College football is one of the most popular sports in the United States. When taking live attendance and television ratings into account, it only trails professional football in terms of audience engagement. Each season, college football fans watch as the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) awards the top-performing football player with the Heisman Trophy. The award has been distributed annually since 1935, but only a handful of Heisman winners have gone on to have noteworthy professional careers. A total of 11 Heisman Trophy winners have been named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The Heisman Trophy is the oldest and most prestigious award available to collegiate football players. The award is voted on by a panel of sports journalists and previous award winners, with a combined fan vote counting for one total vote. The award mainly recognizes the most outstanding athletic performance of the season, although voters also assess each athlete’s effort and diligence.
The Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 in Super Bowl 58, preventing the Eagles’ DeVonta Smith from joining an elite club of Heisman winners who have also captured a national collegiate title and won a Super Bowl. Joe Burrow, quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals, was denied a similar opportunity the year prior. In fact, only three men have ever achieved the feat.
Marcus Allen stands alone as the only professional football player to win not only the Heisman Trophy, a national college football title, and the Super Bowl, but also the Super Bowl MVP award, along with NFL MVP honors. The running back played for 4 years at the University of Southern California, winning a national title in his freshman year and ending his collegiate career with the Heisman Trophy in 1981. He rushed for 2,342 yards during his senior campaign.
Allen was selected 10th overall by the Oakland Raiders in the 1982 National Football League (NFL) draft. His Super Bowl win came just 2 years after his Heisman award, with the Raiders defeating the Washington Redskins 38-9 in Super Bowl XVIII. Allen ran for 466 yards and a career-high four touchdowns during the playoffs. He scored twice in the Super Bowl and was named Super Bowl MVP. His league MVP award came in 1985 when he ran for 1,759 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Allen is joined by Tony Dorsett and Charles Woodson as the only other Heisman winners to also win a college title and Super Bowl. Woodson, a member of the NFL 2000s All-Decade Team, was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2009 and is a two-time interceptions leader. The defensive back has appeared in multiple Super Bowls, including a 31-25 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers as a member of the Green Bay Packers. The victory came 14 years after Woodson received his Heisman Trophy, becoming the third Michigan Wolverine to lift the trophy. He helped Michigan win the Rose Bowl that season, sealing a joint national title with Nebraska.
Dorsett, meanwhile, won his Heisman in 1976 as a running back at Pittsburgh. He surpassed 1,000 rushing yards in a 14-game rookie season and recorded a touchdown in Super Bowl XII as his Dallas Cowboys defeated the Denver Broncos. Dorsett and the Cowboys returned to the Super Bowl the following season, but lost a classic matchup with the Steelers.
