Marcus Mariota 10-Year Heisman Anniversary Profile

On Dec. 13, 2014, Marcus Mariota became the first Oregon Duck to win the Heisman Trophy and the first player born in Hawaii to hoist the statue. He also became the first player to give a Heisman-winning speech draped in leis.

Mariota’s 2014 Heisman win felt similar to how one felt watching Oregon’s offense with him under center — overwhelming and inevitable. The Heisman voting mirrored that feeling as Mariota won the award with the third-highest vote total in Heisman history while he appeared on a record 95.2% of ballots. 

The Mariota-quarterbacked Ducks played with similar dominance during his tenure in Eugene, Ore., but his road to the Pacific Northwest, let alone to New York City a decade ago, comes from humble roots.

Ha’aha’a is the Hawaiian word describing modesty and humility, being unpretentious and unassuming while being open to learning new things. By all accounts, it’s the spirit that embodies our 10-year anniversary Heisman winner.

Mariota grew up in Honolulu, Hawaii, with his Samoan father, Toa, and Hawaiian-raised mother, Alana. He attended Saint Louis High School, two miles from tourist mecca Waikiki and its friendly beaches. The school was also a 10-mile drive to Sandy Beach, nicknamed “Breakneck Beach” thanks to its onslaught of surf. That’s where Mariota and his friends hung out, riding powerful waves as easily as a duck on a pond.

A fast kid with a big arm and quick feet, Mariota — when not bodysurfing — grew up playing soccer and football. He had a gifted goal-scoring foot, but his love of football won out and he joined the Saint Louis football team as a quarterback.

Mariota spent three years as a backup before getting his shot as a 2010 senior. And from there, he simply took flight. Mariota threw for 2,597 yards on 165-of-255 passing, tossing 34 touchdowns and just five interceptions while leading the Crusaders to an 11-1 record and a state championship. 

Had Oregon’s staff not been out to Oahu a year earlier to recruit then-Saint Louis starter Jeremy Higgins, the lightly scouted Mariota likely would never have been a Duck. But then-assistant coach and future head coach Mark Helfrich did pay a visit to watch Higgins — and did take note of the younger QB who was dominating the team sprints.

A seed was planted, which grew into an idea when Mariota impressed at the Ducks’ camp before his senior year. It then sprouted into a scholarship offer after Mariota blossomed as a senior.

Mariota arrived in Eugene in the midst of a football renaissance at Oregon. Under Head Coach Chip Kelly, the Ducks had become the top duck, er dog, in the Pac-12. As a 2011 true freshman, Mariota watched from the sidelines as junior Darron Thomas led the Ducks to a 12-2 season and a Rose Bowl win over Wisconsin.

When Thomas declared for the NFL, it opened up a quarterback competition in Eugene. Backup Bryan Bennett was the favorite, but whispers of Mariota’s arm and athleticism were growing. An 82-yard touchdown run in Oregon’s Spring Game let Oregon’s fan base —and the college football world — in on a little secret only the Ducks’ staff had known. Oregon had a superstar in the making waiting to play QB.

As a first-year starter, Mariota was named the 2012 Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year and became the league’s first freshman QB to earn first-team honors in 23 years. He led the Ducks to a 12-1 record and a Fiesta Bowl win, passing for 2,677 yards and 32 touchdowns while rushing for 752 yards and five more scores. Numerous school and Pac-12 records fell.

There was no sophomore slump for Mariota in 2013. With Helfrich now head coach, Mariota and the Ducks remained an offensive juggernaut. Mariota passed for 3,665 yards and 31 TDs with just four interceptions while rushing for 715 yards and nine scores, leading Oregon to an 11-2 mark and an Alamo Bowl win over Texas. He was a Manning Award finalist and finished ninth nationally in total offense, but curiously did not crack the top 10 in Heisman voting.

Most of the 2013 Heisman top 10 moved on to the NFL. But winner Jameis Winston, as a redshirt sophomore, returned and he and Mariota were among the handful of 2014 preseason favorites.

Mariota kicked off his junior season by playing only a half of football as Oregon dismantled South Dakota, 62-13. Mariota, in the first and second quarters, passed for 267 yards and three scores and also ran one in. 

His first big test as a Heisman favorite came in Week 2 as No. 7 Michigan State visited Eugene. The Spartans looked like they might spoil the early-season vibes, taking a 28-17 third-quarter lead. But Mariota didn’t flinch and led the Ducks to 28 consecutive second-half points as Oregon won 46-27. Mariota finished with 317 passing yards and three scores, breaking the school’s career passing touchdown and total offense records in the process. 

After the win, Helfrich gushed: “I should have to pay to watch that guy play. It’s just unbelievable to watch him train, to watch him prepare, and then to see him come to fruition in this game. We think very highly of Marcus.”

Week 3 brought a visit from Wyoming. The Ducks used a 41-0 scoring burst to win 48-14 in a game that featured 15- and 19-yard Mariota touchdown runs and a couple of TD passes off his right arm.

