History of the Heisman Trophy Trivia Quiz

Answer: Chicago

Jay Berwanger played for the Maroons of the University of Chicago, when he won the first ever Heisman Trophy in 1935. He beat out such greats as Monk Meyer of Army, William Shakespeare of Notre Dame, and Pepper Constable of Princeton. No players west of the Mississippi were eligible for the trophy during its inception year.

Answer: African-American

Ernie Davis of Syracuse was the first African-American to win the Heisman Trophy. In 1961, he averaged 5.5 yards per carry and gained 823 total yards on the season. He signed to a contract with the Cleveland Browns, however, he was diagnosed with leukemia and never played professional football.

Answer: Ohio State

Archie Griffin played for Ohio State University when he won the Heisman Trophy in 1974 and 1975.

Answer: Davey O'Brien, TCU

In 1938, Davey O'Brien, of TCU, became the first player to win the Heisman during the same season his team won the national championship. His TCU Horn Frogs went undefeated in 1938.

Answer: True

The award was established in 1935, and has been presented by the Downtown Athletic Club of New York every year since its inception through the century. The organization occupied an entire 35-story building, and it created the award to show its devotion to sports by establishing an annual award for the nation's "Outstanding College Football Player."

Answer: False

Contrary to popular belief, the Heisman Trophy is for the "Best college football player in the United States of America." College football players from all teams, regardless of school size, are eligible to win the Heisman Trophy, if they can get enough votes. Many small school players have won the Heisman Trophy. In 1951, Princeton's Richard Kazmaier won the award.

Answer: Georgia Tech

One of John W. Heisman's most notable successes while at Georgia Tech, was his team's 25 straight game winning streak. The most historic game was when his Georgia Tech team set the national record for most points in a single game, by defeating Cumberland 220-0.

Answer: False

To alleviate any potential for sectional favoritism, a point system was developed, allowing only regional representatives and past Heisman winners to cast votes for their top three candidates, in descending order, with the player earning the greatest number of points being selected as the winner. The Heisman Committee has absolutely no voice in the outcome of the vote.

Answer: Yale

Yale was the first school to have back-to-back winners of the Heisman Trophy. In 1936, Larry Kelly won, and in 1937, Clint Frank was selected as the winner of the Heisman Trophy.

Answer: John Cappelletti, Penn State

In 1973, John Cappelletti won the Heisman Trophy while playing at Penn State. The movie, "Something for Joey," was a true story based on his little brother's struggle with leukemia. The solemn speech John made during the Heisman Trophy presentation is considered one of the most famous in Heisman Trophy presentation history.