A Breakdown of College Football's Awards

With the college football regular season over that means it's time to hand out some hardware. There are currently more than 20 awards presented to recognize the best in college football in all aspects of the game. The most prestigious is the Heisman Trophy, which was announced on Dec. 10 while more than a dozen were handed out on Dec. 8 during the "Home Depot College Football Awards" show.

Related: Who Should Win the Heisman Trophy in 2022?

With so many awards, it is tough to keep track of them so here is a breakdown of each award (in alphabetical order) and its history.

Biletnikoff Award

Honors: Top Receiver
Founded: 1994 by Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation
First Recipient: Bobby Engram, Penn State (1994)
Last Year's Recipient: Jordan Addison, Pittsburgh
This Year's Recipient: Jalin Hyatt, Tennessee

Bronko Nagurski Award

Honors: Best Defensive Player
Founded: 1993 by Charlotte Touchdown Club and Football Writers Association of America
First Recipient: Rob Waldrop, Arizona (1993)
This Year's Recipient: Will Anderson Jr., OLB, Alabama (back-to-back winner)

Broyles Award

Honors: Best Assistant Coach, selected by 1,500 coaches representing all FBS programs
Founded: 1996 by Downtown Rotary Club in Little Rock, Ark.
First Recipient: Mickey Andrews, Florida State (1996)
This Year's Recipient: Garrett Riley, offensive coordinator/QBs, TCU

Burlsworth Trophy

Honors: Nation's most outstanding player who began college career as a walk-on
Founded: 2010 by Brandon Burlsworth Foundation
First Recipient: Sean Bedford, Georgia Tech (2010)
Last Year's Recipient: Grant Morgan, LB, Arkansas
This Year's Recipient: Stetson Bennett, QB, Georgia

Butkus Award

Honors: Best Linebacker
Founded: 1985 by Downtown Athletic Club of Orlando
First Recipient: Brian Bosworth, Oklahoma (1985)
Last Year's Recipient: Nakobe Dean, Georgia
This Year's Recipient: Jack Campbell, Iowa

Chuck Bednarik Award

Honors: Defensive Player of the Year
Founded: 1995 by Maxwell Football Club
First Recipient: Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern (1995)
Last Year's Recipient: Jordan Davis, NT, Georgia
This Year's Recipient: Will Anderson Jr., LB

Davey O'Brien Award

Honors: Best Quarterback
Founded: 1977 by Davey O’Brien Foundation
First Recipient: Earl Campbell, Texas (1977) – Became quarterback-only award in 1981
Last Year's Recipient: Bryce Young, Alabama
This Year's Recipient: Max Duggan, TCU

Disney Spirit Award

Honors: Most Inspirational Individual or Team
Founded: 1996
First Recipient: Daniel Huffman, a high school student who gave up his college football career to donate his kidney to his grandmother
This Year's Recipient: Tylee Craft, North Carolina

Doak Walker Award

Honors: Best Running Back
Founded: 1990 by Southern Methodist University
First Recipient: Greg Lewis, Washington (1990)
Last Year's Recipient: Kenneth Walker III, Michigan State
This Year's Recipient: Bijan Robinson, Texas

The Dodd Trophy

Honors: FBS football coach whose program represents three pillars of success: Scholarship, Leadership and Integrity
Founded: 1976, presented annually by Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl
First Recipient: Vince Dooley, Georgia (1976)
Last Year's Recipient: Luke Fickell, Cincinnati
This Year's Finalists: Willie Fritz, Tulane

Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award

Honors: Best coach
Founded: 1957 by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA)
First Recipient: Woody Hayes, Ohio State (1957)
Last Year's Recipient: Luke Fickell, Cincinnati
This Year's Recipient: Sonny Dykes, TCU

Heisman Trophy

Honors: Most Outstanding Player
Founded: 1935 by Downtown Athletic Club
First Recipient: Jay Berwanger, Chicago (1935)
Last Year's Recipient: Bryce Young, QB, Alabama
This Year's Recipient: Caleb Williams, QB, USC

Home Depot Coach of the Year Award

Honors: Coach of the Year, selected by ESPN and ABC college football analysts
Founded: 1994
First Recipient: Bobby Bowden, Florida State (1994)
Last Year's Recipient: Luke Fickell, Cincinnati
This Year's Recipient: Sonny Dykes, TCU

