LEWISTON — Jeff Price may not have won the Heisman Trophy as a football player at Bates College, but on Saturday brought college football’s most coveted award to his alma mater.

Price, who graduated in 1987, currently serves as the CEO of the Heisman Trophy Trust. He had the trophy near Garcelon Field where people could pose and take photos ahead of Bates’ football game against Tufts. 

The Heisman Trophy is awarded annually to the top player in college football.

“As a proud Bobcat and someone who’s spent 35 years in the sports industry, now at Heisman, to have the opportunity to bring the Heisman here, it represents excellence, certainly something Bates represents,” said Price. “Empowerment, which is certainly core to who Bates is. And we at the Heisman want to create enduring impact and I know that’s what Bates wants to do.”

In leading the Heisman Trophy Trust, Price has had a chance to cross paths with many of the award’s former recipients. 

“The Heisman winners have been incredible,” Price said. “Just 61 living Heisman winners and so many of them, since I’ve started, have given us hours and hours of their time. Because, as we’re creating the Heisman Club, it’s something that they care about deeply. It’s their club. 

“Only one person a year gets into it. And so, we’re co-creating that and building it together so that we can drive charitable impact, we can do better storytelling around the Heisman winners and ultimately make a difference.”

One memorable occurrence with a former recipient was with last year’s winner, Fernando Mendoza, who led Indiana to the national championship and was selected with the top pick in the NFL Draft by the Las Vegas Raiders. Price said Mendoza asked for his phone number at the culmination of the Heisman Trophy ceremony weekend. 

“I’ve been in sports for a long time, dealt with a lot of high-profile athletes,” said Price. “(Mendoza’s) the only athlete who at the end of a weekend, asked if he could get my cell phone number so that we could stay connected.”

The trophy display drew a crowd of students, alumni, parents and community members, many mimicking the pose of the player sculpted in the award. 

Sheila and James McKinnon were on campus to watch their nephew, Bates offensive lineman Ryder Smith. They were just two of the many who stopped by the Bobcat Fan Zone and took a picture with the trophy.

“It’s kind of like the Stanley Cup, you don’t really see it a lot,” James said. 

They had already planned to come for the game, so the trophy being on campus was an added bonus. 

“It was fun watching everybody do the (pose),” Sheila said, miming the motion. “Everybody’s going to do the pose.”

The Heisman Trophy is the latest major award to make its way to Maine in the last couple months. The Boston Celtics’ 2024 NBA Finals trophy was displayed at a Jr. Celtics Academy basketball camp session at the Lewiston Armory in August and the Stanley Cup was at a Portland Sea Dogs game in September.  

For Price, bringing it to Bates was a way to merge both of his worlds. 

“Meeting of kind of two assets and two institutions of a long-standing stature and excellence, and just thrilled to be here,” Price said.