1956 Heisman Trophy Voting

[PhillyBillyReprise]

 

[BobPSU92]

3 TDs and 13 picks?

Ploen’s numbers are just like today’s iowa QB.

 

[s1uggo72]

3 TDs and 13 picks?

Ploen’s numbers are just like today’s iowa QB.

his team was 2-8 and won the Heisman, I mean when else did that happen?

 

[EricStratton-RushChairman]

My dad was a freshman at ND in ‘56. That was back when ND did not play bowl games. His roommate and lifelong best friend was the QB that replaced Hornung in ‘57 when they broke OUs win streak.

 

[PhillyBillyReprise]

Jim Brown is 5th. His stats are the best.

 

[s1uggo72]

Jim Brown is 5th. His stats are the best.

But he played at a weak Eastern school that didn’t play anybody

 

[CFLion]

Looking at the stats, Milt Plum should have been in the conversation.

675 yards, 6 TDs, 7 Ints

 

[manatree]

Jim Brown is 5th. His stats are the best.

But he played at a weak Eastern school that didn’t play anybody

I’m guessing that Jim Brown & Jim Parker did not get many southern votes in 1958.

 

[GrimReaper]

But he played at a weak Eastern school that didn’t play anybody

They played five ranked teams. They also played Holy Cross (1-A at the time) and Colgate.

 

[s1uggo72]

They played five ranked teams. They also played Holy Cross (1-A at the time) and Colgate.

It was TIC. I should have noted it

 

[s1uggo72]

Fwiw Sonny Randle and Horn Man! After they retired would talk every day mostly about the horses a little about chasing women

 

[manatree]

They played five ranked teams. They also played Holy Cross (1-A at the time) and Colgate.

The NCAA did not break into divisions until 1973 when they broke into I, II, & III. I-AA was created in 1978.

 

[GrimReaper]

The NCAA did not break into divisions until 1973 when they broke into I, II, & III. I-AA was created in 1978.

True, but by the '50s Colgate was playing a largely Ivy League schedule.

 

[NittPicker]

3 TDs and 13 picks?

Ploen’s numbers are just like today’s iowa QB.

I'd never heard of Ken Ploen so I googled him thinking maybe he had some eligibility left and could start for Iowa. Sadly, he died in February of this year. He never played in the NFL but it turns out he had a great career with Winnipeg in the CFL. Ploen led them to four Grey Cup championships. No bad at all........

 

[NittPicker]

So the Michigan Man landed in sixth place with gaudy numbers of 18 catches for 353 yards and 2 (TWO!!) touchdowns?? I know the game has changed but jfc.....

 

[Metal Mike]

I think this is a case where there was no clear winner and the 2nd to 5th place candidates split the vote allowing Hornung to win. I wonder if the voters were surprised at the outcome.

 

[saturdaysarebetter]

It's easy to look at just stats, and I don't know about the others, but Hornung was also the punter and placekicker and he also played defense for Notre Dame. In the game against Pitt, he was the leading tackler if I recall correctly. Hornung did it all at Notre Dame and was a future pro football hall of famer.

 

[bbrown]

View attachment 634935

Jim Brown at 5th is a travesty.

 

[s1uggo72]

It's easy to look at just stats, and I don't know about the others, but Hornung was also the punter and placekicker and he also played defense for Notre Dame. In the game against Pitt, he was the leading tackler if I recall correctly. Hornung did it all at Notre Dame and was a future pro football hall of famer.

and he led his team to a 2-8 record. everybody played D in those days.

 

[manatree]

and he led his team to a 2-8 record. everybody played D in those days.

and he finished fifth in voting the year before and played for Notre Dame.

and played for Notre Dame.

and played for Notre Dame.

 

[Bob78]

and he finished fifth in voting the year before and played for Notre Dame.

and played for Notre Dame.

and played for Notre Dame.

I think that because he was probably considered the top returning player from '55, and the ND "mystique" had been, was, and would be quite a reality (as your post calls out), the '56 Heisman was his to lose. Very few voters actually saw him play, just went by newspaper and radio accounts and their obvious bias in favor of ND and Hornung. He was the star of ND, and ND football was the standard for most fans for a long time. That they went 2-8 was immaterial, apparently.

Hindsight tells us Jim Brown was the best that season, and Syracuse was recognized as a solid program so people paid attention to them, but he wasn't going to carry votes from outside the northeast and some Midwest after Hornung.

Hornung was a great player, was drafted #1 overall in 1957 and was an important part of the Packers eventual climb to NFL superiority under Lombardi. Not that that mattered in the 1956 Heisman voting, just that the football minds of the day saw him as the best, even if the stats and facts pointed elsewhere.

 

[s1uggo72]

could someone from a losing team do it this year?

Could Travis Hunter become second Heisman Trophy winner from a losing team?

Colorado receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter is a special talent.

www.nbcsports.com

 

[LionJim]

could someone from a losing do it this year?

Could Travis Hunter become second Heisman Trophy winner from a losing team?

Colorado receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter is a special talent.

www.nbcsports.com

Hunter is a good player, looked good yesterday.

 

[saturdaysarebetter]

I came across the Pittsburgh Press from when Notre Dame played at Pitt in 1956, and the writer absolutely gushed about Hornung and how he did it all for Notre Dame that day.