Don Whitmire dominates the gridiron for both Alabama and Navy before commanding a historic military rescue mission as a U.S. Navy Rear Admiral.
Football Bio
July 1, 1922 – Giles County, Tennessee – Don Whitmire, who was with the University of Alabama in 1941 and 1942 as the Navy’s tackle from 1943 to 1944, was born.
The NFF’s bio on Don says he made one All-America (NEA) in 1942, was a consensus All-America in 1943, and was a unanimous All-America in 1944.
Rip Miller, Navy’s line coach, recruited him for the Midshipmen after spotting his picture in Street and Smith Football Magazine in 1943.
Don Whitmire was honored with induction into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1956 after the National Football Foundation tabulated its votes.
Right after this event, his hometown of Decatur, Alabama, held a parade, with 9,000 spectators lining the road to cheer the accomplishments of this gridiron legend.
At his Hall of Fame induction, he said, “Football taught me the virtue of team play and enhanced my leadership qualities. These traits have been most valuable in my Navy career. Football taught me to take hard knocks and come up fighting.”
This young man went to even greater heights after football. Whitmire was a rear admiral in the U.S. Navy and directed the evacuation of Saigon at the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. It was the biggest evacuation in world history, with 82,000 men, women, and children escaping to freedom.
Don Whitmire embodies true American heroism on the football field and in military service. He proves that the lessons learned on the gridiron translate directly to extraordinary leadership in life’s most critical moments. Whitmire leaves behind an eternal legacy as a legendary College Football Hall of Famer and a distinguished military leader.
Accolades and Football Accomplishments
- College Football Hall of Fame: Inducted in 1956.
- Unanimous First-Team All-American: 1944 (Navy).
- Consensus First-Team All-American: 1943 (Navy).
- First-Team All-American (NEA): 1942 (Alabama).
- Knute Rockne Trophy Winner: 1944 (Awarded to the nation’s outstanding lineman).
- All-Time SEC Team: Selected in 1968.
- Alabama Sports Hall of Fame: Inducted in 1980.
- NFL Draft: Selected by the Green Bay Packers in the 9th round of the 1944 NFL Draft (chose to remain with the U.S. Navy).