When Alabama running back Derrick Henry was named the winner of the 2015 Heisman Trophy Saturday night in New York City, the Crimson Tide star joined the exclusive fraternity of Heisman Trophy winners. This is often referred to as the most exclusive fraternity in sports, as only one player per year is inducted into the club every season since 1935. But Henry joined an even more exclusive club in college football history with his Heisman Trophy win by becoming the 22nd player to win each of the three major individual awards in college football; the Heisman Trophy, Maxwell Award and Walter Camp Player of the Year.
USC’s O.J. Simpson was the first player to win all three major awards in the same season, doing so in 1968. Simpson actually prevented UCLA’s Gary Beban from being the first triple crown award winner in college football when he was named the inaugural Walter Camp Award winner in 1967. Beban won the Heisman Trophy and the Maxwell Award that season. Stanford’s Jim Plunkett became the second player to sweep the three individual honors in 1970, and Penn State’s John Cappelletti swept the awards in 1973.
Henry is the fourth player from the SEC to win all three major awards, joining Georgia’s Herschel Walker, Florida’s Danny Wuerffel and Auburn’s Cam Newton. Henry is also the first running back to pull off the feat since Wisconsin’s Ron Dayne took all three honors in 1999. Ricky Williams of Texas did it the previous season in 1998 as well. Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota won all three individual awards last season as well. Alabama’s A.J. McCarron prevented Florida State’s Jameis Winston from winning all three awards by being named the Maxwell Award winner in 2013. Alabama’s last Heisman Trophy winner before Henry, Mark Ingram in 2009, actually prevented Texas quarterback Colt McCoy from pulling off the triple award feat. McCoy won the Maxwell Award and Walter Camp Player of the Year awards in that 2009 season.
Players to win Heisman Trophy, Maxwell Award and Walter Camp Player of the Year in Same Season
- O.J. Simpson, USC (1968)
- Jim Plunkett, Stanford (1970)
- John Cappelletti, Penn State (1973)
- Archie Griffin, Ohio State (1975)
- Tony Dorsett, Pittsburgh (1976)
- Charles White, USC (1979)
- Marcus Allen, USC (1981)
- Herschel Walker, Georgia (1982)
- Mike Rozier, Nebraska (1983)
- Doug Flutie, Boston College (1984)
- Vinny Testaverde, Miami (1986)
- Barry Sanders, Oklahoma State (1988)
- Desmond Howard, Michigan (1991)
- Gino Torretta, Miami (1992)
- Charlie Ward, Florida State (1993)
- Eddie Georgia, Ohio State (1995)
- Danny Wuerffel, Florida (1996)
- Ricky Williams, Texas (1998)
- Ron Dayne, Wisconsin (1999)
- Cam Newton, Auburn (2010)
- Marcus Mariota, Oregon (2014)
- Derrick Henry, Alabama (2015)