Many NFL gamers have attended Ivy League faculties earlier than starting their careers as skilled gamers.
This listing of former NFL gamers who’ve obtained an Ivy League schooling contains Tremendous Bowl champions, Corridor of Famers and file holders.
Listed below are 13 NFL gamers who attended Ivy League faculties earlier than becoming a member of the skilled league.
Chuck Bednarik and Matt Birk have been two former NFL gamers who had an Ivy League schooling. (Robert Riger/Getty Pictures; George Gojkovich/Getty Pictures)
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- Zak DeOssie
- Chuck Bednarik
- Sid Luckman
- Steve Jordan
- Calvin Hill
- Matt Birk
- Nick Lowery
- Gary Fencik
- George Starke
- Marcellus Wiley
- Ryan Fitzpatrick
- Kevin Boothe
- Mike Pyle
1. Zak DeOssie
Zak DeOssie is a former NFL lengthy snapper who performed for the New York Giants.
Earlier than becoming a member of the NFL, he went to Brown College. In 2022, he entered the Brown Athletic Corridor of Fame.
He had a 13-year profession within the NFL, successful two Tremendous Bowls with the workforce. He was additionally a member of two Professional Bowl groups.
Zak DeOssie retired from soccer in 2020 after 13 years. ( Al Pereira/Getty Pictures)
In 2020, he introduced his retirement from skilled soccer.
2. Chuck Bednarik
Chuck Bednarik, nicknamed “Concrete Charlie,” was a two-way participant who performed soccer within the Fifties. He was the final participant in NFL historical past to play each methods full time, based on the Maxwell Soccer Membership.
Earlier than enrolling on the College of Pennsylvania, he served in World Struggle II with the Military Air Corps, based on the Professional Soccer Corridor of Fame web site.
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He was the primary general decide within the 1949 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles.
Bednarik retired from the league in 1962. In 1967, he was inducted into the Professional Soccer Corridor of Fame. He’s additionally a member of the School Soccer Corridor of Fame.
Starting in 1995, the Chuck Bendarik Award was offered yearly to the most effective defensive participant in faculty soccer.
Bednarik died March 21, 2015, on the age of 89.
3. Sid Luckman
Sid Luckman went to Columbia College earlier than becoming a member of the NFL.
Luckman was a quarterback for the Chicago Bears, enjoying within the league 12 seasons.
Throughout that point, he received 4 Tremendous Bowls with the workforce in 1940, 1941, 1943 and 1946. In 1940, the Bears defeated the Washington Redskins, now the Washington Commanders, 73-0.
Sid Luckman led his workforce to 4 Tremendous Bowl victories whereas he performed for the Chicago Bears. (Vic Stein /Getty Pictures)
In his NFL profession, he threw 139 landing passes, based on the Soccer Basis. He was an all-pro 4 occasions and was the league’s Most Useful Participant in 1943, based on the supply.
In 1965, he was inducted into the Professional Soccer Corridor of Fame.
Luckman died July 5, 1998.
4. Steve Jordan
Steve Jordan was a good finish within the NFL who performed for the Minnesota Vikings 13 seasons.
Earlier than being picked up by the skilled league, he performed at Brown College.
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Although Jordan not performs within the NFL, he’s nonetheless related to the league. His son, Cameron Jordan, is a defensive finish for the New Orleans Saints.
5. Calvin Hill
Calvin Hill was a operating again within the NFL who attended Yale College.
He performed for the Dallas Cowboys, Washington Redskins and Cleveland Browns.
Calvin Hill attended Yale earlier than becoming a member of the NFL. (Getty Pictures )
He was additionally a part of The Hawaiians of the World Soccer League (WFL). He performed for the workforce for one season.
6. Matt Birk
Matt Birk went to Harvard College, the place he earned a level in economics, earlier than enjoying for the Minnesota Vikings within the NFL as a middle.
