Texas Football: 3 greatest Longhorns never to win the Heisman

The only name on this list that involves a Heisman Trophy winner for the Longhorns came from Williams. In 1997, Williams was firmly on his path to becoming a superstar in college football. Texas really saw Williams rise to prominence in 1997, which was the first time he was a Heisman Trophy finalist in his collegiate career.

Williams got his first 1,000-rushing yard season on the Forty Acres during his sophomore campaign, and he followed that up with quite the run in 1997. He tallied up just over 2,000 total yards from scrimmage in 1997, along with 25 total touchdowns. Of those 2,043 total yards from scrimmage, 1,893 of them came on the ground.

All 25 of the touchdowns Williams racked up in 1997 came on the ground. He wasn’t able to make much of an impact in the receiving game that year. But he was still serviceable as a pass-catcher, with 20 catches for 150 yards.

Moreover, Williams averaged 6.8 yards per carry, which was the best mark of his career. He also tallied up more rushing touchdowns in 1997 than he did during his Heisman campaign in 1998. Somehow, Williams had the same amount of Heisman votes that Penn State Nittany Lions running back Curtis Enis did in 1997 despite tallying around 500 more rushing yards and six more touchdowns.

The Heisman Trophy winner in 1997 was the former Michigan Wolverines superstar defensive back Charles Woodson. Former Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Peyton Manning finished as the Heisman runner-up. Williams came in fifth place in the final voting.