The 50 Greatest College Football Players Never to Win the Heisman Trophy

So close, yet so far away.

That's where these guys were when it came to the Heisman Trophy.

The award is supposed to be given annually to the best player in the college football universe, but as these gentlemen demonstrate so aptly, that is not always so.

Every one of them enjoyed tremendous success, and some of them deserved the Heisman but missed the cut for one reason or another.

However, they do make this list of the top 50 players to never win the trophy, which is nearly as prestigious.

Honorable Mention

Dennis Dixon, QB, Oregon

Willis McGahee, RB, Miami

Calvin Johnson, WR, Georgia Tech

Paul Giel, RB, Minnesota

Steve Emtman, DT, Washington

Randy White, DE, Maryland

Major Harris, QB, WVU

Johnny Majors, RB, Tennessee

Troy Davis, RB, Iowa State

Joey Harrington, QB, Oregon

Peter Warrick, WR, Florida State

Chad Pennington, QB, Marshall

Colin Kaepernick, QB, Nevada

Robbie Bosco, QB, BYU

50. Patrick Peterson, CB, LSU

Peterson was a playmaker at corner for the Tigers.

He was an excellent corner, one of the best in the country, and explosive as a return man.

In his junior season, he debuted as a returner, amassing 257 return yards in his first game as a returner, good enough for second-best single-game performance in SEC history.

It's extremely difficult for defensive players to win the Heisman, but Peterson had the defensive talent and explosive ability on kick returns to make him a viable candidate.

Of course, he was nowhere near the top of the ballot in spite of striking the "Heisman pose" after a punt return for a touchdown against West Virginia.

49. Jerry Rhome, QB, Tulsa

Rhome finished second in the Heisman voting in 1964 behind Notre Dame's John Huarte in what was one of the closest races ever.

Because he played for Tulsa, he did not get the love from the media that he deserved and missed his shot.

Rhome set NCAA records for most touchdowns in a single season and a single game, as well as most passes without an interception in a season and a career.

Interestingly enough, Rhome's primary target, Howard Twilley, was the runner-up in '65.

48. David Klingler, QB, Houston

Klingler set the single-season record for most passing touchdowns in 1990 with 54, a record that would stand until 2001.

He also holds the single-game passing touchdown record with 11 in a game against Eastern Michigan and set the NCAA single-game record for passing yards as well with 716.

He finished fifth in the 1990 Heisman race and is dwarfed by the shadow of Houston's lone Heisman winner, Andre Ware.

47. Pat White, QB, West Virginia

White was absolutely amazing for the Mountaineers during his time there, starting and winning four bowl games in his four seasons, two of them BCS bowls.

When he left WVU, he held the record for most career rushing yards by a quarterback.

He finished his senior season with 1,842 yards passing to go with 21 touchdowns and 974 yards rushing and eight touchdowns.

He finished sixth in Heisman voting his junior year and seventh after his senior campaign.

46. Colt Brennan, QB, Hawaii

You might think of him as a "system quarterback" from a small conference, but Colt Brennan could play some ball.

He was a Heisman finalist after his final year at Hawaii in 2007, in which he broke the record for most touchdowns in a season by tossing 58.

He set the NCAA record for single-season passing efficiency, as well as pass completion percentage.

Of course, his legacy was tarnished by his three-interception performance in the Sugar Bowl against Georgia, but there is no denying he was a great quarterback.

45. C.J. Spiller, RB, Clemson

C.J. Spiller was electric and one of the most versatile offensive stars in the country, rushing, receiving and returning kicks on a regular basis.

Totally underrated.

In his senior season, along with Jacoby Ford, he took over the record for all-purpose yards by a duo.

He set the FBS record for kickoff returns for touchdowns and became one of only five players to ever gain over 7,000 all-purpose yards.

He was the only player in the FBS to score a touchdown in every game of the season and the only player to score touchdowns five different ways—rushing, receiving, punt returning, kick returning and passing.

He finished sixth in Heisman voting behind Tim Tebow.

44. Glenn Dorsey, DE, LSU

Glenn Dorsey is just another defensive player who did not garner enough consideration simply because he played defense.

He was an All-American twice and hauled a ton of hardware home in his final season.

He won the Lombardi Award, the Lott Trophy, the Outland Trophy and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and is the only player to ever win all four.

He was a key part of the LSU Tigers' 2007 national-title-winning team and finished ninth in Heisman voting, higher than any other defensive player.

43. Dan Marino, QB, Pitt

Nice hair.

Dan Marino was very good for the Pitt Panthers from 1979 to 1982, leading them to three consecutive seasons with only one loss each year.

