NEW YORK — LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels won the Heisman Trophy on Saturday night, becoming the first player since 2016 to win college football’s most prestigious player of the year award as part of a team that did not play for a conference championship.

The fifth-year player, who transferred from Arizona State to LSU in 2022, received 503 first-place votes and 2,029 points. Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. was the the runner-up with 292 first-place votes and 1,701 points and Oregon’s Bo Nix was third (51 and 885), putting transfer quarterbacks in each of the top three spots. Ohio State receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. finished fourth.

Daniels, who turns 23 on Dec. 18, won AP Player of the Year earlier this week.

Daniels is the fifth quarterback in the last seven seasons to win the Heisman after transferring, joining former LSU star Joe Burrow in 2019 and USC’s Caleb Williams last year. He is also LSU’s third Heisman winner overall, along with RB Billy Cannon in 1959.

Burrow led LSU to a national championship and Cannon’s team came close, finishing No. 3 in the country. Daniels’ Tigers (9-3) slipped out of that race with two losses in the first six weeks, but he certainly wasn’t to blame.

Week after week he fueled the best offense in the country with his passing and running. Daniels finished the regular season with 3,812 yards passing and 1,134 yards rushing and 50 total touchdowns in 12 games. He leads the nation in total offense at 412 yards per game and is averaging an astounding 10.71 yards per play.

LSU was eliminated from the Southeastern Conference race when it lost to Alabama in early November, despite 382 yards and three total touchdowns from Daniels.

Daniels’ evolution this season have been a revelation. He began his career at Arizona State as a four-star recruit from Southern California under then-coach Herman Edwards. Daniels started all three seasons for the Sun Devils, proving capable but inconsistent. After a coaching change, he left for LSU to play for coach Brian Kelly.