CNN –
It is the pinnacle of individual achievement for a college football player, and many of the all-time greats have won it over the years.
From legendary quarterbacks like Matt Leinart and Roger Staubach to explosive running backs like Bo Jackson and Barry Sanders, the list of Heisman Trophy winners reads like a who's who of college football.
With the 2023 finalists announced – Jayden Daniels, Marvin Harrison Jr., Bo Nix and Michael Penix Jr. – here's everything you need to know about the ceremony.
The 2023 Heisman Trophy winner will be announced on Saturday, December 9, at 8 p.m. ET in the Appel Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City.
Viewers can follow the coverage on ESPN in the US.
A career in football was always a possibility for Marvin Harrison Jr. considering who his father is.
His father is Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Marvin Harrison, and the young man has carried on the name of the “explosive, dominant wide receiver” family with flying colors.
The 1.90 meter tall 21-year-old had a successful 2023 season and finished with 1,211 receiving yards and 14 receiving touchdowns – he is second nationally for most touchdown receptions.
In his three seasons with the Buckeyes, he was one of the most productive pass catchers in all of college football and etched himself into the program's history books.
According to Ohio State, Harrison Jr. is sixth all-time in receptions (155), sixth in receiving yards (2,613), first in 100-yard games (15) and third in touchdown catches (31) in program history.
Lawrence Iles/Icon Sportswire/AP
Harrison Jr. runs into the end zone for a touchdown during Ohio State's game against the University of Wisconsin Badgers.
On Friday, he won the Fred Biletnikoff Award – given to the best wide receiver in college football – and has already won the Big Ten Conference's Offensive Player of the Year and Wide Receiver of the Year honors.
He is the first player to have multiple 1,000-yard receiving seasons for Ohio State. His streak of eight consecutive games with a touchdown reception and eight 100-yard games this season are both school records.
If Harrison Jr. wins Saturday night, he would be the eighth Heisman winner in Ohio State history, giving the Buckeyes the biggest win in college football.
Although he is reportedly still undecided on whether to declare for the 2024 NFL Draft, Harrison Jr. has established himself as one of the best wide receivers in the college game.
Bo Nix climaxed at the last moment.
In his fifth and final season as a member of the Oregon Ducks, Nix had his best season to date, leading his program to a No. 8 ranking with an 11-2 record and a berth in the Fiesta Bowl against the Liberty Flames.
In his second year at Oregon, the 23-year-old quarterback leads the country with a 77.2% completion rate, meaning he is within touching distance of Mac Jones' NCAA single-season record of 77.4%, which he set in 2020 one last game left.
According to Oregon's website, Nix ranks second nationally in most passing statistics in college football – including passing yards per game, passing yards, passer rating and total touchdowns – as he completes “one of the greatest seasons in program history.”
David Becker/AP
Nix wants to pass in the first half of the Pac-12 Championship against Washington.
Nix's Heisman nomination is the culmination of a veteran college football career, having previously transferred from Auburn to Oregon.
Despite playing just two seasons at Oregon, Nix – the most experienced starting quarterback in NCAA history with 60 career starts – ranks third in program history in career passing touchdowns (69) and third in career rushing touchdowns of a quarterback (20) and fifth in completions (630), fifth in passing yards (7,738) and the Heisman finalist is tied for seventh in wins (21).
He's looking to become the second member of the Ducks to win the award, joining Marcus Mariota in 2014.
Jayden Daniels – another transfer student who arrived from Arizona State in 2022 – was arguably the best player in college football this season and is being rewarded for it.
The 22-year-old has already been named the SEC Offensive Player of the Year by the conference's coaches and also received the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award as the best quarterback in college football who excels both on and off the field.
He finds himself in great company at LSU, joining 2019 Heisman Trophy winner and former LSU star Joe Burrow as recipients of the program's SEC Offensive Player of the Year award.
Vasha Hunt/AP
Daniels runs with the ball during the first half of LSU's game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Daniels enjoyed an outstanding 2023 season for the Tigers, leading the nation in most quarterback stats.
He led the country in total offense with 412.2 yards per game, as well as passing touchdowns (40), total touchdowns (50) and rushing yards by a quarterback (1,134). He finished that season with an astonishing 4,946 total yards of offense.
According to LSU, Daniels' 412.2 total yards per game are more than 85 Division I teams and his 50 total touchdowns are more than 91 teams scored this year, and he has the highest pass efficiency rating (208.01) in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) – the top division of college football – history.
Another transfer student – who arrived from Indiana in late December 2021 – Michael Penix Jr. has helped lead the Washington Huskies to a remarkable offense.
The Huskies finished with a 13-0 record, the Pac-12 championship and a spot in the College Football Playoff, where they will face the Texas Longhorns in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1.
Meanwhile, Penix Jr. led from the front, directing the team's offense with his big arm and becoming the nation's leader in the passing game. Penix Jr. finished 2023 with 4,218 passing yards and 33 passing touchdowns.
Ric Tapia/AP
Penix Jr. rolls out to pass during the Pac-12 championship game against Oregon.
He has a 24-2 record in his two seasons as the team's starter and is looking to bring Washington a national championship for the third time.
Penix Jr. also hopes to become the first Heisman Trophy winner in Washington history. He joins Steve Emtman – who finished fourth in the voting in 1991 – as the only Huskies to be named a finalist.