He fell short of the Heisman in his senior year due to a less than stellar season but finished fourth in Heisman voting with 2,876 yards and 37 touchdowns.

He was not quite as successful in college as he was in the NFL but earned a place in Pitt lore for his final game, a thrilling win over Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.

42. Rex Grossman, QB, Florida

Before you laugh, consider this:

If Grossman had not been asked to share snaps with Brock Berlin, he would likely have won going away.

He came in second by only 62 votes to winner Eric Crouch as a sophomore.

Had he been an upperclassman, he would have easily taken the award over Crouch.

Grossman passed for over 300 yards in nine consecutive games in that season.

He led the nation in passing efficiency, pass completion percentage and yards per attempt, while breaking David Klingler's record for most touchdowns in a season.

41. Ki-Jana Carter, RB, Penn State

Carter's NFL career was short-lived due to some torn cartilage in his knee during his first preseason game, but he had a great collegiate career.

He was the catalyst for Penn State's 1994 offensive unit that led the team to a 12-0 record and a Rose Bowl win.

He placed second in the voting to Colorado's Rashaan Salaam and was advised to leave Penn State by head coach Joe Paterno.

"This is the first time I have told anybody who has not graduated that I felt they ought to leave," said Paterno of Carter.

40. Lawrence Taylor, LB, North Carolina

Taylor was a freak athlete, even at the collegiate level.

He threw his body at ball-carriers with absolute ferocity and was a force on a defense that was not exactly filled with stars.

He earned All-American honors at his linebacker position and wowed coaches with his physical style of play on special teams.

"As a freshman playing on special teams, he'd jump a good six or seven feet in the air to block a punt, then land on the back of his neck," said assistant coach Bobby Cale. "He was reckless, just reckless."

39. Brady Quinn, QB, Notre Dame

Brady Quinn holds the Notre Dame record for most losses by a starting quarterback with 17.

So why is he here?

He finished third in the Heisman race his final season and fourth the year before that.

He left Notre Dame with 36 school records and tied for the record in wins.

Quinn is top-10 in the NCAA for career passing attempts, yards and touchdowns.

38. Joe Greene, DT, North Texas State

Joe Greene was "Mean" even before he was a part of the infamous "Steel Curtain" in the NFL.

He was part of a defense that held opponents to only 2,507 yards gained rushing on 1,276 attempts for an average of fewer than two yards.

His ability to stuff the run was second to none, and while the Heisman is difficult to justify in light of his stats, Greene should have gotten a little more hype.

37. Michael Vick, QB, Virginia Tech

You all remember the first time you saw Michael Vick in college.

Jaws dropped all across the nation watching him scramble.

Then he would unleash a bomb with his cannon of an arm.

He only played for two seasons in college before bolting for the pros, leading Virginia Tech to an undefeated 11-0 regular season as a redshirt freshman.

He tied Herschel Walker for highest placement in the Heisman voting by a freshman, finishing third.

36. Raghib Ismail, WR, Notre Dame

No one was better at returning kicks than "Rocket" except maybe Deion Sanders.

A signature moment was lost on a phantom call that brought back a 91-yard punt return for a touchdown in the Orange Bowl that would have won the game for the Irish.

Ismail finished as the runner-up to Ty Detmer.

He finished up his career with the Irish to the tune of 15 touchdowns and 4,187 all-purpose yards.

35. Brian Bosworth, LB, Oklahoma

"The Boz" was one of the most controversial figures that have ever cluttered the college football landscape.

"National Communists Against Athletes" was his slogan for the NCAA, and he unveiled it on the sidelines during the 1987 Orange Bowl, a game that he missed due to steroid use.

Unfortunately, his great play is usually forgotten, lost in the noise of his wild hairstyles and outrageous behavior.

34. Ryan Leaf, QB, Washington State

I can hear you snickering from here, but Ryan Leaf really was a pretty good college quarterback before tanking hard in the NFL.

He led the Washington State Cougars to their first Rose Bowl in 60-plus years and their first-ever Pac-10 title.

In his junior season, he finished third in Heisman voting and then elected to enter the NFL draft.

We all know how that turned out.

He did, however, finish first in the country in passer rating in that final season, so at least he enjoyed some success before flopping.

33. Marshall Faulk, RB, San Diego State

Marshall Faulk was an incredible back in college at SDSU before he went on to big things on Sundays.

In just his second game as a freshman, he set NCAA freshman records for yards with 386 and touchdowns with seven.

He enjoyed immense success his freshman season but never really duplicated it for the rest of his collegiate career.

