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Sam Bradford

Sam Bradford became the fifth OU player selected as the winner of the Heisman trophy after leading the country's most potent offensive attack. Bradford led the OU team that set an NCAAA record by scoring 60 or more points in five straight games, passed for 4,464 yards and set another NCAA record by throwing 48 touchdown passes.

Bradford's vision of the field and accuracy on every pass led to an NCAA leading 186.3 pass efficiency rating.

Bradford set school records for touchdown passes in a season (48) and game (5, three times). His season passing total ranked No. 1 at OU. He was No. 1 nationally in passing efficiency (186.3), No.1 in touchdowns (48), No.18 in attempts, No. 12 in completions and no. 3 in passing yards.

Bradford's recognition nationally reflected his hard effort. He won the 2008 Heisman Trophy. He also won the Davey O'Brien Award and the Sammy Baugh Trophy.

CAREER STATISTICS

2008 HEISMAN TROPHY VOTING TOTALS

Jason White

Jason White became the trigger man for the country's most potent offensive attack. At a school where the points have flowed like an Oklahoma gusher, White led the OU team that outscored all of its predecessors (601 total points).

He did so with uncanny accuracy, especially on deep throws, and a touchdown to interception ratio (four to one), so gaudy that it read like a typographical error.

White set school records for touchdown passes in a season (40) and game (5, twice). His season passing total ranked No. 2 at OU. He was No. 4 nationally in touchdown percentage (8.87), No. 7 in passing efficiency (158.11), No. 18 in interception percentage (2.22) and No. 22 in total offense (264.0).

The outpouring of recognition was impressive. White captured player of the year honors from the Associated Press, Sports Illustrated, The Sporting News and CNNSI.com. He also won the Davey O'Brien Award and the Jim Thorpe Courage Award.

White returned for another season after his Heisman campaign and finished third in the voting. It was an unprecedented finish by one school when his teammate Adrian Peterson finished second.

CAREER STATISTICS

*injured and granted additional year of eligibility

2003 HEISMAN TROPHY VOTING TOTALS

Billy Sims

Billy Sims, a 6-0, 205-pound running back from Hooks, Texas, swept through defenses like a tornado flying across the Oklahoma landscape.

He set a Big Eight single-season rushing record in 1978 with 1,896 yards on 256 carries. Sims led the nation in rushing, averaging more than 7.0 yards per carry. He topped the 200-yard mark in four different games (a school best) during the 1978 season.

Sims led the Sooners to an 11-1 record, Orange Bowl championship and third-place finish in the final poll. OU opened with a 35-29 win over Stanford and then crushed West Virginia and Rice by a combined score of 118-17.

The Sooners rolled over Texas and the first five games of the conference schedule heading into the Nebraska game. Sims ran for 153 yards, but it was not enough as the Sooners fell, 17-14.

OU responded by clubbing Oklahoma State, 62-7, and then was rematched with the Cornhuskers in the Orange Bowl. OU edged Nebraska 31-24 in the second meeting between the top-10 schools. Sims is second in the OU record books for rushing yards in a season (1,896), most 200-yard games in a season (4) and a career (7). He finished his career with 4,118 yards and stands first on the all-time rushing list.

CAREER STATISTICS

*injured and granted additional year of eligibility

1978 HEISMAN TROPHY VOTING TOTALS

Steve Owens

Steve Owens was a 6-2, 215-pound powerhouse from Miami, Okla., who ravaged defenses from 1967-69, setting four conference records of the day.

OU's workhorse carried the ball 358 times in 1969 for 1,523 yards while scoring 23 touchdowns (another school record). Playing on a 1969 squad that had been hurt badly by graduation in 1968, Owens carried the load for the Sooner offense.

Owens had two 200-plus yard games while leading the Sooners to a 6-4 season. Spurred by Owens' effort, Oklahoma averaged 28.5 points a game in 1969.

The great career of Steve Owens left a mark on the OU record book. Owens holds five Sooner records. He is the school's all-time leading scorer with 57 touchdowns during his career.

Owens holds the record for the most carries in a game (55) and career (958). He finished his career with 4,041 yards on the ground, the third most in school history.

Detroit drafted Owens in the first round. He was the first Lion to gain over 1,000 yards in a season and was an All-Pro selection in 1971 and 1972.

In 1991, Owens was named to the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame and was the Walter Camp Foundation Alumnus of the Year. Owens was inducted into the Orange Bowl Hall of Honor in 1992.

CAREER STATISTICS

1969 HEISMAN TROPHY VOTING TOTALS

Billy Vessels

Billy "Curly" Vessels was the man who started it all. The first Sooner to win college football's most prestigious individual achievement award, Vessels led the Sooners to a 26-4-1 record during his tenure.

The 1950 Sooners, under head coach Bud Wilkinson, went 10-1 to give the Sooners their first of seven national championships. As a sophomore, Vessels started on the 1950 squad, scoring 15 touchdowns.

But Vessels' most successful individual season came during his senior campaign when he won the Heisman Trophy. Vessels rushed for 1,072 yards on 167 carries and scored 17 touchdowns.

Creating a new meaning for the word "versatile," the Cleveland, OK, slasher was part of every phase of the Sooner offensive attack. Vessels was even a threat from above. "Curly" connected on seven passes for two touchdowns in 1952.

The 1952 Sooners went 8-1-1, finishing fourth in the nation, and won Oklahoma's ninth conference title. OU opened with a 21-21 tie with Colorado and then reeled off five straight wins, averaging 46 points a game. OU dropped a 27-21 decision to Notre Dame and then finished strong by sweeping the last three games.

In 1953, Vessels turned pro for the Edmonton Eskimos and won the Schenley Award as the top player in Canada. Vessels then served as an officer in the U.S. Army. Vessels was elected to the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame in 1974.

CAREER STATISTICS

1952 HEISMAN TROPHY VOTING TOTALS