College football: Ranking every Heisman Trophy winner

1. Ranking every Heisman Trophy Winner: Barry Sanders, Oklahoma State Cowboys football

To look at Barry Sanders during his time in college was to look at a powder keg, a player who stood only 5-foot-8, but weighed 200 pounds, and could run over, or around any defender at any time. Possessing some of the greatest feet of any running back in NFL history, Sanders could dazzle you with spin moves and cuts all day long, and once he took over as the starting running back at Oklahoma State, replacing the legendary Thurman Thomas, he had the best Heisman season in the history of the award.

After playing sparingly his first two years, serving as Thomas’s backup, and being an elite return man, Sanders took over for the 1988 college football season. From there, the rest is history, as he cranked out 2,628 yards on the ground, averaging nearly 240 yards per game, and finding the end zone 37 times. In addition, he had two returns for a touchdown, and when you figure how many all-purpose yards he had, the guy averaged over eight yards every single time he touched the ball.

Setting 34 NCAA records during this incredible run, Sanders led the Cowboys to a 9-2 record, and when you include his bowl game statistics, his final numbers shake out as 2,850 rushing yards and 42 touchdowns. He won all six regions in the Heisman voting, winning the award by an extremely large margin, as it only took one season as a feature back to gain collegiate immortality.

Of course, Sanders would go on to reach those same lofty heights in the NFL as well, as he was a No. 3 overall pick of the Detroit Lions, and carved out a Hall of Fame career there. Sanders was the first running back since O.J. Simpson to rush for over 2,000 yards in a season for Detroit, and while he did retire quite early, he already had established himself as not only one of the best collegiate runners we have ever seen, but also one of the best to do it at the pro level.