J. C. Watts

J. C. Watts was born and raised in Eufaula, Oklahoma, the son of a Baptist minister who was the town's first Black police officer. He was one of the first children to attend Eufaula's integrated elementary school. He quarterbacked Oklahoma's wishbone, was second-team All-Big Eight in 1979 and 1980, and earned a journalism degree in 1981. The New York Jets drafted him in the eighth round, 213th overall, in 1981, but he played in the CFL instead, mainly for Ottawa (1981–1986). He was MVP of the 1981 Grey Cup. He later became a Baptist minister and the first African American elected to statewide office in Oklahoma. He served in the U.S. House from 1995 to 2003 and chaired the House Republican Conference. The Oklahoman wrote on November 20, 1981: "Watts, who played on four bowl teams with the Sooners, was an eighth-round draft choice of the New York Jets of the National Football League." The Oklahoman wrote on March 12, 1982: "Watts, who was starting quarterback in the 1979 and 1980 seasons, is now the premier quarterback for the Ottawa Roughriders of the Canadian Football League."