as Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Oklahoma have been dominant forces in college football for decades. Their success in producing championship seasons has paralleled with their top players hoisting the famed stiff-armed trophy.

Heisman LeadersTotal Heisman Winners
USC8
Oklahoma7
Ohio State7
Notre Dame7
Alabama 4
Nebraska3
Army3
Michigan3
LSU3
Auburn3
Florida3
Florida State3
Georgia2
Miami2
Texas2
Texas A&M2
Navy2
Wisconsin2
Yale2

 

Heisman Trophy Race Trends

When looking at trends impacting future Heisman standings, insight on how some of the leading schools have fared in recent years may shed some light on what some colleges may emerge as a leader in the Heisman Chase overall standings.

The SEC has established itself as a powerhouse in college football, consistently producing Heisman Trophy winners. In recent years, Jayden Daniels from LSU, Bryce Young and Devonta Smith from Alabama, and Joe Burrow from LSU have all taken home the prestigious award. This trend underscores the SEC’s dominance and the high level of talent within the conference.

The Saban Effect

Nick Saban’s dominance at Alabama from 2007 through 2023 not only produced six national championships but it also attracted the nation’s best players to Tuscaloosa who knew that playing for the legendary coach would boost their NFL Draft stock . By the 2009 season the Crimson Tide was ready to start cranking out a series of Heisman Trophy Winners. RB Mark Ingram won 2009’s stiff-armed trophy and then Bama created a flurry of Heisman winners who lifted the trophy in 2015, 2020 and 2021.

As Alabama’s consistent dominance under Saban continued, the rest of the SEC literally had to up their game and their rosters to compete. This led to four Heisman Trophy winners emerging from the Saban’s SEC West Division. The group included Auburn’s Cam Newton (2010), Texas A&M QB Johnny Manziel (2012), LSU QB Joe Burrow (2019) and LSU QB Jayden Daniels (2023)

Coaches With Most Heisman Trophy Winners

The Heisman Run Passes

Through the years, the college football players that dominated the stiff-armed trophy were running backs. However it’s been since 2015 since the Heisman Trophy was awarded to a running back. It was Alabama’s Derrick Henry that hoisted the trophy that year, but since it’s been a solid string of quarterbacks.

The emergence of dual-threat quarterbacks has fueled the position passing running backs as the Heisman voter’s top choice. These players have not only set passing records, but they’ve often been a major force in their team’s ground game. During Lamar Jackson’s 2016 Heisman season, the Louisville QB rushed for 1,538 yards while Oklahoma’s Kyler Murray rushed for 892 yards

The Last time these top Heisman producing schools produced a winner was:

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