In 1941 Minnesota running back Bruce Smith, winner of the Heisman Trophy as the best player in college football, was the 119th player taken in the professional football draft; Smith was 1-A (the draft board designation for men eligible for immediate induction into the military), and professional teams were unwilling to take the risk of drafting a player who might not return from the war. The spirit of patriotism that swept the nation left little room for the special privileges athletes were accustomed to. As the best physical specimens in the nation, they were expected to do their part to defend their country, and they responded admirably. Every member of the New Mexico State Teachers College football and basketball teams, for example, quit to enter military service in 1941, and other college athletes responded similarly.
The resulting lack of athletes on the playing fields brought.....
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