SPEAKER_03 0:03

Welcome to the official is the first time.

SPEAKER_04 0:33

And the winner is here's your host, Chris Houston. Hey everybody, welcome back to the show. This is it. This is the last week of Heisman competition for 2024. Heisman Trophy ballots have gone out to the 928 voters. The announcement of the four Heisman Trophy finalists will be next Monday, December 9th at 5 p.m. Eastern, or at least that's when the vote will close. The announcement will actually come a couple hours later. Exact time, TBA, Saturday, December 14th, starting at 8 p.m. Eastern on ESPN is the 2024 Heisman Trophy ceremony. Of course, December 14th is about as late as possible as you can have for a Heisman Trophy ceremony. And it's interesting because one week later is the first round of the playoff. And so it's going to be very atypical this year because at least one of the uh Heisman Trophy finalists, I would suspect, is going to play the following weekend. So it's a new dynamic that is sure to be felt at the Heisman weekend. Of course, there is one player who is said to be in the thick of the Heisman race who will play this coming weekend, and we're talking uh Ashton Genty of Boise State. And his Broncos will take on UNLV on Friday night at 8 p.m. Eastern for the Mountain West Conference title. So we're getting down to the nitty-gritty. Well, I don't know what nitty is, but I do know what gritty is, and Gritty personifies our first guest on this week's show, Riley Leonard, quarterback for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, fresh off a victory over USC to move to 11-1, a lock for the playoffs. We chatted with him as his team prepared for a long layoff ahead of the playoff. And then we close the show with 1999 Heisman Trophy winner Ron Dane of Wisconsin, one of two badgers to win the trophy, including Alan Amichi, had a nice discussion with him on the 25th anniversary of his Heisman victory. He'll be in New York City in a couple weekends to celebrate and to reminisce. And of course, it is also the 50th anniversary of the first of Archie Griffin's two Heisman Trophy wins. He will be, of course, the first player to have uh back-to-back Heisman Trophy ceremony anniversaries. Later next week, the show heads to New York City, where we'll be on hand to catalog some of the happenings of the 2024 Heisman Trophy ceremony. So be sure not to miss our Heisman Weekend episode. Should be lots of cool content and maybe more than one surprise guest. And we'll be back with Riley Leonard in just a moment. We're celebrating 90 years of Heisman excellence at the new Heisman Legends brunch on December 15th, the day after the Heisman ceremony. Join the Heisman Trophy family at this historic gathering as we celebrate nine decades of Heisman history while featuring an extraordinary lineup of Heisman winners from the 1960s to today. We'll have an exclusive meet and greet for our guests to connect with Heisman Legends followed by a celebratory brunch. This is your chance to be part of an unforgettable afternoon. Not only will you hear our Heisman winners' stories firsthand, you'll also support the impactful charitable work of the Heisman Trust. Secure your tickets now for this special event. Space is limited, and you won't want to miss it. Go to Heisman.com to reserve your tickets today.

SPEAKER_01 3:54

This is Mike Shizhewski, and you're listening to the official Heisman Trophy podcast.

SPEAKER_04 4:00

You know, I told a friend of mine the other day that there's probably no other quarterback in the 12 team playoff that I would rather have in a playoff situation than Riley Leonard. Now, I don't know if you guys have noticed, but offense is down this year in college football. There are really no elite offenses out there. Certainly none that strike fear into you, like those Baylor offenses of the mid-201s or those Lincoln Riley offenses at Oklahoma, or that Joe Burrow led LSU team in 2019. Well, I personally think that defenses have started to catch up with the modern spread offense. You're not seeing as much innovation as you used to. And it's harder to create a well-oiled offensive machine when you're changing personnel every year. But if you're a pretty good offensive team and you go up against a team that figures you out, there's not much you can do. A lot of times you just get shut down. And that's when having a great wild card up your sleeve, like having a mobile quarterback, is something that can save you. A mobile quarterback is like an insurance policy against a playground. And that's what I like about Riley Leonard. He just makes plays. I feel like if his defense gives him a chance, he's going to come through. The 6'4, 215-pounds senior from Fairhope, Alabama has passed for 2,092 yards, 16 touchdowns, 5 interceptions, also second on the Irish with 721 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns. We caught up with him the Tuesday after his team's 49-35 victory over USC in Los Angeles. The Fighting Irish's 10th straight win to move to 11-1. Here's the interview. Riley Leonard, quarterback for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Welcome to the official Heisman Trophy Podcast.

SPEAKER_02 5:38

It's great to be here. Thank you for having me.

SPEAKER_04 5:40

Hey, congratulations on the victory over USC this past weekend. Looks like the Irish are a lock to make the 12-team playoff now. What's the mood like around the team right now?

SPEAKER_02 5:49

Yeah, uh, we said it before the season. All you got to do is get in. Once you're into the playoffs, uh it's fair game from there. So great vibes around the program right now. Obviously, coming after uh a win like we did at USC, going in the that Cali weather. It's it's snowing here half the time. So to be able to play in 80-degree weather was pretty fun for us and play against a rival. So uh it's it's a lot of good vibes around the facility for us.

SPEAKER_04 6:10

Yeah, coming to Notre Dame uh for this one year, what did you know about this big rivalry going over to USC? Did you did they tell you about it? Was there uh I know like the old coaches like Lou Holtz used to quiz the team about the trip about the about the rivalry. Did you guys have anything like that before you went out to LA?

