Colorado’s Travis Hunter is the 89th player to win the prestigious Heisman Trophy and the fifth Georgia high school football player to win the award. The two-way star played scholastically at Collins Hill where he caught 48 touchdown passes and picked-off 19 passes.
The other Georgia high schoolers to win the Downtown Athletic Club’s top award are: George Rogers (Duluth, 1980), Herschel Walker (Johnson County, 1982), Charlie Ward (Thomas County Central, 1993) and Cam Newton (Westlake, 2010).
Two former High School Football America National Player of the Year winners have gone on to win a Heisman.
Kerrville Tivy (Texas) quarterback Johnny Manzel, who won the 2012 Heisman at Texas A&M in 2012, was our POY in 2010. Below you can listen to our interview with Johnny in 2011 by pushing the “play button” below.
Interview with Johnny Manziel, 2011
Current Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry won the HSFA POY in 2012.
California has had the most former players win The Heisman. 16 former California high school players have won college football’s top award. Below, are all of the winners and their high schools.
Heisman Trophy Winners by State
- California – 16
- Ohio -12
- Texas -11
- Georgia, Pennsylvania – 5
- Florida, Oklahoma – 4
- Alabama, Louisiana, Massachusetts – 3
- Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York – 2
- Hawaii, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Oregon, Tennessee, Virginia Washington DC, Wisconsin – 1
Heisman Trophy Winners and their High School
| Year | Name | Position | School | State |
| 1935 | Jay Berwanger | RB | Dubuque Sr. | Iowa |
| 1936 | Larry Kelley | TE | Williamsport | Pennsylvania |
| 1937 | Clint Frank | RB | Evanstown Township | Illinois |
| 1938 | Davey O’Brien | QB | Woodrow Wilson (Dallas) | Texas |
| 1939 | Nile Kinnick | RB | Adel | Iowa |
| 1940 | Tom Harmon | RB | Horace Mann | Indiana |
| 1941 | Bruce Smith | RB | Fairbault | Minnesota |
| 1942 | Frank Sinkwich | RB | Chaney | Ohio |
| 1943 | Angelo Bertelli | QB | Cathedral | Massachusetts |
| 1944 | Les Horvath | RB | James Ford Rhodes | Ohio |
| 1945 | Doc Blanchard | FB | St. Stanislaus | Mississippi |
| 1946 | Glenn Davis | RB | Bonita | California |
| 1947 | Johnny Lujack | QB | Connellsville | Pennsylvania |
| 1948 | Doak Walker | RB | Highland Park | Texas |
| 1949 | Leon Hart | TE | Turtle Creek | Pennsylvania |
| 1950 | Vic Janowicz | RB | Elyria | Ohio |
| 1951 | Dick Kazmaier | RB | Maumee | Ohio |
| 1952 | Billy Vessels | RB | Cleveland | Oklahoma |
| 1953 | John Lattner | RB | Fenwick | Illinois |
| 1954 | Alan Ameche | FB | Bradford | Wisconsin |
| 1955 | Howard Cassady | RB | Central (Columbus) | Ohio |
| 1956 | Paul Hornung | RB | Flaget | Kentucky |
| 1957 | John David Crow | RB | Springhill | Louisiana |
| 1958 | Pete Dawkins | RB | Cranbrook | Michigan |
| 1959 | Billy Cannon | RB | Istrouma | Louisiana |
| 1960 | Joe Bellino | Halfback | Winchester | Massachusetts |
| 1961 | Ernie Davis | RB | Elmira Free Academy | New York |
| 1962 | Terry Baker | QB | Jefferson | Oregon |
| 1963 | Roger Staubach | QB | Purcell Marian | Ohio |
| 1964 | John Huarte | QB | Mater Dei | California |
| 1965 | Mike Garrett | RB | Roosevelt (Los Angeles) | California |
