Having a player from your program win the Heisman Trophy goes a long way. Having two win the award in five years is program-changing.

That happened for LSU football Saturday night as Jayden Daniels took home the 2023 Heisman Trophy four years after Joe Burrow became the first LSU quarterback to win the award in 2019. 

For a school that used to be known as a quarterback graveyard, two quarterbacks from LSU winning the Heisman in that span is something that seemed impossible 10 years ago.

Head coach Brian Kelly reflected on the possibility of Daniels winning in the week leading up to the ceremony, highlighting the impact that these individual awards have on recruiting.

“If you come to LSU you keep the dream alive for this,” Kelly said. “That’s really powerful when you have two Heisman Trophy winners in such a short period of time, especially at the quarterback position. So I would not minimize the importance of that and the ability to recruit and the ability to retain.”

While Daniels is out of college eligibility at the end of this season, the future of the quarterback position at LSU now lies in question. Daniels’ and Burrow’s success showcases the growing success of transfer quarterbacks in college football, but also how quarterbacks can develop at LSU.

Who will try to fill Daniels’ shoes next season is far from being decided, but Daniels expressed his confidence in LSU’s two current quarterbacks going forward.

“I’m very excited for those guys,” Daniels said. “There’s gonna be competition and I’m excited to see how they both rise to competition. Garrett [Nussmeier] is a great quarterback and Ricky [Collins] is up and coming, so I’m excited.”

Nussmeier and Collins may not be the only quarterbacks competing for the starting job. With many high-profile quarterbacks currently in the transfer portal, LSU has an opportunity to add another experienced name to the mix.

Given the recent success of LSU quarterbacks, there likely won’t be a shortage of interest.