Ranking Heisman Trophy winners from 1-81
Robert Griffin III Season Statistics
- Games: 13
- Pass Completions: 291
- Pass Attempts: 402
- Completion Percentage: 72.4
- Passing Yards: 4,293
- Passing Yards Per Game: 330.2
- Passing Touchdowns: 37
- Interceptions: 6
- Rushing Attempts: 179
- Rushing Yards: 699
- Rushing Yards Per Game: 53.8
- Yards Per Carry: 3.9
- Rushing Touchdowns: 10
- Receiving: 1 REC, 15 YD
The face of Baylor’s rise under head coach Art Briles, Robert Griffin III became the first player in school history to win the Heisman Trophy in 2011 on the strength of absolutely eye-popping statistics.
An All-American hurdler before he even played a snap for the Bears, Griffin offered an electric running style that combined with his precision passing ability to rack up 4,992 total yards as a junior. Griffin completed 72.4 percent of his passes and threw for 4,293 yards and 37 touchdowns with only seven interceptions and also ran for 699 yards and ten TDs, which helped him to a narrow victory over Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck in the Heisman voting.
One of three Heisman winners born outside the United States (Griffin was born in Japan, Frank Sinkwich was born in Croatia and Tim Tebow was born in The Philippines), Griffin led Baylor to a 10-3 record and a No. 13 final ranking in the AP Top 25 – the best for the program since 1986.
On top of his Heisman recognition, Griffin was named Player of the Year by the Associated Press and was a consensus All-American. Griffin also won the Davey O’Brien Award and the Manning Award.
Dick Kazmaier 1951 Season Statistics
- Games: 9
- Rushing Attempts: 149
- Rushing Yards: 861
- Rushing Yards Per Game: 95.7
- Yards Per Carry: 5.8
- Rushing Touchdowns: 9
- Pass Completions: 77
- Pass Attempts: 123
- Completion Percentage: 62.6
- Passing Yards: 966
- Passing Yards Per Game: 107.3
- Passing Touchdowns: 13
- Interceptions: 5
“I thought it was nice, and then I went back to class.”
That famous quote, which is featured in the ESPN College Football Encyclopedia among other places, is attributed to Princeton halfback Dick Kazmaier after learning he won the Heisman Trophy in 1951.
A star in the Tigers’ Single Wing offense, Kazmaier produced ridiculous statistics in 1951 by running for 861 yards and nine touchdowns while averaging 5.8 yards per carry and completed 62.6 percent of his passes for 966 yards (an average of 107.3 per game) for 13 touchdowns and five interceptions. He also led Princeton to a 9-0 record and No. 6 final ranking in the AP poll as part of a 22-game winning streak.
Kazmaier’s production earned him 506 first-place votes and 1,777 total points in the Heisman voting. Tennessee halfback Hank Lauricella, who posted similar rushing numbers but was held to roughly one-third of the passing statistics Kazmaier produced, was the runner-up with 45 No. 1 votes and 424 points.
After three seasons at Princeton, Kazmaier finished his career with 4,353 all-purpose yards, 55 total touchdowns, a consensus All-American nod, the Maxwell Award and the Heisman. He was the all-time leading rusher (1,950 rushing yards) for Princeton and ranked No. 2 on the program’s all-time passing list (2,404 passing yards).
However, as the quote above would suggest, football was just a game for Kazmaier. After he graduated, Kazmaier was drafted by the Chicago Bears but the talented dual-threat halfback did not pursue a professional football career and instead chose to attend Harvard Business School.
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