Sports
John Thompson III
Basketball player, Basketball coach, philanthropist, board member
John Thompson was a record setting basketball player for Princeton that went on to become a championship winning coach for both Princeton and Georgetown over 15 seasons. John started a foundation to help at-risk families and now works at the executive level for Monumental Sports Entertainment.
Don King
Boxing Promoter, businessman
King began his career as a boxing promoter after convincing Muhammad Ali to fight in a charity event for a local children's hospital in Cleveland, OH. Because of a partnership made with local promotor Don Elbaum, he was able to utilize these connections into more lucrative arrangements and was soon promoting international matches and promoting fighters that would eventually make it to the Hall of Fame. King spent over 20 years promoting boxing, as well as the Jackson 5. In 1998 He purchased and has published the Call and Post since.
J.C. Watts
Athlete, clergyman, politician, writer
Watts graduated in 1981 from the University of OK with a degree in journalism. Here he led the Sooners to consecutive Orange Bowl victories. Unable to obtain a definitive starting position as quarterback, he then opted to leave his drafted position on the New York Jets to play for the Canadian Football League until he retired in 1986. He then returned to OK where he became a youth minister and Baptist minister until he opened a highway construction company. In 1990 he ran and won election to the OK Corporation Commission, followed by a seat in the US House of Representatives. After 4 terms in the House, Watts stepped down and joined numerous boards, wrote an autobiography and routine column articles.
Lynn Swann
Athlete, athletic director, politician, broadcaster
Lynn played both football and track in high school. He won the state title for the long jump in 1970, where he defeated future Olympic gold medalist Randy Williams. He played college football for the University of Southern California. He was drafted to the Pittsburg Steelers in 1974, where he spent all of his professional football career. He went to the Super Bowl four times and won many awards, set many records and earned a spot in both the College and Pro Football Hall of Fame. After football, Lynn became a sports broadcaster for ABC Sports, sat on multiple boards as a board member and was briefly the Athletic Director for USC. He held the position of Chairman to the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports for 3 years and ran for governor of Pennsylvania in 2006.
Wilt Chamberlain
Athlete, coach, businessman
Wilt started playing both track and field as well as basketball for Overbrook High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While he was impressive on the field, he was even more impressive on the court. Entering his first season at a staggering 6ft 6in, he quickly became a force to be dealt with. He began his career by leading his high school team to two city championships and a 56-3 record over three years. After graduation, he finally chose Kansas University out of over 200 universities vying for his talents, where he again played both sports with great skill. He left college after his junior year and joined the Harlem Globetrotters. After this he began his NBA career with the Philadelphia Warriors. Here he played for 14 years and 3 different teams and was awarded various honors and set records, many of which remain to this day.
Emmit Smith
Athlete, businessman, philanthropist, analyst
Emmit played football for the Escambia High School Gators where they won two state championships and he rushed for a total of 8,804 yards and 106 touchdowns. He was named high school player of the year by both USA Today and Parade magazines and later the Florida high school football "Player of the Century" on the All-Century Team by the FHSAA. He then went on to play for the UF Gators, broke several records and was named to several titles during his three years there. He then went on to play 14 years in the NFL, creating even more records, winning many notable games and titles before his retirement. He now works as a studio analyst for the NFL and runs his own non-profit organization.