SPEAKER_02 6:26

Yeah, we didn't we will we had former players reach out and send in videos of you know kind of how they felt about USC. So that fired us up a little bit. But there wasn't, you know, a need to explain too much about this rivalry. We we kind of knew what was at stake, especially, you know, um given our season and the magnitude of this that game for us is very important to us.

SPEAKER_04 6:46

Yeah. One thing I noticed about the USC game is that the offense really kicked into high gear coming out of halftime. The third quarter, I think, was really what decided the game. You had TD drives of 75, 75, 62 yards. What happened at halftime to get you guys right?

SPEAKER_02 7:01

Yeah, I think Coach talks about the the middle eight a lot, right? The last four minutes of the first half, the first four minutes of the of the third quarter. That really decides, you know, the momentum of the game. And, you know, they won the coin toss and took the ball first. So we knew that whole first half, we were gonna get the ball coming at halftime. And we really pride ourselves on starting fast, whether it's you know, out of halftime or you know in the beginning of the game, our offensive line always tells me and and the receivers if you're juiceless, you're useless. So we like to come out with a lot of juice and and get things going quick.

SPEAKER_04 7:29

Now, 10 straight wins for the Irish after that loss to Northern Illinois. And except for the Louisville and USC games, they've all been blowouts. What changed with the team following that disappointing loss?

SPEAKER_02 7:39

I think it's living with no regrets. Like I felt like me personally and a lot of the guys on the team, when we walked off the field against NIU, did we really put our best foot forward and we did we really leave everything out on the field? I think maybe we we played a couple of those games um selfishly. Um, but after that, like it was a whole team event. Like we were all like, all in, you know, there's nothing nothing to lose at that point. We already hit the rock bottom, so it was only up from there. And every single game, we we kept, we held on to that fear. And I think that's something Coach Freeman talks a lot about. That fear of losing and and and that that anger we had after that game carried us throughout the remaining of the season. I th I think about it before every single game, before every practice, that fear I had and that that terrible feeling after that game is really what you know lit the fire in us after uh or to begin every other game.

SPEAKER_04 8:28

Yeah, the fear of losing is more motivating than the the love of winning, I guess, right? That's right. What's been the most memorable part of the season for you?

SPEAKER_02 8:35

It's a great question. I think every single week when we go into a different stadium or even here in South Bend, I I tell myself, oh, this is why you come to Notre Dame. I just keep reminding myself, and I feel like they just stack and stack and stack. You go to Atlanta, you play um in the Atlanta Falcons Stadium, then you go to you play Navy in the Giants and Jets Stadium, you go to New York, play in the Yankees Stadium, then to the Coliseum uh at USC. It's just it's just incredible. They they just keep stacking for me.

SPEAKER_04 9:04

Yeah, the playoff game's a long way off, nearly three weeks to wait. What's the team's plan to stay sharp while you prepare for that first round?

SPEAKER_02 9:11

Yeah, uh, we've got a team run today uh where we'll run and throw a little bit. Um, but but we we practice really hard, and that's something we take a lot of pride in. So we're gonna practice our tails off and make sure we get guys recovered. We've got a few banged up guys, but nothing, nothing too crazy. So once we're all set, we'll we should be in good shape.

SPEAKER_04 9:30

Are you worried that that after being, you know, winning 10 weeks in a row or 10 games in a row, that it's gonna be hard to keep that momentum going?

SPEAKER_02 9:37

Absolutely not. That like I said, that motivation we had after week two is gonna carry us probably for the rest of my life. So for the rest of my life at least. I'll remember that for a long time. So there won't be any ex external motivations uh needed.

SPEAKER_04 9:52

So when things go bad, you can always just look back to northern Illinois.

SPEAKER_02 9:55

Always look back to that.

SPEAKER_04 9:57

Wow. I want to go back in time a bit to when you were growing up. Were you a fan of college football as a kid?

SPEAKER_02 10:02

Huge fan, huge fan. I mean, I grew up in Alabama, so how could you not?

SPEAKER_04 10:06

Were you a Crimson Tide fan?

SPEAKER_02 10:09

That one's a little tricky. I watch Rudy like every day growing up. Um, but of course, when you're surrounded by Alabama or Auburn fans, it's it's literally your identity. It's it's your first name, and then it's are you an Alabama or an Auburn fan? So I was kind of I was kind of a little more neutral, but you you couldn't help but watch the end state teams when you were a kid growing up.

SPEAKER_04 10:28

So you were always a Notre Dame fan?

SPEAKER_02 10:29

I was always a Notre Dame fan, but but of course I supported the the home teams as well.

SPEAKER_04 10:33

Right. You've always been an outstanding athlete, starring in both basketball and football in high school in Fairhope, Alabama. What initially sparked your interest in sports when you were young?

SPEAKER_02 10:42

Oof, great question. I think you know, having two brothers on the middle child, so you know, picking on the little one and getting bullied by the top one uh really, really kind of helped me out. Um, and then my father as well. He he played a lot of sports and really just instilled that competitive nature in me uh as a at a young age.

SPEAKER_04 10:59

Was there a moment when it hit you that you had the athleticism to play at the next level?

