Before They Were Stars
Historic Heisman Trophy Winners—Before They Were Football Stars!
How’s your fantasy football team doing? Hope you placed some bets on contender quarterbacks Johnny Manziel and Collin Klein, and linebacker Manti Te'o for the 2012 Heisman Trophy award! Started in 1935 by the Downtown Athletics Club of Manhattan, New York (John Heisman was the athletics director at the time), the Heisman Trophy has become the holy grail of collegiate football players. It is awarded to the most outstanding player in the nation, which is saying a lot! Whether you’re biting your nails or running stats numbers, it’s going to be a close one with this year’s talented bunch. Here is a look at another group of iconic football stars... but way before they were Heisman winners, when dreams of going pro were still just dreams. By Brittany Carson
Seth Poppel/Yearbook Library
Jay Berwanger—1935
Jay Berwanger was the first ever football player to win the Heisman (originally the Downtown Athletic Club Trophy). The halfback from Dubuque, Iowa became a star known as “the one man football team” while playing for the University of Chicago, clearly a force to be reckoned with. In 1936, he became the first college player to be drafted by the NFL but instead chose to train for the 1936 Summer Olympics in the decathlon. He missed the cut and held jobs as a part-time coach for the University of Chicago football team, sports writer and as a car parts manufacturer. He died in 2002 when he was 88 years old.
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