Ohio State Heisman Winners: Exploring the Buckeyes' football stars who bagged CFB's most prestigious individual-trophy

Tied only with Notre Dame and Oklahoma, there have been seven Ohio State Heisman winners. Well, you can say six if you consider the fact that it was won twice by the legendary running back, Archie Griffin.

In this article, we take a look at the Ohio State Heisman winners, one after the other, in no particular order.

Ohio State Heisman Winners

6. Troy Smith - 2006

The most recent name on the list of Ohio State Heisman winners is Troy Smith. As a senior, the former Buckeyes quarterback led the team to an unbeaten record in the 2006 college football regular season.

The Buckeyes went on to lose the BCS national championship despite Smith’s 2,542 passing yards and 30 touchdowns.

Smith dusted competition from Darren McFadden and Brady Quinn to win the trophy with a record 86.7% of the first-place votes.

5. Eddie George - 1995

The Philadelphia-born former running back had a terrific season as a senior on the Ohio State Buckeyes football team in 1995. George caught 44 passes for 399 yards in addition to a school-record 1,927 rushing yards and 24 touchdowns.

George obtained his Heisman Trophy victory with one of the closest voting margins in the award’s history.

He beat the runner-up, Tommie Frazier, by just 264 votes. He finished his Ohio State career with 3,768 rushing yards, the second-highest in the school’s history. He also compiled 44 rushing touchdowns, ranking third in the school’s history.

4. Howard Cassady - 1955

Howard Cassady was one of the earlier Ohio State Heisman winners. He was a member of the Buckeyes team that won the national championship in 1954.

He finished third in the Heisman Trophy that year. However, he returned to win the trophy in 1955. In addition to the Heisman Trophy, Cassady also won the AP Male Athlete of the Year, the Maxwell Award, and the Big Ten Player of the Year in 1955.

He played 36 games for the Buckeyes, in which he scored 37 touchdowns. He was selected as the No. 3 overall pick in the 1956 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions. He left the Ohio State Buckeyes with his No. 40 jersey number retired.

3. Vic Janowicz - 1950

Vic Janowicz was as versatile as they come on the gridiron. He played for the Buckeyes as a halfback in the single-wing offense, as a punter on special teams, and also as a quarterback.

He excelled in all these positions. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1950 as a junior. That season, he had a 41.6% pass completion rate for 561 yards and 11 touchdowns.

He also had 114 carries for 314 yards, and he booted 120 punts. Janowicz played in the MLB for the Pittsburgh Pirates for two seasons before returning to football with the Washington Redskins in the 1954 season.

An automobile accident put an end to his career as an athlete. However, he was still able to pursue a career in broadcasting after his recovery.

2. Les Horvath - 1944

Nothing can be more ironic than the first Ohio State Heisman winner coming from South Bend, Indiana. In another universe, Les Horvath could have been a local hero if he played for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

But the former quarterback instead became a legend of the Ohio State Buckeyes, bringing home the school’s first Heisman Trophy in 1944.

Horvath threw for 345 yards and four touchdowns while rushing for 905 yards as a halfback. He led Ohio State to a 9-0 record and a No. 2 finish on the AP Poll.

1. Archie Griffin - 1975

Archie Griffin easily tops any list of Ohio State Heisman winners’ rankings. The reason is simple. He is the only person with the bragging rights of winning the prestigious individual award twice.

And he didn’t just win it twice. He did so in successive seasons. Griffin won 40 of the 46 games he started for the Buckeyes.

He rushed for 3,145 yards and 16 touchdowns in the two seasons he won the Heisman.

Griffin’s legendary status in the annals of the Ohio State Buckeyes is undisputed. He left the Buckeyes in 1976 to pursue a pro career and was in the NFL for seven seasons.

It is unclear when we’ll have another Ohio State Heisman winner. But Buckeyes fans can continue to relish in these absolute legends who have brought the prestige of winning the trophy to the school.