The Minnesota Vikings announced on Saturday that legendary head coach Bud Grant died at the age of 95. Before he turned around the Vikings and made them a constant contender for nearly two decades, he was one of the most fascinating professional athletes we have ever seen.
Grant was a multiple-sport star that made history by being the only player to ever play professionally in both the NFL and NBA.
After being a multi-sport star at the University of Minnesota, Grant was selected in both the 1950 NFL and NBA drafts.
The Philadelphia Eagles selected him No. 14 overall in the NFL Draft, while the Minneapolis Lakers selected him in the fourth round of the NBA Draft. He ended up initially playing for the Lakers because they were a local team and spent two years in the NBA and was a member of their 1950 NBA championship team.
Following that brief career in the NBA, he decided to retire from basketball and focus on football, finally making his debut for the Eagles. After leading the team in sacks as a defensive end in his rookie season, he switched to the offensive side of the ball and was the team’s leading receiver in 1952, catching 56 passes for 997 yards.
After retiring as a player in both sports, he started his professional football coaching career in the Canadian Football League, leading the Winnipeg Blue Bombers to six Grey Cup appearances, winning four of them.
That set the stage for his NFL coaching career with the Vikings where he spent 20 years on their sidelines, leading them to four Super Bowls.
His .620 regular season winning percentage in the NFL is 29th best all-time, while his 158 regular season wins are 19th most all-time.
He is a member of both the CFL and NFL Hall of Fames.
