Exploring BYU’s Special Place in History: One of Four Schools to Have Heisman, Naismith, and Green Jacket Winners

Winning a national championship can put a college football program in the spotlight. But there’s a level beyond just being the best for one season—it’s called greatness. Reaching that status takes decades of hard work, success, and consistency across all sports.

Only four schools in the country belong to that rare group. These schools have produced a Heisman Trophy winner, a Naismith Award winner, and a Masters (Green Jacket) champion. Brigham Young University fans can proudly claim their university is among those four elite programs.

BYU Flexes the Exclusive Group of Four Schools with Heisman, Naismith, and Green Jacket Legacy

Brigham Young University (BYU) has been literally flexing its achievement of greatness on Instagram recently, sharing that it has produced winners of the Heisman Trophy and the Naismith College Player of the Year Award. With these awards in its history books, it holds a unique position in collegiate sports history.

It all began with the Heisman Trophy, which set BYU on the path to greatness. In 1990, quarterback Ty Detmer won the Heisman, leading the Cougars with 5,188 passing yards and 41 touchdowns. His outstanding performance helped BYU defeat top-ranked Miami.

Their chance to showcase their Green Jacket stardom came when Canadian golfer Mike Weir, a BYU alumnus, won the Masters Tournament in 2003. He became the first BYU golfer to wear the iconic Green Jacket. His success on the PGA Tour brought pride to the university’s golf program.

Then, in 2011, BYU basketball star Jimmer Fredette earned the Naismith College Player of the Year Award, making the former No. 32 the first BYU athlete to receive this honor.

 

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A post shared by BYU Cougars (@byucougars)

As the Cougars showcase their achievements online, fans are reminding the program that there is even more to celebrate. Fans knew long before that their varsity had already reached that greatness category, but BYU just took a while to flex.

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They were quick to point out additional achievements, like the MLB Hall of Fame or the Wooden Award. One fan even pointed out, “And a National Championship! 🤙” Anyway, the supporters are flexing even more than the varsity itself.

Now the big question is, who will be the next Cougars to join this elite club? There’s nothing to worry about—because the team is flexing, the fans are flexing, and the next generation of stars will flex even harder with their own achievements.