Super Bowl LIX on Sunday did not end with the Kansas City Chiefs becoming the first team to three-peat. It did, however, make history in a different way. Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith played a key role in his team’s win, catching a 46-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter that effectively served as the knockout punch. Smith—who won two national championships and the 2020 Heisman Trophy at Alabama—became just the fifth player in football history to win a Heisman Trophy, a national championship, and a Super Bowl. USC football fans are quite familiar with this exclusive club. Two of the five players to win all three went to USC, making the Trojans the only school with multiple players in the club.
The first Trojan (and second player overall) to do such was Marcus Allen. At USC, Allen was a freshman on the Trojans’ 1978 national championship team, and then won the Heisman Trophy as a senior in 1981. He then led the Los Angeles Raiders to a victory in Super Bowl XVIII over the Washington Redskins. Allen is also the only player to win NFL MVP in addition to the other three honors, doing so in 1985.
The other Trojan to join this exclusive club was Reggie Bush. At USC, Bush was part of the Trojans’ 2003 and 2004 national championship teams, and won the 2005 Heisman Trophy. In the NFL, he would go on to win Super Bowl XLIV with the New Orleans Saints.
In addition to Allen and Bush, Pitt’s Tony Dorsett and Michigan’s Charles Woodson have won all three prestigious honors. On Sunday, the club welcomed its newest member in Smith. Until another player from the Panthers, Wolverines, or Crimson Tide accomplishes the feat, however, USC remains the only school with multiple players in this esteemed club.
