Ex-Ohio State football player Cameron Heyward wins Man of the Year

There is only one Ohio State football player left in the NFL who played under Jim Tressel. That is defensive lineman Cameron Heyward. Heyward was taken in the first round of the 2011 Draft and is still playing 13 years later. He's had a great career, all of it with the Steelers.

Heyward has plenty of accolades. He has made six Pro Bowls, been named Second-team All-Pro once, and named First-team All-Pro three times. That's a heck of a career. But Heyward has now won the most prestigious award in the NFL. It's one that you try to win every year.

That award is the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award. Every NFL team nominates a representative for this award every year and only one player wins it. When you win it, you get to wear a patch on your jersey for the rest of your career indicating that you've won it.

Heyward has been nominated by the Steelers for the previous six years for this award and he finally won it. It's nice to see Heyward nominated for his charitable efforts off the field, of which there are many. He's had an excellent career on and off the field.

It's unclear how much longer the former Ohio State football player is going to play. He's 34 and dealt with an injury that robbed him of six weeks last season. While he is still playing at a fairly high level, he can't play forever. Retirement has to be on his mind in the next couple of seasons.

When he does retire, he'll do so having had a great career that deserves to be celebrated. He's made the Buckeyes proud and the Steelers proud. You can bet Ohio State will use his name when it comes to recruiting defensive linemen.