The Real "Maverick"
from Dave Does History Hosted by Dave Bowman
In the late 1930’s, the Iowa Hawkeyes had endured years of being a perennial doormat of a football team. But in 1937, a new student-athlete enrolled at the school, and quickly became the heart and soul of a rapidly improving team. By 1939, the Iowa Hawkeyes were the #3 team in the country, finishing 6-1-1, upsetting Notre Dame. Their starting halfback easily won the Heisman Trophy, and proceeded to give one of the most remarkable acceptance speeches in the history of the award. The player would go on to decline to play professional sports – despite wildly rich offers to do so – and many people were convinced that his destiny lay in pubic service to the nation. Many who knew him believed that the twenty-one year old law student was the nations great hope for the Presidency in a few short years. His commitment to the nation, to his faith and his school was inspiring, and no one was surprised when he left school to enlist in the Navy. It was assumed that he would be every bit as committed to his service there as he had been for Iowa’s sports teams. And he was…
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