Oklahoma Sooner Football
Heisman Trophy Winners

Sam Bradford is the fifth and latest Sooner Football player to win the coveted Heisman Trophy for the most outstanding college football player.  Here’s the list of all the Sooner Football Heisman Winners:

Sam Bradford lead the Sooner Footbal team by completing 302 of his 442 pass attempts for 4,464 yards with six interceptions and 48 touchdowns. Additionally, he led the nation in passing efficiency while Sam also added an additional five rushing touchdowns.

Behind Bradford’s skill and accuracy, the Sooners became the first major college to score 60 points or more in five consecutive games. Bradford surpassed the previously held record for most touchdowns through a freshman/sophomore year with 82, a spot held by Florida’s Rex Grossman.

Jason White lead the Sooner Football team to a record 601 total points, and he did so with an amazing touchdown to interception ratio of four to one. Some of White’s stunning statistics included school records at the time for touchdown passes in a season (40), and touchdowns in a single game (5, twice).

White’s season passing total ranked No. 2 at Oklahoma, and he was No. 4 nationally in touchdown percentage (8.87), No. 7 in passing efficiency (158.11), No. 18 in interception percentage (2.22) and No. 22 in total offense (264.0).

White returned to Oklahoma the following season and nearly repeated his feat, finishing third in Heisman Trophy voting. This was particularly amazing because there was an unprecedented finish in the Heisman voting when Adrian Peterson, Sooner Football running back, finished second in the voting.

Billy Sims resembled the Oklahoma winds that come sweepin’ down the plain as he cut through college defensive lines. Sims rushed for 1,762 yards on only 231 carries, which set the Big Eight division single-season rushing record.

As the nation’s leading rusher, Sims carried the ball on average slightly more than 7 yards per carry. He had four, 200-yard games, grabbing himself another Oklahoma Sooner Football record. He lead the Sooner Football team to an 11-1 record and a shot at the national championship in the Orange Bowl. The Sooners ended third in the final polls.

Sims still holds the Sooner Football record for career rushing with a total of 4,118 yards from 1975 to 1979. He’s only second to one of the Sooner’s other Heisman Trophy winners, Steve Owens, on the career touchdown list. Sims had 53, while Owens had 57.

Steve Owens was another great running back produced the the Oklahoma Sooners. Owens set four separate conference records, and he rushed for 1,523 yards on 358 carries and 23 touchdowns in 1969, which also was an OU record.

Owens holds five Sooner Football records. he is the all-time leading scorer with 57 touchdowns, and he set the record for the most carries in a single game with 55 carries. He also set the record for career carries with 958. He finished his college career with 4,041 yards, the third highest in Oklahoma Sooner history.

Owens was drafted in the first round by Detroit, and he was the first Lion to gain over 1,000 yards in a single season. He was named All-Pro in 1971 and 1972. Owens was selected to the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame in 1991, and he was inducted into the Orange Bowl Hall of Honor in 1992.

Billy Vessels was the first Sooner Football player to win the coveted Heisman Trophy, leading the Sooners to a 26-4-1 record. In 1950, Vessels played under Coach Bud Wilkinson, and the Oklahoma Sooners went 10-1, giving the Sooners their first of what is now seven national championships. Vessels was only a sophomore on the 1950 squad, but he started and scored 15 touchdowns.

Vessels rushed for 1,072 years with only 167 carries in his senior year, his Heisman winning year. Vessels not only ran the ball but he also connected on 7 passes for 2 touchdowns when the 1952 Sooner Football team went 8-1-1. The Sooners ended up fourth in the national polls while winning Oklahoma its ninth conference title.

Vessels went pro in 1952, and he played for the Eskimos of Edmonton. There he won the top player, Schenley Award for Canada. Vessels served as an officer in the United States Army, and in 1974, he was inducted into the National Foundation and College Hall of Fame.