To appreciate the accomplishment, you have to appreciate the man behind it.
Forty years ago, Archie Griffin won the first of two Heisman Trophy awards, and today he remains the only person to accomplish that feat. Yet somehow Griffin, now president of the Ohio State alumni association , believes he’s the one who owes his hometown university.
Ohio State director of publications Jay Hansen worked under Griffin for nine years. Hansen likes to tell one story above the rest.
A few years ago, Griffin was scheduled to attend an early-morning golf outing in Van Wert, about two hours northeast of Columbus. Griffin’s overseas flight was delayed the night before, and he didn’t arrive until 3 a.m. Hansen picked Griffin up three hours later. Griffin didn't sleep on the way to the course.
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Archie Griffin as seen on Sporting News magazine covers.
“We drove out there and he reviewed his speech and notes,” Hansen said. “He played golf, met people and shook every hand with a smile on his face. The whole time he was the same guy. That really stood out.”
So it’s no surprise that 40 years later, Griffin isn’t celebrating the fact he’s the only two-time winner of college football’s most-prestigious award. Florida State’s Jameis Winston wasn’t named a finalist this year, becoming the ninth player to try and match Griffin’s feat without success. There have been multiple MVPs across the NFL, MLB, NHL and NBA, and Ralph Sampson won college basketball's Naismith Award three times. Yet Griffin holds his place in history, even if he’s reluctant to talk about it.
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Hansen said when this time rolls around in the office, Griffin won't say much about it. He doesn't share his Heisman vote. It's business as usual.
"I’m one who always said I think someone else will win it twice," Griffin told Sporting News. "Guys are winning it as freshmen now, and I think it’s going to happen. I thought it would have happened by now.
“If I wanted to brag about anything, I could always say I was the first. But if somebody deserves to win the award twice; I don’t have a problem with that.”
Griffin took the same business-first approach in 1974 when he rushed for 1,695 yards and 12 TDs as the centerpiece of Woody Hayes’ “Three-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust” offense at Ohio State. Griffin never showed much emotion on the field, but that changed at the presentation.
“I got very emotional when it came time to give my talk,” Griffin said. “I saw my father, my mother and six brothers and a sister. I saw them and thought of the road to get there. I just broke down and started crying.”
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Griffin still looks the part of the thick-thighed running back, and he has taken a cue from Hayes. He’s honest, old-school and quick to make his point. And he’s always in tune with the goings-on of the football program.
So says former Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith, who let out a long laugh when asked about Griffin’s hands-on approach within the program. Smith was suspended as a freshman before going on to a prolific career that ended with the 2006 Heisman Trophy.
“He’s a straight-forward and black-and-white type person,” Smith said. “He does what he says, and says what he does. It says something when you meet somebody like that who gets straight to the point.”
So Griffin will be in New York again, where he’s involved in the Wendy’s High School Heisman Trophy. He’ll catch up with several other former Heisman winners, including a stable of running backs from that classic era that includes Earl Campbell, Tony Dorsett, Billy Sims and Mike Rozier. Those running backs played in a different time, a time Griffin recalls with the same no-nonsense philosophy.
“I always appreciated the straightforward, hard-knock plays we did,” Griffin said. “We weren’t surprising anybody with it. The question wasn’t if you knew what we were going to do. The question was, ‘Can you stop it?’ ”
Afterward, Griffin will return to Columbus, where he continues to be the most unassuming celebrity in town. Hansen has watched all the public appearances, speeches and all the appearances in between with Buckeyes fans who simply want to share a memory with Griffin. Nobody loves Columbus more than Griffin, and Columbus always returns the favor.
Hansen also likes to tell the story of meeting former Ohio State fullback Pete Johnson, who paved the way for Griffin’s two Heisman Trophy seasons. Johnson told Hansen, “Archie Griffin is the only person in the world who doesn’t think he’s Archie Griffin.”
"He could win two Heismans, and maybe if he was a jerk he would be less popular than he is,” Hansen said. “But he’s always been humbled because he thinks he’s indebted to Ohio State. That’s just the type of person he is.”
Forty years later, it’s impossible not to appreciate that.
