Heisman Trophy winners at NFL Combine: How past college awards winners have fared in pre-draft showcase

The 2025 NFL Combine begins on Thursday, Feb. 27. It is the precursor to the NFL Draft and one of the final chances that draft hopefuls have to impress scouts and NFL front offices. 

The Combine is a combination of drills and interviews. The players will go through physicals, run through drills to test certain metrics about their athleticism and then meet with teams to see if they would be a good fit at the next level. While everyone wants to see the top projected draft picks ball out at the combine, it’s also a way for lesser-known prospects to make a statement. 

Whenever the Heisman Trophy winner comes through the Combine, everyone expects them to perform well, cementing themselves as a highly touted prospect. Recently, though, there has been a trend for players to pass on working out at the Combine, and instead relying on what they did during their college careers to speak for itself, as well as private workouts at their respective pro days. 

Colorado’s Travis Hunter has declared for the draft and is expected to be a top draft pick this year. He won the Heisman Trophy from his proficiency playing both wide receiver and cornerback for the Buffaloes. Hunter was listed as a corner in the Combine guide, so he’s expected to go through the event with that position group. 

Here’s a look back at how Heisman winners have performed at the NFL Combine over the last 10 years. 

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Recent Heisman Trophy Winners

NFL Combine Events

The NFL Combine is split up into various parts. Players will go through a medical physical so that teams are aware of any issues they could be dealing with on draft day. The various position groups will also go through specific drills like running routes or cutting various directions while backpedaling down the field. The most talked about events at the Combine are the metric measuring drills. The 40-yard dash, bench press, vertical and broad jump are the four biggest events and are joined by the 3-cone drill and shuttle run. 

Heisman Trophy winners at NFL Combine

There has been a recent trend of Heisman Trophy winners not participating in events at the Combine. Here are the 10 most recent Heisman winners to participate and how they have fared in the top four events. 

40-yard dash

The 40-yard dash is probably the most anticipated event every year. You’re always hoping to see someone break the record for fastest 40 of all time, but it is also interesting to see how quick the 300+ pound linemen can move. The current record holder is Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy who was clocked at a 4.21-second 40-yard dash last year. 

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Bench Press

While no aspect of the game of football actually requires players to bench press another player at any time, this is an important drill in measuring a player’s strength. It also helps to measure their mental toughness with how they go through the drill. Players obviously want to perform well, but this is one of those drills where as long as you aren’t at the bottom of results, there shouldn’t be any negative takeaways from this event. 

Vertical

The is an important drill in showcasing a players athleticism. For wide receivers, linebackers and defensive backs, it also helps show how much range they have. If a smaller player has an unreal vertical and shows good strength, it would take away a team’s worry about their ability to catch a contested pass or ball that is high in the air. 

Broad Jump

This drill helps to measure a player’s explosiveness and athleticism. Again, there isn’t a time during the course of a football game that a player will have to go from a standing position to a jump, unless it is a quarterback at the goalline and they are trying to sneak the ball in. Even then, the QB tends to go up and over and not directly through the line like in abroad jump. Still, this drill is useful in seeing how much power a player can generate from their lower body. 

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