The Tremendous Bowl champ was a six-time NFL Professional Bowl choice and two-time All-Professional.
In 2011, he earned the Walter Payton NFL Man of the 12 months award.
Birk completed his profession with the Baltimore Ravens, retiring in 2013.
7. Nick Lowery
Nick Lowery went to Dartmouth School earlier than he frolicked within the NFL.
Within the NFL, he spent his years enjoying for the New England Patriots, Kansas Metropolis Chiefs and New York Jets as a kicker.
Lowery joined the NFL in 1978. He spent nearly all of his time within the NFL as a Kansas Metropolis Chief, from 1980 till 1993.
When he retired from the league, he had probably the most subject objectives in NFL historical past, based on the Chiefs’ web site.
In 1996, Lowery based the Nick Lowery Youth Basis. The group “has devoted itself to serving to deprived youth, particularly Native People, by growing, selling and sponsoring applications and relationships that foster shallowness, management qualities and abilities and encourage youth to be optimistic belongings to their communities,” based on its web site.
8. Gary Fencik
Gary Fencik is a former NFL participant who performed for the Chicago Bears. He acquired an Ivy League schooling at Yale College.
The protection received the Tremendous Bowl with the Bears in 1986.
Gary Fencik was a part of “The Tremendous Bowl Shuffle,” a music launched by the Chicago Bears. (Jonathan Daniel/Getty Pictures)
Fencik was additionally featured in “The Tremendous Bowl Shuffle,” a rap tune by the 1985 Chicago Bears.
9. George Starke
George Starke performed for the Washington Redskins. He attended Columbia College previous to his NFL profession, the place he was a physics main, based on the previous participant’s web site.
Although he performed tight finish for the Columbia Lions, he was drafted by the Redskins as an offensive deal with, based on the supply.
After 13 years within the league, Starke retired following the 1984 season.
10. Marcellus Wiley
The soccer defensive finish performed ten seasons within the NFL. Earlier than that, he attended Columbia College, the place he earned his bachelor’s diploma in sociology, based on Fox Sports activities.
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He performed for a couple of totally different groups within the NFL, starting with the Buffalo Payments, from 1997 to 2000. He later performed for the San Diego Chargers, Dallas Cowboys and Jacksonville Jaguars earlier than his retirement. He was nominated thrice for the Walter Payton Man of the 12 months award, based on Fox Sports activities.
Marcellus Wiley performed ten seasons within the NFL. (George Gojkovich/Getty Pictures)
He was inducted into the Columbia College Athletic Corridor of Fame in 2006, adopted by the Ivy League Corridor of Fame in 2013, based on his web site.
11. Ryan Fitzpatrick
Ryan Fitzpatrick was a quarterback within the NFL who performed for a lot of totally different groups in his skilled profession.
He was first drafted in 2005 by St. Louis after enjoying soccer at Harvard.
Fitzpatrick additionally performed for the Cincinnati Bengals, Buffalo Payments, Tennessee Titans, Houston Texans, New York Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Miami Dolphins, earlier than becoming a member of the Washington Soccer Staff in 2021.
Fitzpatrick introduced his retirement from the NFL in 2022.
12. Kevin Boothe
Kevin Boothe was an NFL offensive lineman who was drafted out of Cornell College by the Oakland Raiders in 2006.
After enjoying for the Raiders, he performed for the New York Giants from 2007 to 2013. He returned to the Raiders in 2014 earlier than his retirement.
Throughout his years with the Giants, he received two Tremendous Bowls, in 2008 and 2012, each towards the New England Patriots.
13. Mike Pyle
Mike Pyle performed his total NFL profession with the Chicago Bears.
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He was chosen by the Bears within the 1961 draft after enjoying for Yale College. Whereas at Yale, he was the captain of the 1960 workforce that went 9-0. This was the final time Yale had an unbeaten and untied soccer workforce, based on The New York Occasions.
Pyle died on the age of 76 on July 29, 2015.