SPEAKER_02 11:04

That's a good question. I think I kind of knew uh on the basketball court is really when it kind of got exposed to me. If you asked anybody from my hometown, they they probably referred to me as Riley Leonard, the basketball player. That was kind of my main sport. And it's really what I kind of wanted to do up until senior year when COVID hit and I ended up you know committing to play football. But my whole life, it was kind of just basketball, basketball, basketball. So I had to flip the switch kind of kind of when I got to college. I I I if if if there was a weekend, I was probably shooting basketball shots in the gym in high school any given weekend rather than going and throwing routes. So when I got to college, I was able to narrow in my focus on being a quarterback.

SPEAKER_04 11:42

You miss basketball?

SPEAKER_02 11:43

Yeah, yeah, a lot.

SPEAKER_04 11:46

I guess part of the reason, maybe in the back of your mind, going to Duke, you're like, hey, you know, play football and watch some great basketball too.

SPEAKER_02 11:54

That's right. Well, watch. I in my my first semester there, I was with Paula Bancaro. He was he was my he was in my class. So we all got there in the summer. And during COVID, we're the only ones on campus. We were able to get a few runs in Cameron indoor late at night, which is pretty fun. Um yeah, and anytime in the offseason, I would try to go get some runs in with those guys.

SPEAKER_04 12:11

Great. What was your recruiting process like? Were there any schools that you wanted to hear from that you didn't?

SPEAKER_02 12:16

Absolutely. Yeah, I took a lot of pride in it because I didn't take an official visit to any school ever. My first official visit was when I got in the transfer portal and came here. Um, so I never took a official or unofficial. Um my ratio from from basketball to football coaches was probably nine to one. So I wasn't really heavily recruited as a football player. Um so I kind of had a chip on my shoulder always. And and there were there are a couple in-state schools that that didn't recruit me for for football, um, which you know I I took a lot of pride in. So yeah, um, yeah, definitely, definitely an interesting recruiting process for me.

SPEAKER_04 12:52

So that was a good motivating factor for you uh once you decided. Why why Duke though?

SPEAKER_02 12:57

Why Duke? Great question. I think Coach Cutcliffe and the crew, my quarterback coach back home, David Morris in QB country, he played for Coach Cutcliffe uh at Ole Miss. So I knew what I was getting myself into, and then obviously a great education school like that. I didn't finish. I went there for the education, didn't even finish, but um great school.

SPEAKER_04 13:17

Notre Dame's not so shabby at academics either. Uh you had a nice career at Duke, though, also some setbacks with injuries. Was it hard to leave Durham?

SPEAKER_02 13:24

Absolutely. Yeah, I mean, those are my guys. I gotta love those guys, and I will every to every chance I get if if they're not playing the same time as us, I'm watching every down of Duke football and supporting those guys because I know they're doing the same for me. So we left on really good terms. Uh Durham's a great place, great weather, great food, um, and a great community overall.

SPEAKER_04 13:44

Yeah, I one thing I've always wondered when when people transfer, like maybe later in their career, do you imagine like 30 years from now you're gonna be going to like Duke reunions and Notre Dame reunions? Is that how it works?

SPEAKER_02 13:57

That's a good question. I've always wondered that because on my end, I would love to be able to go back to Duke as long as they'd be welcoming to me. I I kind of understand, you know, I'm the one that left. So, you know, you know, if that's not the case, but but of course I'd like to, you know, go 50-50 and split this thing because both programs have helped me and and my family and and my faith grow tremendously.

SPEAKER_04 14:18

Certainly can't hurt to have two great alumni associations uh behind you for sure. So Notre Dame came calling, you went to South Bend. How much obviously you knew about the Irish, you watch Rudy all the time. What did you know about the quarterback tradition, though?

SPEAKER_02 14:31

Yeah, um, it's special here. The amount of quarterback and networking um that I've been able to do since I got here is just incredible. Um, and you don't really understand, I tell people, you don't really understand the magnitude of this place until you really get in it. And and really until things go bad. This whole offseason, I'm preparing myself mentally, right? It's all right, there's you know a lot more at stake here in Notre Dame, a lot, lot, a lot more eyes on you. But until you really like start playing and things go bad, then you really like, oh snap, you know, you gotta kick this thing in the gear. So um it's it's been a really good growing experience for me. I don't even remember the person I was when I got here in January, had three surgeries since then when when I started fall camp and and earlier in the season, I just and it's it's been a crazy year for me.

SPEAKER_04 15:18

Yeah, it's a obviously a huge difference pressure-wise when it comes to being in a Notre Dame quarterback as opposed to being a Duke quarterback. Is it do you thrive on that pressure, or is it something you just kind of like, you know, try to try to keep on the down low as much as possible?

SPEAKER_02 15:32

I've learned to love it and keep it at the on the on the download um too. I think it's kind of what gets me up in the morning, uh gets me to run a little bit harder in practice and and lift a little bit more weights um when I'm in the weight room. I think that it also um doesn't affect me as much because I like to keep my life very simple. I mean, if you if you look in my phone, it's my parents, girlfriend, and close friends that are texting me. Um don't really get distracted off the field uh too much at all. So yeah, I live a pretty simple life just like everybody else. So it helps me out a lot.

