Wendy's High School Heisman
The Wendy's High School Heisman Memorial Trophy Award, named after former college football player and coach John Heisman, is a prestigious award in American high-school athletics. It is sponsored by Wendy's Restaurants. The current spokesman is Archie Griffin, the only two-time Heisman Trophy recipient and current President/CEO of the Ohio State University Alumni Association.
Overview and history
In 1994, the Wendy's High School Heisman was created to honor high school student-athletes. Each fall, the program recognizes the nation's most esteemed high-school-senior men and women for excellence in academics, athletics, and community involvement.Each school can nominate one male and one female student-athlete per year. To date, there have been more than 136,000 nominees. The field of nominees is narrowed to 1,020 State Finalists, 10 male and 10 female per state, who are announced in late October. In early November, the field is narrowed to 102 State Winners, one male and one female from each state.
In mid-November, a judging panel selects 12 National Finalists, one male and one female from each of six geographical regions. Two National Winners, one male and one female, are selected from the National Finalists and are honored during ESPN's national telecast of the college Heisman Memorial Trophy on December 9. Of all the nominees, 145 have progressed to the National Finalist level, with 24 earning the designation of Wendy's High School Heisman National Award Winners. The annual awards show is telecast on ESPN2.
Eligibility
Each nominee must participate in at least one of 27 sports: badminton, baseball, basketball, bowling, canoeing, competitive spirit/cheerleading, competitive weight lifting, crew, cross country, equestrian, fencing, field hockey, football, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, judo, lacrosse, skiing, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, track and field, volleyball, water polo, or wrestling.Past winners
The program was created in 1994, with more than 6,200 nominations submitted in the first year from high schools nationwide. Since then, more than 150,000 students have been nominated.Year | Male Winner | School | Hometown | Female Winner | School | Hometown |
1994 | Barrett Robinson | Chaminade-Julienne High School | Dayton, Ohio | Trisha Perry | Mansfield High School | Mansfield, Missouri |
1995 | Jeremy Royal | The Altamont School | Birmingham, Alabama | Jill Aholt | Linn High School | Linn, Missouri |
1996 | Chris Kirchhoff | Worthington Kilbourne High School | Worthington, Ohio | Erin Dromgoole | Millbury High School | Millbury, Massachusetts |
1997 | Blake Moore | Ogden High School | Ogden, Utah | Sarah Edwards | Sevier County High School | Sevierville, Tennessee |
1998 | Anthony White | Rosemead High School | San Gabriel, California | Kelly Landreth | McDowell High School | Marion, North Carolina |
1999 | Barrett Brandon | Lake Country Christian School | Fort Worth, Texas | Abby Miller | Green Valley High School | Henderson, Nevada |
2000 | David Donaldson | Walker High School | Jasper, Alabama | Kate O'Toole | Villa Madonna Academy | Crescent Springs, Kentucky |
2001 | Paul Corsello | Pittsford Mendon High School | Pittsford, New York | Megan May | Handley High School | Roanoke, Alabama |
2002 | Robert Huefner | McIntosh High School | Peachtree City, Georgia | Meghan O'Leary | Episcopal High School | Baton Rouge, Louisiana |
2003 | Chase Correia | Galena High School | Reno, Nevada | Ashley Wolf | Montville Township High School | Montville, New Jersey |
2004 | Andy Bratten | James M. Bennett High School | Salisbury, Maryland | Brenna Brucker | Bethel Park High School | Bethel Park, Pennsylvania |
2005 | William Jacobs | James Monroe High School | Fredericksburg, Virginia | Katie Zaeh | Governor Livingston High School | Berkeley Heights, New Jersey |
2006 | Samuel Finlayson | San Ramon Valley High School | Alamo, California | Kaylee Jamison | St. Charles North High School | St. Charles, Illinois |
2007 | Trevor Van Ackeren | Liberty High School | Bethlehem, Pennsylvania | Angela Duckworth | Desert Mountain High School | Scottsdale, Arizona |
2008 | Brett Leibowitz | The Meadows School | Las Vegas, Nevada | Kathy Kroeger | Independence High School | Franklin, Tennessee |
2009 | Kyle Pollock | Wiggins High School | Wiggins, Colorado | Malia Cali | Saint Thomas Aquinas High School | Hammond, Louisiana |
2010 | Rex Woodbury | Catalina Foothills High School | Tucson, Arizona | Gabrielle Badura | Clover Hill High School | Midlothian, Virginia |
2011 | Garrett Gosse | The Meadows School | Las Vegas, Nevada | Selena Pasadyn | Brunswick High School | Brunswick, Ohio |
2012 | Samuel Prakel | Versailles High School | Versailles, Ohio | Zoe Alaniz | W.B. Ray High School | Corpus Christi, Texas |
2013 | Andrew Miner | East Greenwich High School | East Greenwich, Rhode Island | Emily Granger | Saints Peter & Paul High School | Easton, Maryland |
2014 | Nolan Henry | Union High School | Vancouver, Washington | Lauren Van Vlierbergen | Harry D. Jacobs High School | Algonquin, Illinois |
2015 | Zach Hughes | Westminster Christian Academy | Town and Country, Missouri | Taylor Campos | Lemont Township High School | Lemont, Illinois |
2016 | Daniel Orcutt | Fort Walton Beach High School | Fort Walton Beach, FL | Frelicia Tucker | Aiken High School | Aiken, SC |
2017 | Jackson Destine | Atlantic Community High School | Delray Beach, Florida | Soleil Gaylord | Telluride High School | Telluride, Colorado |