Marcus Mariota was the big winner at the Home Depot College Football Awards Show on Thursday night in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
The star Oregon quarterback took home the Maxwell Award as the nation's most outstanding player and the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award, in addition to winning the Walter Camp player of the year award.
"It's surreal. It's surreal. It really all is," Mariota said. "Growing up as a kid you always kind of see these award shows. To say that I'm a part of really this fraternity ... it's really just a blessing."
Mariota said the accolades cap a long personal journey.
"Being from Hawaii, being kinda quiet and reserved to now being a little more vocal and being a part of a special team, it's come a long way for me. It's all been such a blessing," Mariota said.
The soft-spoken QB said he has his coaches and teammates to thank for his growth.
"[My teammates] asked me to kinda step up and be vocal and understand that my words can be powerful. ... It's been an ongoing process for me and I've definitely come a long way with it," he said.
Mariota is the first player from Oregon to win each of the three awards. The junior also is a Heisman Trophy finalist and the front-runner to win that award Saturday (8 p.m., on ESPN) in New York.
Seven of the past eight O'Brien winners have gone on to win the Heisman.
"That's the first time I've heard of [that trend]," he said. "I don't know how to explain it. It's pretty cool and we'll see what happens."
Mariota leads the nation in passing efficiency (186.3) and accounted for a Pac-12-record 53 touchdowns, including 38 scoring passes. The junior led the Ducks to the inaugural College Football Playoff, where they are the No. 2 seed and will play No. 3 Florida State on Jan. 1.
The other finalists for the Camp award were Wisconsin running back Melvin Gordon, TCU quarterback Trevone Boykin, Alabama receiver Amari Cooper and Arizona linebacker Scooby Wright III.
Seminoles quarterback Jameis Winston won last year's Walter Camp and Davey O'Brien awards.
Mariota became the second Pac-12 player in the past four seasons to win the Davey O'Brien Award, joining 2011 winner Andrew Luck of Stanford. He was selected over finalists Boykin and Mississippi State's Dak Prescott.
Gordon and Prescott also were finalists for the Maxwell, which Alabama's AJ McCarron won in 2013.
Doak Walker Award
Wisconsin's Melvin Gordon won the Doak Walker Award, given to the nation's top running back.
The junior became the third Badgers player to win the award, joining 1999 winner Ron Dayne and 2012 winner Montee Ball. Gordon also is the seventh player from the Big Ten to claim the honor.
Gordon ran for 2,336 yards and 26 touchdowns this year. He broke the single-game FBS rushing record with 408 yards against Nebraska, a record that only stood for a week.
Entering the Outback Bowl against Auburn on Jan. 1, he is 292 yards shy of Barry Sanders' NCAA single-season rushing record.
Gordon was selected over two other finalists from the Big Ten, Ameer Abdullah of Nebraska and Tevin Coleman of Indiana.
Boston College's Andre Williams won the award in 2013.
Gordon said Wednesday he will skip his senior season to enter the NFL draft. He said he thinks he already has accomplished what he set out to do this year.
"I think I did," Gordon said. "Part of the reason I came back was to prove I was a better player. I felt I did that. There were some things I didn't achieve. But I put us in a position for those goals. But I did come back to be a better player and show I was one of the best running backs in the nation."
Biletnikoff Award
Alabama's Amari Cooper won the Biletnikoff Award as the nation's outstanding receiver.
Cooper became the first Alabama player to win the award. He joins LSU's Josh Reed in 2001 as the only SEC players to win it.
He was selected over finalists Rashard Higgins of Colorado State and West Virginia's Kevin White.
Oregon State's Brandin Cooks won the award in 2013.
Bednarik Award
Arizona linebacker Scooby Wright won the Chuck Bednarik Award, given to the nation's defensive player of the year.
