White, who’d already won a Heisman, lobbied for Peterson, the same way Mayfield did for Westbrook. But both fell short with Peterson and White finishing second and third, respectively, behind the 2004 winner Leinart. The Sooners duo beat out USC sophomore running back Reggie Bush, however, who placed fifth that season and went to New York with his Trojan teammate.

“It was really cool to be up there with your teammate,” White said. “Especially a guy you kind of had to coach along the way (as a freshman).”

Peterson eventually went on to become the No. 7 overall pick in the NFL Draft three years later. White, on the other hand, went undrafted and signed with the Tennessee Titans before deciding to retire before the start of the 2005 season because of his knees.

White, now 37, has ventured into local businesses since his football career ended. He is the face of Air Comfort Solutions, a local heating, plumbing and air conditioning provider. He was also recently featured in a Nissan commercial with 2007 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow.

The Tuttle native lives in his sports-crazed hometown again, where one of the main roads is named “Jason White Boulevard” for the city that used to shut down on Friday nights to watch him torch opposing defenses and tune in to see him will Oklahoma to consecutive national title game appearances, a Big 12 championship and a 24-3 record in his final two seasons of college football.

Never did he think, however, he’d be on stage in New York on Dec. 13, 2003, accepting college football’s most prestigious individual honor months after he debated giving up the sport forever.

“Still to this day, when I won it, they announced my name, I remember sitting there in shock,” White said. “I knew I had a good chance maybe to win it. I never thought that I’d be the one to get my name called.”