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Rashaan Salaam's Heisman sells for record amount, money going to CTE research

Sam Cooper
·College football writer
FILE – In this Dec. 10, 1994, file photo, Colorado’s Rashaan Salaam poses with his Heisman Trophy at the Downtown Athletic Club in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Nadel, File)
FILE – In this Dec. 10, 1994, file photo, Colorado’s Rashaan Salaam poses with his Heisman Trophy at the Downtown Athletic Club in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Nadel, File)

The Heisman Trophy won by Rashaan Salaam was sold for nearly $400,000 over the weekend. And the money is going to a good cause.

According to the Denver Post, a portion of the $399,608 doled out for the trophy at an auction Saturday will go toward researching chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Salaam’s brother told USA Today that Salaam, who committed suicide at age 42 in December 2016, showed “all the symptoms” of CTE, including depression and memory loss.

In 1994, Salaam rushed for 2,055 yards and 33 touchdowns as a junior at Colorado and became the school’s first Heisman winner. At the time, Salaam was just the fourth player in college football history to rush for 2,000 yards. He also won the Doak Walker Award that season and helped lead the Buffs to an 11-1 finish that included a 41-24 win over Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl. CU finished No. 3 in the polls.

Colorado retired Salaam’s No. 19 jersey in October during its game against California.

The $399,608 is a record amount for a Heisman Trophy. The previous record for a Heisman sold at an auction was $395,240 for Bruce P. Smith’s 1941 trophy in 2005.

According to SCP Auctions, previous auction sales of Heisman Trophies include Larry Kelley’s 1936 trophy for $328,100 in 1999, O.J. Simpson’s 1968 trophy for $255,000 in 1999, Charlie White’s 1979 trophy for $293,750 in 2006, and Paul Hornung’s duplicate 1956 trophy for $250,000 in 2000.

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Sam Cooper is a writer for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!