| 1966 | Steve Spurrier | QB | Science Hill | Tennessee |
| 1967 | Gary Beban | QB | Seqquoia | California |
| 1968 | O.J. Simpson | RB | Galileo | California |
| 1969 | Steve Owens | RB | Miami | Oklahoma |
| 1970 | Jim Plunkett | QB | James Lick | California |
| 1971 | Pat Sullivan | QB | John Carroll Catholic | Alabama |
| 1972 | Johnny Rodgers | WR | Omaha Tech | Nebraska |
| 1973 | John Cappelletti | RB | Monsignor Bonner | Pennsylvania |
| 1974 | Archie Griffin | RB | Eastmoore | Ohio |
| 1975 | Archie Griffin | RB | Eastmoore | Ohio |
| 1976 | Tony Dorsett | RB | Hopewell | Pennsylvania |
| 1977 | Earl Campbell | RB | Tyler | Texas |
| 1978 | Billy Sims | RB | Hooks | Texas |
| 1979 | Charles White | RB | San Fernando | California |
| 1980 | George Rogers | RB | Duluth | Georgia |
| 1981 | Marcus Allen | RB | Lincoln (San Diego) | California |
| 1982 | Herschel Walker | RB | Johnson County | Georgia |
| 1983 | Mike Rozier | RB | Woodrow Wilson (Camden) | New Jersey |
| 1984 | Doug Flutie | QB | Natick | Massachusetts |
| 1985 | Bo Jackson | RB | McAdory | Alabama |
| 1986 | Vinny Testaverde | QB | Sewanhaka | New York |
| 1987 | Tim Brown | WR | Woodrow Wilson (Dallas) | Texas |
| 1988 | Barry Sanders | RB | Wichita North | Kansas |
| 1989 | Andre Ware | QB | Dickinson | Texas |
| 1990 | Ty Detmer | QB | Southwest (San Antonio) | Texas |
| 1991 | Desmond Howard | WR | St. Joseph | Ohio |
| 1992 | Gino Torretta | QB | Pinole Valley | California |
| 1993 | Charlie Ward | QB | Thomas County Central | Georgia |
| 1994 | Rashaan Salaam | RB | La Jolla Country Day | California |
| 1995 | Eddie George | RB | Fork Union Military | Virginia |
| 1996 | Danny Wuerffel | QB | Fort Walton Beach | Florida |
| 1997 | Charles Woodson | DB | Fremont Ross | Ohio |
| 1998 | Ricky Williams | RB | Patrick Henry (San Diego) | California |
| 1999 | Ron Dayne | RB | Overbrook | New Jersey |
| 2000 | Chris Weinke | QB | Cretin-Derham Hall | Minnesota |
| 2001 | Eric Crouch | QB | Millard North | Nebraska |
| 2002 | Carson Palmer | QB | Santa Margarita | California |
| 2003 | Jason White | QB | Tuttle | Oklahoma |
| 2004 | Matt Leinart | QB | Mater Dei | California |
| 2005 | Reggie Bush | RB | Helix | California |
| 2006 | Troy Smith | QB | Glenville | Ohio |
| 2007 | Tim Tebow | QB | Nease | Florida |
| 2008 | Sam Bradford | QB | Putnam City North | Oklahoma |
| 2009 | Mark Ingram Jr. | RB | Flint Southwestern | Michigan |
| 2010 | Cam Newton | QB | Westlake | Georgia |
| 2011 | Robert Griffin III | QB | Copperas Cove | Texas |
| 2012 | Johnny Manziel | QB | Tivy | Texas |
| 2013 | Jameis Winston | QB | Hueytown | Alabama |
| 2014 | Marcus Mariota | QB | Saint Louis | Hawaii |
| 2015 | Derrick Henry | RB | Yulee | Florida |
| 2016 | Lamar Jackson | QB | Boynton Beach | Florida |
| 2017 | Baker Mayfield | QB | Lake Travis | Texas |
| 2018 | Kyler Murray | QB | Allen | Texas |
| 2019 | Joe Burrow | QB | Athens | Ohio |
| 2020 | DeVonta Smith | WR | Amite | Louisiana |
| 2021 | Bryce Young | QB | Mater Dei | California |
| 2022 | Caleb Wiliams | QB | Gonzaga | Washigton, DC |
| 2023 | Jayden Daniels | QB | Cajon | California |
| 2024 | Travis Hunter | WR/DB | Collins Hills | Georgia |
