Ranking the most dominant Heisman campaigns of the last 25 years

5. Troy Smith 

While Smith didn’t put up huge numbers in Ohio State’s run-heavy offense, he gets a huge boost for a record-breaking Heisman Trophy victory.

The Columbus native received a scholarship from his hometown Ohio State Buckeyes late in the recruiting prospect after a strong showing in the Elite 11. A versatile athlete, Smith originally received playing time as a running back and kick returner in 2003 before entering his redshirt sophomore campaign as the backup quarterback.

Smith gradually received more playing time and was finally atop the Ohio State depth chart in 2005, leading a 10-2 campaign. As a senior in 2006, Smith improved across the board as a passer by completing 65.3 percent of his passes for 2,542 yards and 30 touchdowns to six interceptions, while adding another 204 yards on the ground.

Most projected Smith atop the Heisman race after beating Texas early in the season, and he was easily voted in over Arkansas’ Darren McFadden and Notre Dame’s Brady Quinn. Even with players like Quinn and Colt Brennan of Hawaii putting up more prolific stats, Smith set a Heisman Trophy record by receiving 91.6 percent of the first-place votes.

It was still an ultra-efficient season from Smith despite the Buckeyes leaning more heavily on running backs Antonio Pittman and Chris Wells during their run to the BCS title game. Topping Smith’s record for first-place votes is going to take an extraordinary campaign, even with dual-threat quarterbacks putting up huge numbers in recent seasons.