SPEAKER_04 16:04

You haven't been in Southend for very long. What have you learned about the Notre Dame community in your short time there?

SPEAKER_02 16:09

It's really cool because here, like the whole northern part of it, Indiana, southern Michigan, um, is just straight Notre Dame football. I mean, you you feel it if you drive two hours in any direction, they're just Notre Dame fans and Notre Dame flags, which is something I'm not really accustomed to. And it's it's really cool. I take a lot of pride in in playing for this university. Anywhere you go, you know, you're you're seeing Notre Dame fans. It's it's awesome.

SPEAKER_04 16:34

You uh took some steps over the summer to uh bond with your teammates, especially the receivers. You guys went back down to Alabama, hung out at Phillip uh Rivers' house. Tell me all about uh what uh what that process was like.

SPEAKER_02 16:47

Yeah, so when I got here um in January, I had obviously didn't plan to get three surgeries, um, but I had three surgeries. And once I recovered from that, I was like, hey, I gotta get these guys going. You know, I haven't thrown to these guys yet. So during our summer break, I I took about eight receivers down there with me to to Farough, Alabama. And Coach Ri uh Coach Phillip Rivers is is putting together this thing at his house where he's having you know collegiate athletes come in and and train with him and learn from him, which is a really cool experience. I was able to show them, you know, a couple of my fishing spots as well. Uh it was a lot of fun, man. We we had a blast.

SPEAKER_04 17:22

Yeah, you're a uh I hear you're a great fisher. Uh what's uh some of your favorite fishing holes and what do you like to fish for?

SPEAKER_02 17:29

Well, it was funny with the with the receivers, right? Um, we took them out to Mobile Bay and and we ended up catching, you know, early on some of these baby sail cats, which is like you'd rather not catch a fish than catch a baby sail cat because you're just you're just a mess, you know, trash fish. But I remember us catching them and then posting on their stories. I was like, dude, don't post that like that's not a flex. Um so that was a lot of fun. Um there's been a lot of there's been a lot of good spots. Me and the offensive linemen uh went up to Lake Michigan this summer, which was just incredible. Caught some caught some good salmon out there. So um man, you can catch fish anywhere in America. So anywhere I go, I like to sneak on to whatever pond I can find and catch them.

SPEAKER_04 18:11

Do you do you eat any of the fish or do you just throw them back?

SPEAKER_02 18:13

I I typically eat them. It depends on the fish, right? I'm not eating any bass, but you know, if we catch some salmon, bring it back to cook, and then you know, any type of blue cat um or crappie, uh love to fry them up.

SPEAKER_04 18:26

What's your best fish story?

SPEAKER_02 18:28

Oof. My biggest one of my biggest fish, I cut well, not my biggest fish, but I caught like a 35-pound uh red drum one time. It was a bull red, but I caught it on a cast net, so like I don't really know if it it counts. I threw a banana of a throw. I was really I was really fishing for trying to catch some mullet to cut up to catch some bigger fish, but I caught pretty good size bull red, which which was pretty nice.

SPEAKER_04 18:52

Nice, nice. Well, back to quarterbacking. You've always had great feet, but you're still developing as an overall quarterback. What's the next step you have to take to get to the next level as a passer?

SPEAKER_02 19:01

Yeah, I think just um eyes, feet, and and and having confidence stepping into those tight windows. Um I think that there are a lot of parts of my game which I feel very comfortable with, and that sometimes I can bail myself out of you know, skipping a read or you know, not playing as on time as I would like to. Um and I like to develop those things. I I can't just rely on my athleticism to always just bail me out and make a play.

SPEAKER_04 19:28

You had those three surgeries. Do you feel pretty comfortable out there, you know, knowing that you're healthy and and obviously there's you know, you don't want to go around acting like you might get injured, but but do you feel natural again out there that now that you're now the injuries are in your past?

SPEAKER_02 19:42

Absolutely. I play with no hesitation. I think that's pretty obvious uh the way I play the game. I mean, every drive I'm getting yelled at for doing something, you know, probably not too smart with my legs, but um, it's all good. I feel 100%, and I'm able to go out there and just play free.

SPEAKER_04 19:58

What are some tips you picked up from Coach Rivers?

SPEAKER_02 20:01

Oh, that's a great point. Um I think how to attack every single thing you do. Like this dude, no matter what, was the most competitive person like I've ever been around, whether it was eating food or we were we were swimming in his pool, holding holding your breath underwater. He we know it just for these random things, no matter what you do, give it a hundred percent. And that's really a lifestyle and and habits that you can build, and they kind of just stick with you. So his competitive edge is probably the biggest thing.

SPEAKER_04 20:31

He's he's a competitive eater too.

SPEAKER_02 20:33

Oh every it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter what you do. He's he's going to try to beat you at it.

SPEAKER_04 20:38

Do you have you like taken that uh you know kind of as a lesson? Do you try to gamify some things that you that you uh get involved in to kind of make it more interesting, more exciting?

SPEAKER_02 20:47

Absolutely. Uh I I I like to think I'm I'm kind of the same way. Um if you you ask any of these guys who's probably the biggest trash talker when it comes to our ping pong in the locker room or pool, you know, I'm not the best at either of them, but I like to you know let them think that I am. So everything that I do, I'm kind of the same way.

