1. Gerald Ford was the ultimate career politician, but before he climbed his way to the Presidency he was a talented football player – and could even have gone pro.
Nebraska’s Gerald Ford is famously the only man to have served as both Vice President and President of the United States without being elected to either office. A career politician, he served in the top job for just one term, taking over from the disgraced Richard Nixon. But Ford wasn’t always a politician. In fact, as a young man, it looked like his future lay on the football field rather than in the Senate. Indeed, it wasn’t a lack of talent that stopped Ford from going pro. Instead, he turned down offers from some of the country’s biggest teams in order to use his brain instead of his brawn.
The future President was a student at the University of Michigan in the 1930s. There, he played center in the college football team and was named Most Valuable Player in his final season. His standout performances for the Wolverines won Ford the attention of both the Detroit Lions and the Green Bay Packers. Both teams offered the young man professional contracts. His life was at a crossroad. Ultimately, Ford turned down both offers and chose to pursue law. He enrolled in Yale Law School in 1938 – and the rest is history. The NFL’s loss was the Republican Party’s gain.
Where did we find this stuff? Here are our sources:
“Gerald Ford, College Football Player.” The Robinson Library.
“Condoleezza Rice, Piano Player.” Time Magazine.
“Chess Master: Prokofiev: 15 facts about the great composer.” Classic FM.
“Al Capone, gangster and budding songwriter.” SF Gate, April, 2009.
“Paul Revere, America’s First Forensic Dentist.” New England Historical Society.
“Nostradamus and his pot of jam.” The Guardian, April 2006.
“When he Wasn’t Making History, Winston Churchill Made Paintings.” Artsy.net.
“Dancing with General Washington.” MountVernon.org.
“Ian Fleming: The Man Behind James Bond.” History Extra.
“8 U.S. Presidents You Didn’t Know Were Musicians.” WFMT, November 2018.