Even so, he left sitting at No. 8 in NCAA history in touchdowns scored with 62.

32. Michael Crabtree, WR, Texas Tech

Michael Crabtree's two seasons were absolutely astounding.

He won both the Biletnikoff and Warfield awards in his freshman year after catching 22 touchdowns and accumulating 1,962 yards.

He followed that up with a 19-touchdown, 1,165-yard sophomore season in which he again won both awards.

The man was pretty much unstoppable, and his list of awards and honors goes on for a long time.

He wound up fifth in the Heisman race in his final season at Texas Tech.

31. Toby Gerhart, RB, Stanford

Toby Gerhart was robbed of the Heisman when it was given to the man on the better team.

Mark Ingram won it in the 2009 vote by 28 points, which was the slimmest margin in the history of the award.

Gerhart led Stanford to its first bowl game in nearly a decade and led the country in both touchdowns (28) and rushing yards (1,871).

Ingram was a good back, but Gerhart deserved the Heisman.

30. Jim McMahon, QB, BYU

Before McMahon went on to do "The Super Bowl Shuffle" as a member of the '85 Chicago Bears, he went to BYU.

How the guy who was infamous for his partying and lifestyle ever made it through a career at a Mormon school is a mystery, but he pulled it off.

In fact, 1980 was his year.

He finally got to start in his junior season and set NCAA records for touchdowns (47), passer rating (176.9) and yards (4,571).

He capped it all off with one of the greatest comebacks in bowl game history in the Holiday Bowl, bringing the Cougars back from 20 points down with four minutes left to win the game.

29. Mike Singletary, LB, Baylor

In spite of the big grin, Singletary was one of the most ferocious players to set foot on the gridiron.

He led Baylor to its first-ever 10-win season in his final year and set the team single-season tackle record with 232, including 35 in a game against Houston.

He earned All-American honors in both his junior and senior seasons and left the Bears with the school's career tackle record.

28. Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Pitt

Larry Fitzgerald left Pitt as one of the most decorated wide receivers in Big East history.

After his sophomore season, he received the Warfield Award, the Biletnikoff Award and All-American honors and finished second in Heisman voting.

In just two years at Pitt Fitzgerald set an NCAA record for most consecutive games with a touchdown catch (18), and he left Pitt as the leading receiver in school history and one of the most dynamic players ever seen.

27. Drew Brees, QB, Purdue

Drew Brees has been a winner for his entire career.

He led Purdue to its first Rose Bowl in nearly 35 years during his senior season, finished third in Heisman voting and won the Maxwell Award.

Though diminutive in size, he stepped up in a big way and left the college ranks as the Big Ten's leader in passing attempts, completions, total yards, passing yards (11,792) and touchdown passes (90).

26. Steve McNair, QB, Alcorn State

McNair was a monster at Alcorn State, putting up some incredible numbers.

He was recruited by Florida to play defensive back but turned it down, as he wished to play QB.

Good call.

McNair set career records for the Football Championship Subdivision (then Division I-AA) with 14,496 passing yards, as well as the division record for total offensive yards with 16,283 career yards.

He finished third in the Heisman race in his senior season after scoring 53 touchdowns.

25. LaDainian Tomlinson, RB, TCU

Before he was carving up NFL defenses on a routine basis, LaDainian Tomlinson was the best running back in the country for a two-year span.

He finished fourth in the 2000 Heisman race after leading the nation in rushing for two straight seasons.

He was instrumental in helping TCU reach a bowl game and win a postseason game for the first time in 41 years.

He left the Frogs after garnering 5,263 rushing yards.

24. Lee Roy Selmon, DT, Oklahoma

Selmon was the gap-plugger on Oklahoma's famed '74 and '75 championship squads who Barry Switzer named the greatest player he ever coached.

Selmon won both the Lombardi Award and the Outland Trophy in '75 and was a force disrupting the run on the Sooners' stout defensive units.

He tragically passed away at the age of 56 in September of this year.

23. Dave Rimington, C, Nebraska

Rimington was definitely one of the best centers to ever play the game.

He finished fifth in the Heisman voting in 1982, was a consensus first-team All-American in '81 and '82, won the Lombardi Award in '82 and is the only two-time Outland Trophy winner.

Talk about a bunch of awards—not bad for an O-lineman.

No wonder Rimington had a trophy named after him.

22. Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas

Run DMC was the most exciting player in the history of Arkansas football.

He is the only player to ever finish second in Heisman voting two years in a row, sits right behind Herschel Walker on the SEC's rushing list and is one of only two players to win the Doak Walker Award twice.

He finished his three-year career at Arkansas with 41 rushing touchdowns.

