In what turned out to be a record sale, the Heisman Trophy of Rashaan Salaam was sold to raise CTE research funds on Saturday.
According to ESPN, Salaam sold his Heisman Trophy prior to his death. While the financial number on that is not known, he would sell his Heisman ring in a separate transaction, which fetched a price of $8,000.
On Saturday night, during an online auction done by SCP Auctions of California, the Heisman Trophy was sold for an astounding $399,608. Even better, proceeds from the sale are going to CTE research.
This is important not only for the continuing effort to find out more about CTE, it has a direct impact on having the former Colorado Buffalo running back's legacy leave a mark. Salaam was found dead at the age of 42, with the death being ruled a suicide.
To get a feel for how much more this Heisman went for, ESPN provided a list of the previous biggest sellers. Via that same ESPN report:
The previous record for a Heisman sold at auction was $395,240 for Bruce P. Smith's 1941 trophy. Other Heisman trophies sold at auction include O.J. Simpson's 1968 award ($255,000 in 1999); Charles White's 1979 award ($184,000 in 2000); and Paul Hornung's 1956 award ($250,000 in 2000).
Under current rules, Heisman Trophy winners are no longer allowed to sell their trophies.
