1955 - 21st Award
Howard Cassady
Ohio State Back

"Hop along" was one of Ohio State's best ever, scoring 37 touchdowns in 36 games for 222 points. He gained 2,466 yards rushing for an average of 5.6 per try. A player's player, his 964 yards with a total of 15 TDs was his greatest ever. Overlooked were his sparkling defensive plays; he never had a pass completed over him in four years of Big Ten competition. He held the Buckeyes' yardage-gained record for many years. He was voted All-American during the '54 and '55 seasons. Cassady also played baseball for Ohio State for four years. In 1955, the Associated Press also named Cassady “Athlete of the Year”. He played 8 years with the Detroit Lions, one year with the Philadelphia Eagles, and one year with the Cleveland Browns, and then formed his own company, which manufactured concrete pipe. That company was sold in 1968 when he moved into selling steel with Hop along Cassady Associates. Howard later worked for American Shipbuilding in Tampa and is currently a scout and coach for the New York Yankees. He and his wife Barbara reside in Tampa, FL. They have three children and four grandchildren.

Howard was elected to the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame in 1979.

Howard "Hopalong" Cassady was the first Heisman winner to exceed 2,000 total points and his 1,477-point edge over Jim Swink of TCU was the biggest victory margin to that time. Swink won the Southwest but Cassady won all the other regions, compiling a 594-128 edge in first place votes in voting by 1,324 members of the media.

No. of registered electors: 1,324
Date of announcement: November 29, 1955
Date of dinner: December 8, 1955

The positions within each region: