Heisman Winner
DeVonta Smith
WR | Senior | Alabama
Wide receiver DeVonta Smith became the first wide receiver in almost three decades to win the Heisman Trophy in 2020 after turning in one of the most impressive seasons ever by an NCAA pass-catcher.
The 6-foot-1, 175-pound senior from Amite City, La., became Alabama’s third Heisman winner, joining running backs Mark Ingram (2009) and Derrick Henry (2015). Smith won with 1,856 points, comfortably ahead of second-place Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence (1,187).
Smith attended Amite (La.) High Magnet School where he starred in both football and basketball. He enrolled at Alabama in 2017.
His 2017 freshman season was modest with only eight receptions and three scores. But his final catch of the season was the game-winner in the 2017 CFP national championship game. Smith had 42 receptions and six TDs as a 2018 sophomore and led Alabama as a 2019 junior with 1,256 yards and 14 touchdowns on 68 receptions.
In a 2020 season delayed by Covid-19, Smith was a consistent source of production for an Alabama team that went on to win the CFP title.
In 11 games (including the SEC championship), Smith led the country with 98 receptions and 1,511 receiving yards – the most by any Heisman winner in either category, topping the previous record holder, 1991 winner Desmond Howard (950 receiving yards on 61 receptions).
Smith’s 17 TD catches – the second-most in a Heisman season behind Howard – and 137.4 receiving yards per game were both second-best nationally and his 8.9 receptions per game were tied for second best.
He posted four games with 11 or more receptions, including a career-best and SEC title-game record 15 against Florida, 13 at Mississippi and 11 each against Georgia and Mississippi State. He recorded seven games with over 100 yards receiving (all with at least 144 yards), including 231 yards on eight catches at LSU, 203 against the Bulldogs (which included a season-high four TDs) and 184 yards against the Gators.
Smith had six games with at least two TD receptions, three coming at LSU and two in the SEC title game. Smith also returned a punt for a TD for the first time in his career, going 84 yards at Arkansas in the regular-season finale.
With the Heisman calendar pushed back, Smith played in the CFP semifinals against Notre Dame four days before the Jan. 5, 2020 virtual Heisman ceremony, and helped the Tide beat the Irish with seven receptions for 130 yards and three TDs.
Six days after winning the Heisman, Smith helped Alabama win the CFP title with 12 receptions for 215 yards and three more scores, all in the first half (a finger injury forced him to miss the second half, but he was still named Offensive Player of the Game).
In addition to winning the Heisman, Smith also won the Maxwell, Walter Camp and Biletnikoff Awards and was the first receiver to be named the AP Player of the Year.
Smith was selected 10th in the 2021 NFL Draft and has turned in three strong seasons, amassing 240 receptions, 3,178 yards and 19 touchdowns and helped the Eagles reach the Super Bowl in 2023, securing seven receptions for 100 yards in the loss.