SPEAKER_04 21:04

If you had a Heisman vote this year, who would you vote for?

SPEAKER_02 21:07

Probably Jeremiah Love.

SPEAKER_04 21:10

All right. Um what what's what's one thing about Riley Leonard that people would be surprised to hear about?

SPEAKER_02 21:17

It's a good question. I I think I have a I have a very strong faith and I take a lot of pride in it, and not just saying that I have a strong faith, but but really living it. So um I think that's a question that you might have to ask those around me, but but I imagine that they would likely say um pretty you know complimentary things when it comes to my faith. And I'm really just a testament to my environment, my whole life growing up in Fair Up, Alabama. I was surrounded by just amazing people, amazing men of faith that I've been able to like implicate my life around. And at the end of the day, like after every win, I kind of have to remind myself like, yeah, this is amazing. And it kind of wears off after a couple of days. But you know, going to church with your family or and then things like that and committing yours committing your life to the Lord. You know, you get a lot more fulfillment out of that than any type of football winner lies.

SPEAKER_04 22:05

Commissioner Riley Leonard, thanks for coming on the official Heisen Trophy Podcast. Congratulations once again on a fine season and good luck in the playoffs.

SPEAKER_02 22:13

Thank you very much, Jesus Plus.

SPEAKER_04 22:28

Did you know that the Heisman Trophy Trust has donated more than $20 million to a huge variety of charity-based groups via its Heisman Trophy Fund for Youth Development? That's right. The fund has helped countless charitable organizations that uses sports to engage underprivileged young people in educational activities. If you are part of an organization or know of one that would like to apply for funding, visit Heisman.com and click on the charities link at the top of the site.

SPEAKER_00 22:52

This is Archie Griffin, 1974, 1975 Heisman Trophy winner, and you're listening to the official Heisman podcast.

SPEAKER_04 23:00

Our next guest is one of the greatest running backs of all time. He won the Heisman in 1999. He's the NCAA's all-time leading rusher with 7,125 career yards. He eclipsed the 2,000 yard mark twice in his career, and he is the second badger to win the Heisman. We caught up to him last week. Talking Ron Dane. Here's the interview. Ron Dane, 1999 Heisman Trophy winner from the University of Wisconsin. Thanks for coming on the official Heisman Trophy podcast.

SPEAKER_05 23:30

Oh thanks for having me.

SPEAKER_04 23:32

Can you believe it's been 25 years since you won your Heisman Trophy?

SPEAKER_05 23:37

Well, yeah, I guess so. My oldest is 27. So uh, but yeah, it's it's it's kind of crazy, though, 25 years.

SPEAKER_04 23:46

You know, uh I was in the United States Navy, and around the time you started college at Wisconsin, I was floating around the Caribbean and being a big college football fan, I tried to get whatever news I could. You couldn't get the internet back in those days.

SPEAKER_06 24:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 24:01

But I remember hearing, I remember hearing this name, Dane, great Dane. And I kept seeing your numbers, and I'm like, who is this guy? And uh I finally saw you, and it was incredible because uh it was like Wisconsin had already started having good backs. You had Moss and Fletcher, which really kind of got the ball rolling. Yeah. And you know, Carl McCullough was there uh a year before you got there. And so there's already an established running game, but it's like you took that running game and that system and sort of put it on steroids, you know? And and and that's what it seemed like to me. I mean, was that kind of how it was experiencing it, doing the gaining the yards?

SPEAKER_05 24:42

I just had fun, like and I wanted to win. So that was the biggest thing for me was that um coming from high school, I was like the biggest on my team. So yeah, um, just being able to be around guys that was way bigger than me, you know. But I was big coming out of high school. I was probably 282 or something. Wow. But I ran the same day, I ran a four or five. So that kept me at my spot. But I was still like the fifth string running back as a freshman. You know, it was Carl Carl McCullough, Aaron Stecker, um Williams, Eddie Faulkner, um who's one of the coaches, he's the running back coach at Pittsburgh right now.

SPEAKER_04 25:23

Yeah. Yeah, it took you a while to to gain the starting job, but once you did, it was like it was all over. Um you were from New Jersey, uh, Overbrook High School. I could imagine as you were getting into football, having the size that you did, I don't know when this when did the size really kicked in, but it must have been really hard to convince your first coaches to to play you at running back, right?

SPEAKER_05 25:47

Uh well I was a fullback at first. Right. And um I got in the game and I had getting down in the three-point stance, and I got a headache from like just running straight into the dudes, but I was still one of the fastest guys on the team, so I'm like, when you give me the ball, I can't see. So and then one of my friends, like, yo, I'll be I'll be the fullback and and give Ronnie the ball. And I'm like, all right. So then my freshman year was crazy, and then freshman couldn't be couldn't play senior ball, you know, when I was growing up. So uh I just played freshman and then my next year I was starter and senior.

SPEAKER_04 26:25

Yeah, uh one of the things that I always thought was a great contributor to allowing you to perform at the level you did, even considering your size, is being a great discus thrower, uh, general with the throws in general. You know, having 216-11 discus throw out of high school, excellent throw.

unknown 26:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 26:44

Did did that help you with balance and and just overall agility when it came to being a running back?

