Chasing the three-timers
A side story in this year’s Heisman race is the possibility that Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield could join some prestigious names in college football history — even if he doesn’t win the 2017 trophy.
Mayfield, who finished fourth in the 2015 Heisman vote and third in the 2016 vote, has a shot to become just the seventh player to log three top 5 finishes in the Heisman vote (and first since Tim Tebow in 2009) and the 16th to finish in the top 10 of the vote three times. He could also be the fifth player to finish three times in the top 4 (and first since Herschel Walker in 1982).
As it turns out, every player with three top five finishes has wound up winning the Heisman, but six of the players who finished in the top 10 three times did not do so, including names like Marshall Faulk, Peyton Manning and Anthony Carter.
The following charts show the players with the most top 5 and top 10 finishes:
Most Top 5 Heisman Finishes
| Total | Name | Team | Yrs (Place) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Glenn Davis | Army | 1944 (2), 1945 (2), 1946 (1) |
| 3 | Felix “Doc” Blanchard | Army | 1944 (3), 1945 (1), 1946 (4) |
| 3 | Doak Walker | SMU | 1947 (3), 1948 (1), 1949 (3) |
| 3 | Archie Griffin | Ohio State | 1973 (5), 1974 (1), 1975 (1) |
| 3 | Herschel Walker | Georgia | 1980 (3), 1981 (2), 1982 (1) |
| 3 | Tim Tebow | Florida | 2007 (1), 2008 (3), 2009 (5) |
Most top 10 Heisman Finishes
| Total | Name | Team | Yrs (Place) |
| 3 | Angelo Bertelli | Notre Dame | 1941 (2), 1942 (6), 1943 (1) |
| 3 | Glenn Davis | Army | 1944 (2), 1945 (2), 1946 (1) |
| 3 | Felix “Doc” Blanchard | Army | 1944 (3), 1945 (1), 1946 (4) |
| 3 | Doak Walker | SMU | 1947 (3), 1948 (1), 1949 (3) |
| 3 | Terry Hanratty* | Notre Dame | 1966 (8), 1967 (10), 1968 (3) |
| 3 | Archie Griffin | Ohio State | 1973 (5), 1974 (1), 1975 (1) |
| 3 | Art Schlichter* | Ohio State | 1979 (4), 1980 (6), 1981 (5) |
| 3 | Herschel Walker | Georgia | 1980 (3), 1981 (2), 1982 (1) |
| 3 | Anthony Carter* | Michigan | 1979 (10), 1980 (7), 1981 (4) |
| 3 | Ty Detmer | BYU | 1989 (9), 1990 (1), 1991 (3) |
| 3 | Marshall Faulk* | San Diego State | 1991 (9), 1992 (2), 1993 (4) |
| 3 | Peyton Manning* | Tennessee | 1995 (6), 1996 (8), 1997 (2) |
| 3 | Matt Leinart | USC | 2003 (6), 2004 (1), 2005 (3) |
| 3 | Tim Tebow | Florida | 2007 (1), 2008 (3), 2009 (5) |
| 3 | Kellen Moore* | Boise State | 2009 (7), 2010 (4), 2011 (8) |
* – did not win the Heisman
