John Jacob "Jay" Berwanger (March 19, 1914 – June 26, 2002) was an American college football player and referee. In 1935, Berwanger was the first recipient of the Downtown Athletic Club Trophy, renamed the Heisman Trophy the following year. At its inception, the award was given to "the most valuable player east of the Mississippi." In 1936, Berwanger became the first player drafted into the National Football League in its inaugural 1936 NFL Draft, although he did not play professionally due to a salary dispute. More about Jay Berwanger
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In a 1934 game against the Michigan Wolverines, Berwanger left his mark on Michigan center Gerald Ford in the form of a distinctive scar beneath the future U.S. president's left eye. In 1935, Berwanger became the first recipient of the Downtown Athletic Club Trophy, renamed the Heisman Trophy the following year. John Heisman was then the club's athletic director, and after Heisman's death in October 1936 the trophy was expanded to become a national honor and named the Heisman Trophy. Berwanger was a star halfback for the Chicago Maroons football team of the University of Chicago, where he was known as the "one man football team". He was also awarded the Chicago Tribune Silver Football as the most valuable player in the Big Ten Conference and earned unanimous All-America honors. Berwanger also competed in track and field for Chicago, setting a school decathlon record in 1936 that stood until 2007. In college, he was also a brother of the Psi Upsilon fraternity.In total, we tracked 369 items since 01/01/2008. The chart below shows the trade volume over time.
The most expensive item with a signature of Jay Berwanger (RARE Jay Berwanger (D. 2002) Signed/Framed Chicago Maroons Jersey JSA LOA) was sold in October 2017 for $1995.95 while the cheapest item (Jay Berwanger Autographed Photo in Frame) found a new owner for $0.99 in October 2014. The month with the most items sold (8) was December 2023 with an average selling price of $25.00 for an autographed item of Jay Berwanger. Sold items reached their highest average selling price in October 2017 with $1007.47 and the month that saw the lowest prices with $3.50 was May 2010. In average, an autographed item from Jay Berwanger is worth $20.00.
Most recently, these items with a signature of Jay Berwanger were sold on eBay - click here for more items.
Item Title | Price | Store | |
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1991 Heisman Collection I #1 Jay Berwanger SIGNED Chicago Maroons | $37.32 | ||
Jay Berwanger 1935 1991 Heisman Collection PSA/DNA Signed Auto Autograph | $30.00 | ||
Jay Berwanger 1935 1991 Heisman Collection PSA/DNA Signed Auto Autograph | $25.00 | ||
Jay Berwanger 1935 1991 Heisman Collection PSA/DNA Signed Auto Autograph | $25.00 | ||
Jay Berwanger 1935 1991 Heisman Collection PSA/DNA Signed Auto Autograph | $25.00 | ||
Jay Berwanger 1935 1991 Heisman Collection PSA/DNA Signed Auto Autograph | $25.00 | ||
JAY BERWANGER 1935 HEISMAN SIGNED AUTOGRAPHED 3X5 INDEX CARD *318487 | $4.99 | ||
JAY BERWANGER 1ST HEISMAN WINNER 1936 SIGNED 8x10 PHOTO WITH COA FROM PSA | $49.00 | ||
Jay Berwanger Chicago Bears Signed 8x10 Photo AUTO JSA COA | $32.13 | ||
Jay Berwanger Heisman Signed Auto Autograph 3x5 Index Card Authentic | $7.00 |