SPEAKER_05 26:50

Well, yeah, that that and I played soccer when uh when I moved from Virginia to Jersey because I was too big to play, you know, the biggest was like 135. I was already like 180, and I was like nine, nine or ten, and then 13, 14 was 135, you know. So I'm like, I guess I ain't gonna play no Low League football, you know. So I played soccer, and then when I got to high school, I did track.

SPEAKER_04 27:18

Awesome, awesome. Did you ever consider uh going back to your track career or throwing did you throw the discus at Wisconsin at all?

SPEAKER_05 27:24

No, no. I um I would throw the shot put, but uh I would only do it for practice. Like I would go out there and practice with the team for a little while. But you know, because I asked Coach, I'm like, well, coach, if can I go practice with the team and skip our practice? He was like, nah, you can do our practice and then go do their practice. I was like, ah, that's too much. That's too many practice.

SPEAKER_04 27:46

That is a lot, for sure. When you were in high school, like you said, some people uh, you know, you're playing fullback, you're playing running back, but some people probably didn't think you could play running back or tailback going into college. What was your recruiting process like? What were some of the uh coaches that you can, you know, teams that you considered going to? What were those coaches telling you uh about where you should play inside of running back? And then what finally convinced you to go to Wisconsin?

SPEAKER_05 28:11

Well, uh coach told me, you know, Coach Alvarez, when I met Coach, first thing or my question was, you're gonna let me play running back? And he was like, Yeah, and I was like, You're gonna let me run the ball. He was like, as much as you can carry it. So um there, and then um the schools that I visited, I went to Ohio State, and I visited them, and there was like nine of us, and eight of them committed, and we was all running backs. So I'm like, I don't want to go here. It's already eight of y'all already committed, and they already had a team already. So um once coach told me that, um, gave me the opportunity to come here. You know, I was a little, I was a little upset after probably like week five because I wasn't playing. You know, I would get in in the fourth quarter and stuff. So I told my uncle to call Coach Saban. And he was at Michigan State, you know, and I'm like, uh tell Coach I want to come there. And then my uncle was like, nah, just give it one more week. And then after that, I started starting after that, and that was the rest of his history.

SPEAKER_04 29:13

Wow, that's uh quite a that could have gotten a leave away.

SPEAKER_05 29:16

Yeah, I was gonna leave. Wow.

SPEAKER_04 29:19

Wow, that alternate universe where where you're won the Heisman for the Spartans. Nick Saban. That's pretty crazy. Um, you know, the the Wisconsin running game has over the years become legendary, and it all started uh in your era, right? That's when it really just started taking off. And I think there's a lot of fans who just think that you to have a great running game, you just need a great running back and great lineman. And and while that element's true, yeah, I always felt the difference between a place like Wisconsin was the level. I mean, I I I imagine that you guys ran your inside zone plays and outside zone plays, like to such a degree, like the number of times you ran those plays in practice and the number of times that like the linemen were broken down as to like where they should step and like everything. I feel like that concentration and that and that like breaking it down into its individual parts and the and the attention to detail was what was the difference for why Wisconsin was able to like continuously produce this great running game. Is that is that a fair depiction of what it was like?

SPEAKER_05 30:24

Yeah, definitely, because we ran the like zone type of run. So where the back can pick it, but you know where you're supposed to go, you know. So like if it's like if we go into the right and it's 28, you know you're supposed to get outside. But if you cut it inside, you better do some do something with it, you know, because you could have kept going outside and probably got more yards. But if you cut it up, you know, you had your own option. Sometimes it's right, sometimes it's wrong. So sometimes you might get pulled out the game, like you're not reading a hole. Get out the game, right? You know, so yeah.

SPEAKER_04 30:57

Well, you were so decisive. I I feel like there were so many plays where you you almost didn't all you had to do was run straight. The holes were so big, and you sometimes you just wouldn't even get touched.

SPEAKER_05 31:07

Yeah. Well, I had a huge line. We had the biggest line in college when I was playing, and I was probably the biggest running back too.

SPEAKER_04 31:14

So um a lot of power there. Yeah, Chris Macintosh was one guy I really stood out during that time.

SPEAKER_05 31:21

Yeah, definitely.

SPEAKER_04 31:23

Yeah, your senior year, you actually made some t-shirts uh for your O-line, my kind of guys. What's the story?

SPEAKER_05 31:29

I did that my freshman year.

SPEAKER_04 31:31

Ah, freshman year.

SPEAKER_05 31:33

Wow. Because I had the most yards my freshman year. And I didn't get to start until like the fifth, sixth game.

SPEAKER_04 31:39

Yeah. It seems like in that kind of system, the relationship between the running back and offensive lineman is much stronger than just any old system, right?

SPEAKER_05 31:48

Well, yeah, I well I can I can't really say because I wasn't really in the other card system. So um I used to run the plays that we thought the other team was running, but you know, besides that, that was it. We had our grade system and we ran it. I averaged 35 carries a game. So we did what we got.

SPEAKER_04 32:10

By the time yeah, by the time you were by the time you're heading into your senior year, you piled up a lot of yards. You had uh almost two, you know, over 2,000 yards as a freshman when you count the bowl games. And of course, back then, I think you're yours was the last year that they didn't count bowl games in the NCA record. So you're you have 6,397 yards officially, which is second to San Diego State's Donnell Pumphrey. But yeah, everyone knows you're the leading all-time leading rusher.

