After literally crawling on stage to accept his award from longtime friend Tina Fey, Hamm caught up with ET to reflect on his win.
"It's quite a night."
Umm, that would be the biggest understatement of the decade, Jon Hamm! After being nominated for a grand total of 16 times -- that's right, 16 times! -- the Mad Men star finally won the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama during Sunday night's ceremony.
After literally crawling on stage to accept his award from longtime friend Tina Fey, Hamm caught up with ET's Nancy O'Dell immediately backstage to reflect on the win and how he really felt when his name was called.
MORE: Jon Hamm Thanks Ex Jennifer Westfeldt in His Emmy Speech!
"I think I turned around and stopped remembering what I was doing because I was pretty terrified," Hamm said, referring to the standing ovation his peers gave him as soon as he discovered he'd won.
"It's very strange being up there having to think of something to say and I didn't write anything down," the 44-year-old actor admitted. "I'm not good at preparing. I'm much better when other people write material for me."
For Hamm, this recognition has been a long time coming. He first started acting in college at the University of Missouri after answering an advertisement from a theater company looking for players in a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.
ICYMI, Jon Hamm finally won the Best Actor Emmy last night! Here's Jon back when he was starring on #Mizzou's stage. pic.twitter.com/EYRmTG3pDx
— Mizzou Alumni (@MizzouAlumni) September 21, 2015In fact, his alma mater was so proud of Hamm's Emmy win that they tweeted two adorable flashback photos of the AMC star acting on stage.
"It's just an incredible feeling and an incredible ride," Hamm gushed. "It's been a long, long journey and it's nice to be here and a good way to say goodbye."
Did you miss the Emmys last night? Catch up by watching all of host Andy Samberg's best moments!