21. Rich Glover, DT, Nebraska

Glover finished third in the 1972 voting in a season that saw the Huskers finish fourth in the AP poll.

His teammate, running back Johnny Rodgers, won the trophy that season.

He was a key part of the consecutive national-championship-winning teams in '70 and '71 and was the first Husker to win both the Outland Trophy and the Lombardi Award.

Nebraska head coach Bob Devaney called Glover "the greatest defensive player I ever saw."

He earned All-American status in his final season and went on to a solid career in the NFL.

20. John Hannah, G, Alabama

Hannah was a dominant force on two solid 'Bama teams that went 21-3 in his final two seasons and won two SEC championships.

He could be the greatest lineman in the history of college football, winning All-American honors in both 1971 and 1972.

19. Orlando Pace, OT, Ohio State

Pace is the only two-time winner of the Lombardi Award and started for Ohio State as a true freshman.

Offensive linemen never win the Heisman—it just does not happen—but Pace is definitely one who should have garnered more consideration.

He was an absolute beast on the field, gobbling up tacklers and destroying defensive coordinators' game plans with apparent ease.

He went on to a successful NFL career.

18. Steve Young, QB, BYU

Dang you, Mike Rozier.

Rozier took the Heisman in 1983, Young's senior season.

Young's numbers were insane that year, as he put up 3,902 yards and 33 touchdowns through the air, completing 71.3 percent of his passes for an NCAA record.

He also proved he was nimble with his feet, rushing for 544 yards en route to an 11-1 record for the Cougars.

He finished the voting second to only Rozier and then went on to an extremely successful pro career.

17. Kellen Moore, QB, Boise State

Does anybody feel like Kellen Moore has a shot at the Heisman this season?

Didn't think so.

Even though he will likely leave the college football arena with the most wins in history by a quarterback, Moore will lose out to Andrew Luck barring an injury to Luck of epic proportions.

He was a finalist last season and will likely be this season as well, but BSU's weak conference has held him back in the eyes of Heisman voters.

16. Reggie Bush, RB, USC

Yes, Bush is now officially eligible for this list after forfeiting his Heisman win.

For those of you who have forgotten how electric he was, watch the video.

Regardless of eligibility, recruitment issues or anything else that marred his campaign, the man could flat play ball and deserved the Heisman.

15. Adrian Peterson, RB, Oklahoma

Peterson rumbled for 1,925 yards and 15 touchdowns as a true freshman and finished second in the Heisman ballot, which is the highest finish ever by a freshman.

However, an ankle injury and broken collarbone limited him for the rest of his college career, and he rushed for only 2,132 yards and 26 touchdowns over his last two seasons.

Just think of what he would have done had he stayed healthy.

14. Jim Brown, RB, Syracuse

Racism reared its ugly head when Brown was playing, and he was denied the Heisman.

He was arguably the greatest athlete of his time and averaged 6.2 yards per carry while gaining 986 yards to go with 14 touchdowns during the 1956 season.

He was versatile, punishing opponents with his strength and running away from them with his speed.

He kicked extra points for Syracuse, was their star rusher and also played lacrosse during his collegiate career.

While this does not directly have any bearing on his Heisman status, it says much about the kind of athlete that stepped on the football field, as well as his toughness.

13. Colt McCoy, QB, Texas

Has anybody yet figured out that Mack Brown's success earlier in his career was due to his quarterbacks?

While Vince Young gets all the press, it is actually Colt McCoy that dominates the 'Horns record books.

He holds the current NCAA record for most wins with 45, even though Kellen Moore is likely to break that record this season.

He holds Longhorn records for total yards, touchdowns, passing yards and touchdowns.

Young may have had a bigger signature moment, but McCoy had better stats.

12. Randy Moss, WR, Marshall

He may have been what we now term "troubled" in his early college years, but Moss was a gifted athlete and caught on in Division I-AA.

He took a roundabout route to get to Marshall, where he played for two seasons.

In 1997, he set the record for touchdowns receptions in a season, finished fourth in the Heisman voting and won the Biletnikoff Award.

11. Keith Jackson, TE, Oklahoma

How many tight ends could pull this off?

Not many.

Jackson, one of the top two tight ends to ever play the college game, was voted the Sooners' offensive player of the century.

He averaged a ridiculous 23.7 yards per catch during his career and caught 62 passes for 1,470 yards.

Imagine what kind of numbers he would have had in an offense that actually passed the ball.

10. Tommy Nobis, LB/OG, Texas

This is the guy that Texas' legendary coach Darrell Royal called "the finest two-way player I have ever seen."