SPEAKER_06 32:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 32:38

Because if you counted the you didn't get to count your bowl games.

SPEAKER_05 32:41

If you had, that would have been you know an extra thousand. 7125. Yeah. So that's that's how many yards I got. So I'm still the all-time leading rusher.

SPEAKER_04 32:51

So right, exactly. So going into that senior year, you know that was within the in the realm of possibility. Ricky Williams had just broken Tony Dorsett's record the year before. And what was uh did was this like a big motivator for you and the line going into that year?

SPEAKER_05 33:07

Well, yeah, it was a team goal, so it was something that we all wanted as a team. So uh that's what made it, you know, fun. And it was even times when like I fumbled and we lost the game, right? Like, oh, he's out of the Heisman, and EXPN dogged me, and all the Ryan took the uh picture of me with my head down and put it in a locker, and I'm like, what the going on? Because I didn't know what was up, man. Like, oh, he lost the Heisman. And but after that, you know, we just kept playing and kept going.

SPEAKER_04 33:39

You finished really strong your senior year. I think three of your last four regular season games, you were over 200 yards, and of course you had another 200 yard game in the Rose Bowl. Was which uh was there a point where you're like, yeah, I think I'm gonna win this?

SPEAKER_05 33:54

Um, nah, I didn't I real I didn't realize it because I didn't realize it until I got there. And um the the time that I noticed is because we were getting ready to start. You know, they're gonna re announce who won, you know, and then the makeup lady comes to me and patterns me down.

SPEAKER_06 34:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 34:14

In front of everybody, right? I'm like, all right, we can ready to start in five, four. She comes patterns, my face down, and then you hear the coach from uh Marshall, he was like, Well, I guess we know who won this, who won the Heisman. I'm sitting there like, ah, you know, so yeah, it was it was it was crazy that day.

SPEAKER_04 34:33

Yeah. Was it pretty nerve-wracking? Was it was it hard to come up with the right things to say at your speech?

SPEAKER_05 34:38

Well, I thought I had I thought I had it down because I I wrote it, I wrote everything I wanted in my hand. And by the time I got to the stage, and uh coach, Coach Alby told me to take three deep breaths someday. What are you talking about, Coach? You know, like what is that supposed to mean? And you know, and I'm like, all right, so I get up there, I look in my hand, and all my notes are gone. I'm like, that's my first deep breath. And then next time my eyes start watering, and I'm like, I'm thinking my team told me don't cry, you know what I'm saying, on my lineman. So now I'm like, that's two, and then I get up to get ready to talk, and I had to take one deep one. And then I just I just started going because you know I had practiced the I thought, you know, just different speeches that I would say when I would win if I if I had the chance to win it. So uh when I won it, I just kept going. And after we got done, people were like, I didn't know you could talk that much. I'm like, I just had to keep going.

unknown 35:33

You know.

SPEAKER_04 35:34

That's awesome. What was what was the reception like going back to Madison with the Heisman in tow?

SPEAKER_05 35:39

Oh, it was it was great, you know, just being able to be around my teammates and show them what what we did as a team, um, and letting people be able to come around and get to see it, you know, and that's that's great, you know. So kids can still come and see the Heisman and things like that.

SPEAKER_04 35:55

Yeah. Have you had to pay for a beer since in Madison? Um going out?

SPEAKER_05 36:02

Nah, not really. You know. You know, that's why I don't go out too much, you know, because I'm like, oh, oh, it's my birthday. Take a shot. Oh, bro. Well, it's everybody's birthday when I come in. Oh no. You know.

SPEAKER_04 36:20

So you're the all-time leading rusher in college, you leave with the Heisman Trophy. No. What do you what do you um what sticks with you the most about your college career? Um, obviously you won the Heisman, but but what what was uh so special about it for you beyond just like the awards and the accolades?

SPEAKER_05 36:36

Well, just just uh us being a family and being able to believe and trust in each other. And we we played football together and we hung out together. You know, it wasn't like you know, we weren't together, like we don't know what he's about, and we all know what he's about. But my college career, we knew what everybody on the team was about because we all hung together, you know, no matter what. Y'all might be defense might be at the bar across the street, offensive bar across on the other side, you know. So I would hang with my linemen and my running backs, and and then sometimes I hang with defense, because defense, you know, just to get over there, like man, I didn't mean to run you over at practice, my bad. But yeah, so we we all knew what each other were about. So I think that was the best time, just being around the guys and and having that opportunity to play and have fun and win. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 37:26

Yeah, and you know, in today's college landscape's totally, totally different. Really, you you got guys coming in who maybe they're probably they're coming in for a fall, really, and playing, and then maybe they'll never set foot on campus again. Do you think like ha having that kind of uh well I know I I know that Coach Alvarez recently was talking about you know trying to get the run game back at Wisconsin and and maybe what you're describing um is a reason why it's so hard to really have that level of uh of togetherness, you need to have this trust in the system because you can't have guys for guys don't stay for four or five years anymore, right?

