Since the NIL era began five years ago, college sports have seen plenty of change. All the while, the Heisman Trophy has remained a constant as one of college football’s great traditions.
But even the Heisman needs to stay innovative, said CEO Jeff Price, who took over in January to help lead that charge. There’s a balancing act between preserving the trophy’s legacy and setting it up for its next era.
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“When I started, there were four of us,” Price told On3. “I was the fourth employee. … But we really are making sure that in the context of college football, we respect the traditions of Heisman, but also look at this intersection of innovation and opportunity.”
NIL was only the beginning of college football’s evolution. Revenue-sharing also came about in 2025, and the College Football Playoff has grown from four teams to 12, with a 24-team bracket on the horizon.
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Meanwhile, traditions remain. Army and Navy still play annually, and the CFP has said it would ensure that game maintains its standalone time slot. The Heisman is also still college football’s highest honor with the ceremony taking place at the end of the regular season and conference title games.
Price said there was “collaboration” with the CFP about where the Heisman fits with expansion, and the ceremony will now take place the first weekend in December, where conference championships used to be. With that in mind, he added tradition and innovation don’t have to be separate conversations. They can go hand-in-hand.
“I think as things evolve, it’s important that college football respects its important traditions like Heisman and Army-Navy,” Price said. “But also, the innovation that the CFP is driving, I think, is creating opportunities for more institutions to be a part of the college football postseason. They don’t have to be mutually exclusive.
“I think that’s the approach that we’ve tried to take in a collaborative and engaged sense. We’re very optimistic about what Heisman will be this year and how the Heisman weekend will evolve, but also incredibly optimistic about the future.”
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Although NIL has become a crucial part of college football, Price said the Heisman’s goal isn’t to necessarily be an NIL “participant.” That said, he thinks the two can go hand-in-hand. He cited the fan-voted Heisman Hopefuls program as a way to show fans who they are and, as a result, boost their publicity.
“We think the opportunity to be a Heisman Hopeful can be beneficial on so many levels, including NIL,” Price said. “So I think keeping our charitable mission at the focal point of what we do, critically important, but also recognizing that being a Heisman Hopeful has, obviously, publicity benefits.
“But I think an underlying connection to the student-athlete’s NIL value, anything that’s going to give athletes better access, better opportunities, Heisman is all for. I think if you put that together, it’s a pretty strong package.”
It’s been a busy first 10 months on the job for Price, who previously worked as the chief commercial and philanthropy officer for the PGA of America, as the Heisman focused on its evolution. Fan engagement has been front and center.
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He has overseen the additions of the Heisman Hopefuls, determined via a fan vote and designed to create engagement with the fans throughout the season. The Heisman has also entered into multiple key partnerships, including one with RevelXP to offer fan packages for the Heisman weekend.
“We’re trying holistically to take Heisman from being a weekend and grants that no one really knew even happened, to being a year-round platform for good, and then engaging in ways that college football fans can be a part of it,” Price said.
The decision to implement a fan vote came from studying how the Heisman could make millennials and members of Generation Z part of the process. They saw strong returns, which in turn led to the move to make the race for the trophy a year-round effort.
“For us, the fan vote became that lean-forward opportunity for millennials and Gen-Z to be a part of the process, which is what they were looking for,” Price said. “The excitement and enthusiasm that we’ve seen this season for it has been great.
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“Again, it’s great to partner with the schools and be an active part of the regular season vs. waiting for Heisman Weekend to come and then having a miraculous and tremendous weekend every year. Now, we have a full season of activation, and then when we think about the club and the foundation really doing things on a year-round basis.”
