College football: Ranking every Heisman Trophy winner

2. Ranking every Heisman Trophy Winner: Marcus Allen, USC Trojans football

While Marcus Allen became one of the greatest running backs in the history of not only college football, but at any level of football, his journey began as a quarterback and safety in high school. In fact, Allen was recruited to play safety, but he was quickly moved to halfback, and then fullback, where he led the way during Charles White’s Heisman season in 1979, a year after USC won the national title.

In 1980, Allen made the move back to tailback, replacing White as the feature back for USC, and would go on a two-year run that made him an absolute legend on the collegiate level. As a junior, Allen rushed for nearly 1,600 yards and 14 touchdowns, setting the stage for a senior season that would end up being one of the greatest of any running back in the history of the game.

Across his 11 games during the 1981 college football season, Allen rushed for over 20 yards in eight contests, racking up video game-like numbers along the way. He finished the season with over 2,300 yards rushing, becoming the first back in NCAA history to rush for over 2,000 yards, as he led the Trojans to a 9-2 record.

For the season, Allen took home not only the Heisman, but also the Maxwell and Walter Camp, and finished his career with a yard per carry average over five. The fourth USC running back to take home a Heisman Trophy, Allen is possibly the most successful running back in football history, as he won a national title, Heisman, Super Bowl, was named a Super Bowl MVP, he also was an NFL MVP. Not bad for a quarterback from San Diego.