In order to create what would become known as the Heisman Trophy, sculptor Frank Eliscu asked a New York University football player to serve as his inspiration.
In 1935, Violets triple-threat fullback Ed Smith struck the most identifiable pose in sports: He executed a sidestep, stiff-arming any would-be tacklers with his right hand while cradling the football in his left.
But as you can see in the photos of ESPN employees above, the iconic pose can be interpreted many different ways.
The 77th Annual Heisman Memorial Trophy will be awarded in New York City on Saturday (8 p.m. ET, ESPN, streaming live on WatchESPN).
There still is plenty of debate as to which finalist is most deserving of the award, symbolic of the season’s most outstanding college football player.
Front Row asked ESPN employees — including several faces familiar to SportsCenter fans — to show us their Heisman poses.
Photographer Mark Caswell captured these models, most of whom worked without any depiction of the actual trophy nearby.
The Heisman Trophy did make an appearance on campus recently, and several employees were able to get their moments in the sun with it.
Who’s going to win the actual trophy Saturday?
Check out ESPN.com experts Ivan Maisel and Gene Wojciechowski‘s thoughts in the video below.
Saturday, Front Row will have an interview with one of the award show’s key participants.