He joined USC linebacker Rey Maualuga in 2008 as the only Pac-12 players to win the award. Wright also won the Lombardi Award on Wednesday night as the nation's best lineman, and the Bronko Nagurski Award on Monday night as the top defensive player in college football. In addition, he was the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year.
Wright was selected over Bednarik finalists Vic Beasley of Clemson and Joey Bosa of Ohio State.
Pittsburgh defensive tackle Aaron Donald won the award in 2013.
Jim Thorpe Award
Louisville's Gerod Holliman won the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation's top defensive back.
He's the first Atlantic Coast Conference player to win the award. He is also the first player not from the Southeastern Conference or Big Ten to claim the award since Antoine Cason in 2007.
Holliman had an FBS-best 14 interceptions this season, trying the NCAA record. He also had 37 tackles as part of a Cardinals defense that ranked sixth in the FBS in total defense.
He was selected over finalists Landon Collins of Alabama and Oregon's Ifo Ekpre-Olomu.
Michigan State's Darqueze Dennard won the award in 2013.
Outland Trophy Award
Iowa's Brandon Scherff won the Outland Trophy, given to the nation's outstanding interior lineman.
Scherff was the Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year in 2014. He was also selected first-team All-Big Ten for the second consecutive year, becoming the first Hawkeyes player to do that since Shaun Prater.
Scherff was selected over finalists Malcolm Brown of Texas and Reese Dismukes of Auburn.
Pittsburgh defensive tackle Aaron Donald won the award in 2013.
Lou Groza Award
Maryland's Brad Craddock won the Lou Groza Award as the nation's top kicker.
He's the first Terrapins player to win the award.
Craddock made a school-record 57-yarder against Ohio State, and 18 of his 19 field goals overall this season.
Craddock was selected over finalists Roberto Aguayo of Florida State and West Virginia's Josh Lambert. Aguayo won the award in 2013.
Ray Guy Award
Utah's Tom Hackett won the Ray Guy Award, given to the nation's top punter.
The Australian-born punter became the first Utah player and the first from the Pac-12 to win the award.
Hackett placed 35 of his 77 punts this season inside the 20-yard line, and six punts inside the 5. He ranked second in the nation with 3,619 total yards on punts.
He was selected over finalists JK Scott of Alabama and Austin Rehkow of Idaho.
Memphis' Tom Hornsey won the award in 2013.
Prior to the live ceremony, the Rimington Trophy for the nation's outstanding center was awarded to Auburn's Reese Dismukes, and Florida State's Nick O'Leary was honored with the John Mackey Award, given to the nation's top tight end.
Home Depot Coach of the Year
TCU coach Gary Patterson was selected the Home Depot Coach of the Year after guiding the Horned Frogs from a 4-8 mark in 2013 to 11-1 this season, falling just short of a spot in the playoff.
"Being outside of the College Football Playoff, I knew my players were disappointed. But we have to be the leaders not only in football, but in America,'' Patterson said. "[The Peach Bowl matchup with Ole Miss] is an opportunity one more time to show what we're made of.''
Honorary Awards
Oklahoma Sooners coach Bob Stoops and junior wide receiver Sterling Shepard were honored with the Disney Spirit Award, given annually to the most inspirational figure or team.
Stoops has been a father figure to Shepard, who is the son of Derrick Shepard, a wide receiver at OU in the 1980s. The elder Shepard, who was a graduate assistant coach when Stoops arrived in Norman, Oklahoma in December 1998, died of a heart attack in 1999 at the age of 35, when Sterling was 6. Stoops welcomed Sterling into the Sooners family, which honors the memory of his dad every year by presenting the Derrick Shepard Most Inspirational Walk-On Award.
"Derrick Shepard's legacy lives on through his son, Sterling, who I'm privileged to coach," Stoops said when the award was announced. "I've been blessed to watch Sterling grow into a talented young man who serves as a tremendous example for our entire team in all that he does."
Duke's David Helton won the William V. Campbell Trophy for academic success, football performance and community service.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.