Ohio State QB Troy Smith wins Heisman Trophy

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NEW YORK - All season, quarterback Troy Smith left no doubt about Ohio State's status as the best team in the country. The Heisman Trophy voting left no doubt about college football's best player.

Smith, who led Ohio State to an unbeaten season and the top of the rankings, won the Heisman in record fashion, receiving the highest percentage of first-place votes.

A senior, Smith was named the winner of college football's most prestigious award over Arkansas running back Darren McFadden and Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn.

"Normally I'm pretty cool under pressure situations, but my heart is pounding right now," said Smith, who thanked Buckeyes coach Jim Tressel, his teammates and his family, which let out a holler when he was announced as the winner.

"We're a loud family," he said. "The Smith family is a loud family, very emotional. I wouldn't want it any other way, because they made me the man I am now."

The prohibitive favorite, Smith received 801 first-place votes and 2,540 points. His first-place votes represented the highest percentage in the history of the award, which dates to 1935.

There was no regional bias, either. Smith received at least 389 points in all six voting regions.

"I would have voted for Troy," Quinn said. "He played big in big games and got his team to the national championship game."

A year ago, Southern California running back Reggie Bush received 874 first-place votes and 2,541 points. However, there were more ballots last year.

McFadden was second with 45 first-place votes and 878 points. The winning margin of 1,662 points is the second-largest in the history of the award, trailing only O.J. Simpson's 1,750-point win over Leroy Keyes in 1968.

Smith became the seventh OSU player to win the Heisman and first since running back Eddie George, who won in 1995. He is the sixth quarterback to win in the last seven years and ended a run of three straight junior winners.

"It humbles me," Smith said. "Watching ESPN Classic and seeing those guys making great plays and do great things, and now I'm a part of that group."

In a season punctuated by peerless performances in big games, Smith threw for 2,507 yards, 30 touchdowns and just five interceptions as the Buckeyes went 12-0, earning the No. 1 ranking and a date with No. 2 Florida in the BCS national championship game January 8 in Glendale, Arizona.

In Nos. 1-vs.-2 matchups against Texas and Michigan, Smith threw for 585 yards, six touchdowns and one interception. The Buckeyes won at Texas, 24-7, early in the season and held off Michigan at home, 42-39, to complete an undefeated campaign.

"I'm pretty sure there will be students who don't have anything to do with sports that will tell their kids they were students the year Troy Smith won the Heisman," Smith said. "That's very special for me. This is a win for the whole state of Ohio, for a lot of people, not just me."

McFadden rushed for 1,558 yards and 14 touchdowns in leading Arkansas to an appearance in the Southeastern Conference championship game. The sophomore was the first Heisman finalist from Arkansas and should be one of the favorites for the award next season.

"I'm the first finalist to be from Arkansas and it's just a great feeling," McFadden said. "It (getting here) shows the hard work of me and the hard work of my teammates and its starting to pay off a whole lot."

"He's electrifying," Smith said. "As a 6-2 running back with that type of speed, that's scary. He's a first-class guy in every sense of the word. He's very humble."

Quinn, the preseason favorite for the Heisman, received 13 first-place votes and 782 points. He actually beat out Smith for some hardware Thursday night, when he won the Maxwell Award for the nation's top all-around player.

A senior, Quinn threw for 3,278 yards, 35 TDs and just five interceptions for the Fighting Irish, who will face Louisiana State in the Sugar Bowl. But he committed four turnovers in a 47-21 loss to Michigan and came up short in a 44-24 loss to USC.

The rest of the top 10 was West Virginia running back Steve Slaton, Michigan running back Mike Hart, Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan, Rutgers running back Ray Rice, Boise State running back Ian Johnson, Southern California receiver Dwyane Jarrett and Georgia Tech wide receiver Calvin Johnson, all of whom received at least one first-place vote.

This story is from ESPN.com's automated news wire. Wire index

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