Pac-12 North rival Washington State tested the No. 2 Ducks in Week 4 but Oregon won 38-31 thanks to Mariota’s late 6-yard fourth-quarter TD pass. Sacked seven times, Mariota still completed 21-of-25 passes for 329 yards and five TDs. It was the second time in his career he had more touchdown passes than incompletions. 

Week 5 saw Arizona upset second-ranked Oregon for the second year in a row, this time 31-24 on the Ducks’ home turf. Mariota completed 20-of-32 passes for 276 yards and also caught a 26-yard touchdown, but the Ducks defense couldn’t get a late stop, nor could Mariota engineer a last-minute scoring drive.

A trip to Pasadena helped No. 12 Oregon and Mariota get their mojo back. The Ducks raced to a 42-10 fourth-quarter lead at the Rose Bowl and coasted to a 42-30 win over No. 18 UCLA. Mariota completed 17-of-27 passes for 210 yards and two TDs and rushed for 75 yards, also scoring twice on the ground 

The Ducks’ 42 points kicked off a nine-game win streak in which they would score at least that many in each game. Mariota began to put a vice grip on the Heisman race.

Oregon moved to 6-1 with a 45-20 victory over Washington, Mariota passing for 336 yards and two scores in a breezy win over its rival.  A week later, he became Oregon’s all-time passing leader, guiding the Ducks to an explosive 59-41 win over California. He threw for 326 yards and tossed five touchdowns — as well as his first interception of the season, one of only two he’d have on the year.

Mariota threw two scores and ran for two scores the next week to lead No. 5 Oregon to a 45-16 win over Stanford, which had beaten the Ducks the previous two seasons. He rushed for 85 yards (and threw his second and final interception of the season).

The Ducks clinched the Pac-12 North on Nov. 8 with a 51-27 late-night win at Utah. Mariota passed for 239 yards and three TDs and ran for 114 yards on 18 carries (both season highs) with a late 1-yard score that sealed the win.

Mariota celebrated his final game at Autzen Stadium on Nov. 15 with a 44-10 win over Colorado as the Ducks amassed a season-high 597 yards of offense. That included Mariota’s 323 passing yards and three TDs as well as 73 yards rushing and another score. The effort made him just the sixth FBS player in history to pass for at least 9,000 yards and rush for 2,000 or more yards in a career.

Oregon closed its regular-season with a 47-19 win over Oregon State in the Civil War. Mariota helped the Ducks run away from the Beavers as quickly as he was running away with the Heisman, throwing for 367 yards and four scores and rushing for two more. He also surpassed 4,000 yards in total offense for the second time in his career.

Mariota made a convincing closing argument for Heisman votes in the Pac-12 title game against Pac-12 South champ Arizona, helping the Ducks avenge two straight losses to the Wildcats with a 51-13 win. Mariota passed for two touchdowns and ran for a career-high three to go with 346 yards of total offense. Oregon clinched a spot in the College Football Playoff with the win.

Eight days later, Mariota won the Heisman Trophy, garnering 2,534 points, more than twice as many as second-place running back Melvin Gordon of Wisconsin. Alabama wide receiver Amari Cooper finished third. Mariota was listed first on 788 of 928 ballots, then the third-most in Heisman history.

Mariota gave thanks in his Heisman speech to his Oregon teammates and coaches as well as to his Hawaiian roots and family. Back in Honolulu, they packed his high school to watch the ceremony live.

Said Mariota during his remarks: “To Hawaii nei [beloved Hawaii], thank you for teaching me humility and respect. Two aspects of my life that I will never change. To the Polynesian community, I hope and pray that this is only the beginning. Young Poly athletes everywhere, you should take this as motivation, and dream big and strive for greatness.”

On Jan. 1, Mariota led Oregon to a 59-20 CFP semifinal win over Florida State, passing for 338 yards and two scores while rushing for another. That set up a title game tilt with Ohio State, but despite Mariota’s 372 yards of total offense, the Ducks fell to the Buckeyes, 42-20.

Mariota finished his career as Oregon’s record holder for career total offense (13,033), passing yards (10,796), completions (779), TD passes (105), rushing yards by an Oregon quarterback (2,237), completion percentage (66.8%), total TDs (136) and total points accounted for (816).

He was taken second by Tennessee in the 2015 NFL Draft after fellow Heisman winner Winston went first to Tampa Bay. Now in his 10th year in the NFL, Mariota has over 16,000 career passing yards and began 2024 with 110 combined passing and rushing TDs. He started four years for the Titans and another for Atlanta.

Shortly after beginning his NFL career, Mariota and his parents established the Motiv8 Foundation, which provides a wide range of support for Oahu youth, an organization that has helped thousands.

Congratulations to Marcus Mariota, our Heisman Trophy 10-Year Anniversary winner.