Heisman Winners List: Names, Year and Position of Past Winners

The race for the 2011 Heisman Trophy has been one of the most crowded and unpredictable races we've seen in years, but tonight, after months of debating, we'll finally get the chance to see which player will hoist the trophy.

Baylor QB Robert Griffin III is the current favorite, but you can make a legitimate case that any of the other four candidates—Stanford QB Andrew Luck, Alabama RB Trent Richardson, LSU CB Tyrann Mathieu and Wisconsin RB Montee Ball—are deserving of the award as well.

The Heisman is college football's most famous and storied award, and the list of past winners includes some of the greatest names who have ever stepped foot on a college gridiron.

Legends like Barry Sanders, Archie Griffin, Tim Tebow, Herschel Walker, Ricky Williams and Roger Staubach are just a few of the great players who have a Heisman sitting on their mantle.

Yes, admittedly there have been a few players like Miami QB Gino Toretta and Florida QB Danny Wuerffel who weren't all that memorable, but overall, the number of great Heisman winners definitely outweighs the mediocre ones.

This year's Heisman winner will certainly be joining an elite group, and they'll forever have their name etched in history.

Here's a look at the 76 players who have been honored with college football's most prestigious award.

1935: RB Jay Berwanger, Chicago

1936: E Larry Kelley, Yale

1937: QB Clint Frank, Yale

1938: QB Davey O'Brien, TCU

1939: RB Nile Kinnick, Iowa

1940: RB Tom Harmon, Michigan

1941: RB Bruce Smith, Minnesota

1942: RB Frank Sinkwich, Georgia

1943: QB Angelo Bertelli, Notre Dame

1944: QB Les Horvath, Ohio State

1945: FB Doc Blanchard, Army

1946: RB Glenn Davis, Army

1947: QB John Lujack, Notre Dame

1948: RB Doak Walker, Southern Methodist

1949: E Leon Hart,Notre Dame

1950: RB Vic Janowicz, Ohio State

1951: RB Dick Kazmaier, Princeton

1952: RB Billy Vessels, Oklahoma

1953: RB John Lattner, Notre Dame

1954: FB Alan Ameche, Wisconsin

1955: RB Howard Cassady, Ohio State

1956: QB Paul Hornung, Notre Dame

1957: RB John David Crow, Texas A&M

1958: RB Pete Dawkins, Army

1959: RB Billy Cannon, Louisiana State

1960: RB Joe Bellino, Navy

1961: RB Ernie Davis, Syracuse

1962: QB Terry Baker, Oregon State

1963: QB Roger Staubach, Navy

1964: QB John Huarte, Notre Dame

1965: RB Mike Garrett, USC

1966: QB Steve Spurrier, Florida

1967: QB Gary Beban, UCLA

1968: RB O.J. Simpson, USC

1969: FB Steve Owens, Oklahoma

1970: QB Jim Plunkett, Stanford

1971: QB Pat Sullivan, Auburn

1972: RB Johnny Rodgers, Nebraska

1973: RB John Cappelletti, Penn State

1974 and 1975: RB Archie Griffin, Ohio State

1976: RB Tony Dorsett, Pittsburgh

1977: RB Earl Campbell, Texas

1978: RB Billy Sims, Oklahoma

1979: RB Charles White, USC

1980: RB George Rogers, South Carolina

1981: RB Marcus Allen, USC

1982: RB Herschel Walker, Georgia

1983: RB Mike Rozier, Nebraska

1984: QB Doug Flutie, Boston College

1985: RB Bo Jackson, Auburn

1986: QB Vinny Testaverde, Miami

1987: WR Tim Brown, Notre Dame

1988: RB Barry Sanders, Oklahoma State

1989: QB Andre Ware, Houston

1990: QB Ty Detmer, Brigham Young

1991: WR Desmond Howard, Michigan

1992: QB Gino Torretta, Miami

1993: QB Charlie Ward, Florida State

1994: RB Rashaan Salaam, Colorado

1995: RB Eddie George,  Ohio State

1996: QB Danny Wuerffel, Florida

1997: CB Charles Woodson, Michigan

1998: RB Ricky Williams, Texas

1999: RB Ron Dayne, Wisconsin

2000: QB Chris Weinke, Florida State

2001: QB Eric Crouch, Nebraska

2002: QB Carson Palmer, USC

2003: QB Jason White, Oklahoma

2004: QB Matt Leinart, USC

2005: RB Reggie Bush,  USC (Vacated)

2006: QB Troy Smith, Ohio State

2007: QB Tim Tebow, Florida

2008: QB Sam Bradford, Oklahoma

2009: TB Mark Ingram, Alabama

2010: QB Cameron Newton, Auburn