How does every 21st-century Heisman Trophy winner stack up against the others? Ranking the 19 college football legends from worst to best.
On Dec. 14, Joe Burrow is likely going to be named the 2019 Heisman Trophy winner and rightfully so. In a season filled with incredible production from quarterbacks, a litany of running backs and even a defensive end as Chase Young was named a finalist, Burrow was head and shoulders above the rest of the field.
Burrow will bring a close to the second decade of the 21st century in terms of winners. Just in terms of the last 20 years as he joins the other 19 winners of the 2000s, he’ll etch his name in history alongside other all-time great college football stars like Tim Tebow, Cam Newton, Reggie Bush (unofficially, at least) and many more.
His season will certainly go down as one of the best Heisman-winning campaigns that we’ve ever seen with 48 touchdown passes, nearly 4,900 passing yards and leading LSU to a No. 1 ranking going into the College Football Playoff. But before he hoists the award in New York City, it’s worth looking back before we determine his place among his soon-to-be peers.
Throughout the history of the Heisman Trophy being awarded but particularly in the 2000s, not every winner of college football’s most prestigious individual award is created equal. Part of that is due to the ever-shifting eras of the sport in terms of offensive production and styles of play but part of that is the result of one player being better than another.
Taking all that into account before Burrow becomes the 20th Heisman Trophy winner of the 21st century, let’s look back at the 19 players that have already nabbed the award and stack them up against one another, ranking them from worst to best. We start at the bottom where it’s a pretty decisive choice as for who should bring up the rear.