Jim Thorpe Award

Honors: Best Defensive Back
Founded: 1986 by Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame
First Recipient: Thomas Everett, Baylor (1986)
Last Year's Recipient: Coby Bryant, Cincinnati
This Year's Recipient: Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson, TCU

John Mackey Award

Honors: Best Tight End
Founded: 2000 by Nassau County Sports Commission
First Recipient: Tim Stratton, Purdue (2000)
Last Year's Recipient: Trey McBride, Colorado State
This Year's Recipient: Brock Bowers, Georgia

Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award

Honors: Outstanding Senior or Fourth-Year Quarterback
Founded: 1987 by the Golden Arm Foundation
First Recipient: Don McPherson, Syracuse (1987)
Last Year's Recipient: Kenny Pickett, Pittsburgh
This Year's Recipient: Max Duggan, TCU

Lombardi Award

Honors: Best Lineman or Linebacker
Founded: 1970 by Rotary International in Houston
First Recipient: Jim Stillwagon, Ohio State (1970)
Last Year's Recipient: Aidan Hutchinson, DE, Michigan
This Year's Recipient: Will Anderson Jr., OLB, Alabama

Lott IMPACT Trophy

Honors: Defensive IMPACT (Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community, and Tenacity) Player of the Year
Founded: 2004 by Pacific Club IMPACT Foundation
First Recipient: David Pollack, Georgia (2004)
Last Year's Recipient: Aidan Hutchinson, DL, Michigan
This Year's Recipient: Will Anderson Jr., LB, Alabama

Lou Groza Award

Honors: Best Placekicker
Founded: 1992 by Palm Beach County Sports Commission
First Recipient: Joe Allison, Memphis (1992)
Last Year's Recipient: Jake Moody, Michigan
This Year's Recipient: Christopher Dunn, NC State

Maxwell Award

Honors: Player of the Year
Founded: 1937 by Maxwell Football Club
First Recipient: Clint Frank, Yale (1937)
Last Year's Recipient: Bryce Young, QB, Alabama
This Year's Recipient: Caleb Williams, QB, USC

Outland Trophy

Honors: Best Interior Lineman
Founded: 1946 by the Football Writers Association of America
First Recipient: George Connor, Notre Dame (1946)
Last Year's Recipient: Jordan Davis, NT, Georgia
This Year's Recipient: Olusegun Oluwatimi, C, Michigan

Paul Hornung Award

Honors: Most Versatile Player
Founded: 2010 by Louisville Sports Commission
First Recipient: Owen Marecic, Stanford (2010)
Last Year's Recipient: Marcus Jones, Houston
This Year's Recipient: Jack Colletto, Oregon State

Ray Guy Award

Honors: Best Punter
Founded: 2000 by Greater August Sports Council
First Recipient: Kevin Stemke, Wisconsin (2000)
Last Year's Recipient: Matt Araiza, San Diego State
This Year's Recipient: Adam Korsak, Rutgers

Rimington Trophy

Honors: Best Center
Founded: 2000 by Boomer Esiason Foundation
First Recipient: Dominic Raiola, Nebraska (2000)
Last Year's Recipient: Tyler Linderbaum, Iowa
This Year's Recipient: Olusegun Oluwatimi, Michigan

Ted Hendricks Award

Honors: Best Defensive End
Founded: 2002 by Ted Hendricks Foundation
First Recipient: Terrell Suggs, Arizona State (2002)
Last Year's Recipient: Aidan Hutchinson, Michigan
This Year's Recipient: Caleb Murphy, Ferris State

Walter Camp Player of the Year Award

Honors: Player of the Year
Founded: 1967 by Walter Camp Football Foundation
First Recipient: O.J. Simpson, USC (1967)
Last Year's Recipient: Kenneth Walker III, RB, Michigan State
This Year's Recipient: Caleb Williams, QB, USC

William V. Campbell Trophy

Honors: Best Student-Athlete
Founded: 1990 by the National Football Foundation
First Recipient: Chris Howard, Air Force (1990)
Last Year's Recipient: Charlie Kolar, TE, Iowa State
This Year's Recipient: Jack Campbell, LB, Iowa

Wuerffel Trophy

Honors: Player "who best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement"
Founded: 2005 by All Sports Association of Fort Walton Beach
First Recipient: Rudy Niswanger, LSU (2005)
Last Year's Recipient: Isaiah Sanders, QB, Stanford
This Year's Recipient: Dillan Gibbons, OG, Florida State