<Li> Syracuse Orange No. 44 retired </Li> <Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> College Football Hall of Fame </Td> </Tr> <P> Ernest Davis (December 14, 1939--May 18, 1963) was an American football player, a halfback who won the Heisman Trophy in 1961 and was its first African - American winner . </P> <P> Davis played college football for Syracuse University and was the first pick in the 1962 NFL Draft . Selected by the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) in December 1961, he was then almost immediately traded to the Cleveland Browns and issued number 45 . </P>

Who was the first black football player to win the heisman trophy