He started on both sides of the ball throughout his entire career, finishing with a 20 tackles per game average.

That's right—20 per game for his career.

That's insane.

He finished seventh in the '65 Heisman race.

9. John Elway, QB, Stanford

Stanford stunk during Elway's time there, but it wasn't for lack of performance by its star quarterback.

He finished second to Herschel Walker in the 1982 race but was never able to lead his team to a bowl game, which likely partially influenced voters.

He finished his career as a Cardinal with 9,349 yards passing and 77 touchdowns and would have had much better numbers with a more solid unit, as evidenced by his later success.

By the way, Elway had an absolute laser, even when he was with the Cardinal.

8. Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska

You can't get much more dominating, or intimidating, than Ndamukong Suh was in his senior season at Nebraska in 2009

Suh finished the year with 12 sacks in 13 games, including an amazing 4.5 in the Big 12 championship game against Texas.

Suh didn't go totally unrecognized. He became the first defensive player to be named a Heisman finalist since 1997, when Michigan cornerback Charles Woodson became the first primarily defensive player to win the Heisman Trophy, and only the eighth defensive player to be among the top five in voting since 1970.

Alas, Alabama's Mark Ingram won the award that year.

7. Deion Sanders, CB, Florida State

Sanders was an elite-level cornerback and quite possibly the best cover corner to ever play the college game.

As if that wasn't enough, he was an incredibly skilled punt returner, leading the nation in 1988 at 15.2 yards per return and finishing his career with 1,429 punt return yards, a 'Noles record.

Deion was lightning in a bottle in the return game; mere stats don't come close to doing this guy justice.

6. Dick Butkus, LB/C, Illinois

Back in the day when guys played both offense and defense, Butkus became one of the greatest linebackers to ever play the game.

He anchored the offensive line as the center, leading the way for one of the nation's best rushing attacks.

Then he turned around and made tackles on defense with astonishing regularity, finishing his great career with 373 stops in only three seasons.

Butkus checked in at third in the Heisman race in 1964.

5. Peyton Manning, QB, Tennessee

Before the NFL legend grew, Manning was the best player the Tennessee Volunteers ever had set foot on the football field.

In spite of the fact that he is best remembered for not being able to take care of business against Florida, Manning rewrote the SEC record books.

He finished his career with a conference-record 11,020 yards of total offense and 11,201 passing yards.

(Doesn't say much for his rushing ability, does it?)

However, he finished behind Charles Woodson for the Heisman in his final season, finishing his stellar career with an NCAA-record lowest interception rate.

4. Hugh Green, DE, Pitt

Green was a monster for the Panthers.

He finished second in the 1980 Heisman campaign behind only South Carolina's George Rogers and just ahead of Herschel Walker.

Even though opposing offenses tried to stay out of his immediate vicinity, he still managed to accumulate 25 forced fumbles, 53 sacks and 460 tackles over the course of his career.

He did win the Walter Camp Award, the Maxwell Award, the Lombardi Award and was the Sporting News Player of the Year in his senior season, but he just missed the nation's most prestigious individual award.

3. Anthony Carter, WR, Michigan

Carter was in the mix from 1980 to 1982, but this elite return man and explosive receiver never broke through to get the trophy.

In the days when the Michigan offense was still considered plodding and slow, Carter was an anomaly for the Wolverines, averaging a then-NCAA record 17.4 yards per catch for his career.

His 37 touchdowns make it pretty obvious how explosive he was, and if that isn't enough to convince you he was one of the greats, consider this:

Over the course of his career, he averaged nearly a touchdown for every four catches.

2. Vince Young, QB, Texas

In the 2006 Rose Bowl, Young turned in one of the greatest performances in history.

The game was epic, as Young outplayed both of USC's Heisman winners and scored the game-winning touchdown with a sparkling run as the final seconds dwindled away.

Young's elite rushing ability coupled with his arm and vision made him one of the top college quarterbacks of all time, and he should have earned the Heisman.

In '05, he became the first player to rush for over 1,000 yards and pass for over 3,000 in the same season.

He would have been as close to a lock as you can get had he returned for his final season with the 'Horns.

1. Tommie Frazier, QB, Nebraska

Frazier, the catalyst for Nebraska's offense in the mid '90s, was one of the greatest winners of all time.

He led the Huskers to three championship games, winning two and coming within a missed field goal of another.

In his time at Nebraska, he set school records for career passing touchdowns, career total offense and rushing touchdowns by a quarterback in a season.

He was never sacked in the 1995 campaign, and his famous Fiesta Bowl run is definitely one of the greatest plays in the history of the game.