The illustrious Heisman Trophy is given to the most outstanding college football player every season. In its 86-year history, only one player has been able to lift the 45-pound trophy twice. Former Ohio State running back Archie Griffin pulled this off in 1974 and 1975.  

Out of the 85 players to win the trophy, only seven have been crowned the most outstanding player as a freshman or a sophomore, and the latest to do so is Alabama quarterback Bryce Young. 

So, what does Bryce Young have for an encore? Alabama fans are hoping for something better than what history suggests. Out of the last five Heisman Trophy winners that returned to school the following year, all failed to win as many games as they did the previous season. 

Lamar Jackson (Louisville QB 2015-2017) 

Lamar Jackson first burst onto the scene in a big way in 2016 during his sophomore season after a freshman year that showed he hadn’t yet played to his full potential.  

In 2016, Jackson led his team to their highest national ranking in 10 years when the Cardinals reached No. 3 in the AP Poll after not being ranked once in the previous season. He amassed 3,543 passing yards as well as 1,571 rushing yards while accounting for a total of 51 touchdowns. 

Jackson was awarded the Heisman for his breakout season and returned to school hoping to compete for an ACC title. In 2017, Louisville peaked at No. 14 in the AP Poll and after week six, the Cardinals went unranked for the rest of the season. However, Jackson wasn’t to blame for the setback. He surpassed his passing yards and rushing yards from the season prior, accounting for 45 total touchdowns and leading Louisville to be the 11th highest scoring team in the nation.   

The season still ended sourly, as the Cardinals would go on to lose a bowl game for the second consecutive season. Jackson went on to be a first-round pick and Most Valuable Player award winner in the NFL with the Baltimore Ravens where he possesses a record of 37-12 as a starter. 

Jameis Winston (Florida State QB 2013-2014) 

Jameis Winston became the second freshman to ever be awarded the Heisman Trophy in its history, following Johnny Manziel of Texas A&M the year prior. He threw for 4,097 passing yards and totaled 44 touchdowns. Winston led the Florida State Seminoles to a 14-0 record and their first national championship appearance since 1999. 

The following season, with lofty expectations, Florida State went 13-0 and was invited to the inaugural College Football Playoff. The Seminoles were decimated by Oregon in a 59-20 loss where Winston had two costly turnovers. Winston saw his touchdown to interception ratio go from 40:10 in 2013 to 25:18 in 2014. They finished the season ranked No.5 in the AP Poll. Winston was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the first overall pick in the 2015 draft and is now the starting quarterback for the New Orleans Saints. 

Johnny Manziel (Texas A&M 2012-2013) 

Manziel was the first freshman to ever be awarded the Heisman Trophy after totaling 47 touchdowns, over 3,700 passing yards and over 1,400 rushing yards in 2012.  

The Aggies finished 11-2 in 2012, their first double-digit-win season since 1998. It was a season in which the Aggies visited the number one ranked Crimson Tide and defeated them 29-24. Manziel finished that season strongly with a 28-point thrashing of Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl.  

Texas A&M opened the 2013 season ranked seventh in the AP Poll and with Manziel returning, expectations were high. 

In week three, Alabama would go on to exact revenge against the Aggies, as they fell to the Crimson Tide 49-42 at home. Manziel made leaps in his passing statistics, as he threw for 408 more yards and 11 more touchdowns than the season prior. However, Manziel couldn’t match his previous rushing output, as he rushed for 641 less yards and 12 less touchdowns in his sophomore campaign. 

The Aggies finished with a 9-4 record that would widely be seen as a disappointment, but they managed to finish the season with a 52-48 Chick-fil-A Bowl victory over Duke. Manziel was selected as a first-round draft pick to the Cleveland Browns, where he totaled a record of 2-6 in two seasons. 

He then joined the Canadian Football League until he was kicked out of for violating an agreement. 

Mark Ingram (Alabama RB 2008-2010) 

Mark Ingram became the first Alabama player to ever win the Heisman Trophy in the 2009 season. Ingram totaled 1,648 rushing yards, 334 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns to lead the Crimson Tide to their first National Championship win in 17 years.  

Alabama opened the 2010 season as No. 1, yet couldn’t stay there. After losses to South Carolina, LSU and Auburn, the Crimson Tide were ultimately invited to the Capital One Bowl. They defeated Michigan State 49-7 which left them with a 10-3 record.  

The Crimson Tide finished the season 10th in the AP Poll, the second worst finish in the Nick Saban era. Ingram saw 124 less touches, which resulted in his total yards dropping by 835 yards. 

Ingram was selected 28th overall by the New Orleans Saints in the 2011 NFL Draft. After nine seasons with the Saints, Ingram had stints with both the Baltimore Ravens and the Houston Texans. This year, he returns to New Orleans for his 13th NFL season. 

Sam Bradford (Oklahoma QB 2007-2009) 

Sam Bradford came in as a freshman and started all 14 games for the Sooners while leading them to an 11-3 record with 3,121 passing yards and 36 passing touchdowns.  

His second season was the one that showed the nation how special he truly was.  

Bradford amassed over 4,700 passing yards with 50 touchdown passes. The Sooners finished 12-1 in 2008 and got to play in the BCS Championship where they were defeated by the Florida Gators 24-14. Bradford was given the Heisman over quarterbacks Colt McCoy of Texas and Tim Tebow of Florida in a tight vote.   

The following season, Oklahoma was listed third in the preseason AP Poll, but in their first game of the season, Bradford suffered a shoulder injury that the Sooners couldn’t combat, falling to BYU 14-13. Bradford would return in the fifth week against Baylor where he looked to be back to his Heisman-winning self in a 33-7 victory. Up next was No. 3 Texas, where Bradford was able to attempt just six passes before re-injuring his shoulder, an instance that would end his college career. The Sooners finished 8-5 and were not included in the final AP Poll for the first time in nine years. 

Bradford was selected first overall by the St. Louis Rams in the 2010 NFL Draft and managed to win the NFL AP Offensive Rookie of the Year after improving to Rams from a 1-15 record to 7-9. 

Bradford was never quite able to live up to his billing in the NFL. After various stints around the league, Bradford finished with a career record of 34-48-1. 

What does this mean for Young? 

In Young’s case, a worse record for Alabama seems unlikely after a 13-2 season. The Crimson Tide has only lost three games in a single season once in the last 15 years, and they have welcomed the second-best recruiting class in the nation. 

The preseason AP Poll has Alabama ranked No. 1 for the fifth time in the last seven years and Young has expressed his motivation to finish the job this season.   

It won’t be easy, though. 

His former wide receivers Jameson Williams, John Metchie III, Slade Bolden, and Jalen Tolbert, as well as former left tackle Evan Neal have finished their collegiate careers and are now in the NFL. Young put up over 4,800 passing yards as well as 50 total touchdowns with the help of them and now, he will count on Traeshon Holden, Georgia transfer Jermaine Burton and freshman Kobe Prentice to try to replicate the success he found last season. 

With Alabama considered a National Championship favorite and a motivated Young leading the charge, this Crimson Tide team is not one you should be betting against.

Questions or comments? Email Austin Hannon (Sports Editor) at [email protected]