Sporting News College Football Player of the Year
From Varsity Pride
The Sporting News College Football Player of the Year is, as the name clearly suggests, the major college player of the year as named by Sporting News.
| 1942 | Frank Sinkwich | Georgia | halfback |
| 1943 | Angelo Bertelli | Notre Dame | quarterback |
| 1944 | Les Horvath | Ohio State | QB/halfback |
| 1945 | Doc Blanchard | Army | fullback |
| 1946 | Glenn Davis | Army | halfback |
| 1947 | John Lujack | Notre Dame | quarterback |
| 1948 | Doak Walker | Southern Methodist | halfback |
| 1949 | Leon Hart | Notre Dame | end |
| 1950 | Vic Janowicz | Ohio State | halfback |
| 1951 | Dick Kazmaier | Princeton | halfback |
| 1952 | Billy Vessels | Oklahoma | halfback |
| 1953 | John Lattner | Notre Dame | halfback |
| 1954 | Howard Cassady | Ohio State | halfback |
| 1955 | Howard Cassady (2) | Ohio State | halfback |
| 1956 | Tommy McDonald | Oklahoma | wide receiver |
| 1957 | John David Crow | Texas A&M | halfback |
| 1958 | Billy Cannon | Louisiana State | halfback |
| 1959 | Billy Cannon (2) | Louisiana State | halfback |
| 1960 | Joe Bellino | Navy | halfback |
| 1961 | Bob Ferguson | Ohio State | halfback |
| 1962 | Terry Baker | Oregon State | quarterback |
| 1963 | Roger Staubach | Navy | quarterback |
| 1964 | Dick Butkus | Illinois | linebacker |
| 1965 | Donny Anderson Jim Grabowski |
Texas Tech Illinois |
halfback halfback |
| 1966 | Steve Spurrier | Florida | quarterback |
| 1967 | Gary Beban | Cal-Los Angeles | quarterback |
| 1968 | O.J. Simpson | Southern California | halfback |
| 1969 | Steve Owens | Oklahoma | fullback |
| 1970 | Jim Plunkett | Stanford | quarterback |
| 1971 | Ed Marinaro Pat Sullivan |
Cornell Auburn |
running back quarterback |
| 1972 | Bert Jones | Louisiana State | quarterback |
| 1973 | John Hicks | Ohio State | off. tackle |
| 1974 | Archie Griffin | Ohio State | running back |
| 1975 | Archie Griffin (2) | Ohio State | running back |
| 1976 | Tony Dorsett | Pittsburgh | running back |
| 1977 | Earl Campbell | Texas | running back |
| 1978 | Billy Sims | Oklahoma | running back |
| 1979 | Charles White | Southern California | running back |
| 1980 | Hugh Green | Pittsburgh | linebacker |
| 1981 | Marcus Allen | Southern California | running back |
| 1982 | Herschel Walker | Georgia | running back |
| 1983 | Mike Rozier | Nebraska | running back |
| 1984 | Doug Flutie | Boston College | quarterback |
| 1985 | Bo Jackson | Auburn | running back |
| 1986 | Vinny Testaverde | Miami (FL) | quarterback |
| 1987 | Tim Brown | Notre Dame | wide receiver |
| 1988 | Barry Sanders | Oklahoma State | running back |
| 1989 | Darian Hagan | Colorado | quarterback |
| 1990 | Raghib Ismail | Notre Dame | wide receiver |
| 1991 | Desmond Howard | Michigan | wide receiver |
| 1992 | Marvin Jones | Florida State | linebacker |
| 1993 | Charlie Ward | Florida State | quarterback |
| 1994 | Rashaan Salaam | Colorado | running back |
| 1995 | Tommy Frazier | Nebraska | quarterback |
| 1996 | Danny Wuerffel | Florida | quarterback |
| 1997 | Charles Woodson | Michigan | cornerback |
| 1998 | Ricky Williams | Texas | running back |
| 1999 | Ron Dayne | Wisconsin | running back |
| 2000 | Chris Weinke | Florida State | quarterback |
| 2001 | Eric Crouch | Nebraska | quarterback |
| 2002 | Carson Palmer | Southern California | quarterback |
| 2003 | Jason White | Oklahoma | quarterback |
| 2004 | Alex Smith | Utah | quarterback |
| 2005 | Reggie Bush | Southern California | running back |
| 2006 | Troy Smith | Ohio State | quarterback |
| 2007 | Tim Tebow | Florida | quarterback |
| 2008 | Graham Harrell Sam Bradford Colt McCoy |
Texas Tech Oklahoma Texas |
quarterback quarterback quarterback |
| 2009 | Mark Ingram | Alabama | running back |
| 2010 | Cam Newton | Auburn | quarterback |
| 2011 | Robert Griffin III | Baylor | quarterback |
| 2012 | Johnny Manziel | Texas A&M | quarterback |
| 2013 | Jameis Winston | Florida State | quarterback |
| 2014 | Marcus Mariota | Oregon | quarterback |