SPEAKER_05 38:04

Oh and now you're actually getting guys for like one year just coming in, can't just transfer. Yeah. You might be a senior, you know, with with uh that's that's done, you know. So already have a family and everything and come to your team and you're not bonding with the team because you're leaving to go with your family every night, yeah. Hanging with the guys, you know. So, you know, it's different now with with this where you can just come from any school, no matter how old you are, whatever. Hey, let's go. Hey, senior on your team, right? And you might have all freshmen, then who's gonna hang with that senior? You know, like what? Yeah, you know, so you you never know. You might seniors and sophomores, I mean, I mean freshmen and sophomores, and then then you got a senior, couple five seniors come in, you're like, Well, we don't even and you know, so it's like, yeah, and then they leave the next year. So you're like, oh right.

SPEAKER_04 39:00

And that's a whole year that those the senior is playing that the the sophomore could have played and developed, right? So he's now he's not developing, so he's gonna leave because he wants to go somewhere to develop. Yeah, so it seems kind of crazy. Uh what do you think about uh this year's Heisman race? Do you typically have a sort of do you look at running backs a little closer?

SPEAKER_05 39:18

Or are do you yeah? I'm uh yeah, yeah, without a doubt. 100% running back, you know. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 39:25

So you like uh who are some of the running backs you like in this race?

SPEAKER_05 39:28

Well, um, the guy from Boston College we were just talking about, uh not Boston College from Boise State. Um I get I get kickback from my friends when I talk about him because they're like, Well, who did he play? What teams he played against? I'm like, Well, he's a good running back. Have you seen him run? You know, so yeah. Um, you don't have to play. Hey, everybody can tackle, but yeah, it might not be a lot of pros on teams that he played.

SPEAKER_04 39:51

So well he played he ran for 185 yards against Oregon, so they're pretty good.

SPEAKER_05 39:56

Yeah, yeah, that's there you go. But we we what what Oregon too, but we stopped running it.

SPEAKER_04 40:04

Yeah. What um when you're looking at a running back, you know, what do you what kind of back do you tend to favor watching?

SPEAKER_05 40:11

Um I'm like a like a big power back, like a pack that they got good feet. I just like good backs, like you can see a good back, but like who I like in the league is probably Henry, because he's a big back, you know. Yeah. He's probably the top back, and then I would probably go down from to like Saquon or you know, JT, Jonathan Taylor, but you know, guys like that, you know. So and they smaller than the big back. So big backs, and you got Henry in the league.

SPEAKER_04 40:40

Yeah. Have you seen any guys who who you look at them, you're like, wow, that guy's just like me?

SPEAKER_05 40:45

Um, no, I never really look at guys like that. That's crazy. I don't, you know. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 40:50

Yeah. Well, you were kind of a one-of-a-kind. I I don't think there'll ever be anyone quite like Ron Dane. What are you doing now? Uh, I know you live in Madison. What's what are you up to these days? Um uh what keeps you busy?

SPEAKER_05 41:03

Um, I'm still an ambassador uh with French University. Uh I donate my time uh every day to the Goodman Center out here. You know, um go out there and uh we have a little program, Mills on Wheels, where I help with, you know, every day. Um that's really neat to get to meet people and you know, give people food and take care of people. Uh and kind of raise my kids. That's about it. You know. Six.

SPEAKER_04 41:38

Well, that's wonderful. How's how many kids do you have? Six kids, all right. Any any future any future badgers?

SPEAKER_05 41:48

Well, my my my my oldest is uh she's 27. That's Jada, she's a girl. She graduated from Michigan.

SPEAKER_06 41:58

Okay.

SPEAKER_05 41:58

And then my oldest son, he just he graduated from Boston College. And then my next son, he graduated from Yale.

SPEAKER_06 42:06

Wow.

SPEAKER_05 42:07

Then my son after that is in the Army. And then I got a 14-year-old and um son, and then I got a nine-year-old daughter.

SPEAKER_04 42:17

Wow, all right, keeping you busy.

SPEAKER_05 42:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 42:20

You'll be out in New York City uh in a couple weeks for your 25th anniversary. What are you looking forward to the most? And and are you getting your speech ready? Uh, what you're gonna say?

SPEAKER_05 42:30

Uh I don't know. I don't really have a big speech to say. Thank my team, thank Coach, and you know, guys, that was important in my life.

SPEAKER_06 42:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 42:41

Thank my family. So that's about it. My speech would be probably the fastest speech.

SPEAKER_04 42:47

It'd be the fastest speech, your man, a few words, huh?

SPEAKER_05 42:49

Yeah, yeah. You know, I'm just happy and proud.

SPEAKER_04 42:58

Ron Dane, 1999 Heisman Trophy winner from the University of Wisconsin, one of two badgers to win the Heisman. Thank you again for coming on the official Heisman Trophy podcast. See you in New York City for your 25th anniversary.

SPEAKER_05 43:11

All right, thanks for having us.

SPEAKER_04 43:27

Have a good week, everybody. The official Heisman Trophy podcast streets every Wednesday during the college football season, and is hosted, co-produced, and edited in 10 years by Chris Houston. Paul Goldberg is the executive producer and editor. Special shout out to Isaac Lowland Crust, and big thanks to the Heisman Trophy Trust and its executive director, Rob Whalen, and Associate Director Tim Henny. The official Heisman Trophy Podcast can be found on Spotify, Apple Music, and anywhere you listen to your favorite podcast. You can also find clips of our show on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. Just go to Heisman Trophies.