Tyler Cleverly

Charlie Ward's parents met on the campus of Florida A&M more than 65 years ago. He went to Florida State, won the Heisman Trophy, and not one NFL team drafted him. He turns 56 today, and he is the head basketball coach at Florida A&M. Here is the whole thing. His father played football for the Florida A&M Rattlers under Jake Gaither. His older sister Lita went there too. Ward grew up on that campus with his dad, at Rattlers football games and Rattlers basketball games. Here is how he puts it. "I was born a Rattler." Then he went to Florida State and played quarterback. In 1993 he won the Heisman, the Maxwell Award, the Davey O'Brien Award and the Sullivan Award, which goes to the best amateur athlete in the country in any sport. He took the Seminoles to their first national championship, 18 to 16 over Nebraska in the Orange Bowl. Their only loss all year was to Notre Dame. Then the NFL Draft came and went and nobody took him. He had told teams he would only consider the NFL if he went in the first round. Tony Dungy has said that Dennis Green thought about spending a first rounder on him and decided he could not risk Ward refusing to sign. So Ward went undrafted, and he is still the only Heisman winner that ever happened to. Here is what Green said afterward, offering him a free agent deal. "A free agent contract is not very lucrative, but what it gives you is opportunity." Ward said no. Two baseball teams had already taken him. The Milwaukee Brewers in the 59th round in 1993, the New York Yankees in the 18th round the next year. He did not sign with either one. He played basketball instead. The New York Knicks took him 26th overall. He became their starting point guard, started all 82 games one season, and went to the Finals in 1999, where the Knicks lost to the San Antonio Spurs in five. He played 11 seasons. 3,947 points, 2,539 assists, 744 steals. Now the part most people do not know. In June of 2018, on a church trip to Mexico, Ward had a stroke. He recovered completely. He went vegan and changed the way he trains so it would not happen again. He coached high school basketball in Tallahassee for seven years after that. Then in April of last year, Florida A&M called. Here is what he said about taking it. "This is the only collegiate job that I was willing to take." He went 15 and 16 in his first season there. Charlie Ward is the only person who has won a Heisman Trophy and played in the NBA. He spends his days now at the school where his parents met.