John Kimbrough

John Kimbrough played fullback for Texas A&M University and was a member of the Aggies' 1939 National Championship team. he rushed for 159 yards and scored two touchdowns as the Aggies defeated Tulane 14-13 in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1, 1940, to claim Texas A&M's only National Championship. In 1940 Kimbrough finished second in the Heisman Trophy race. That year's winner was Tom Harmon, RB for the University of Michigan. The national title brought fame to the handsome runner from just north of Abilene, and about the same time he became a poster boy for Chesterfield cigarettes. Kimbrough even signed a movie contract with 20th Century-Fox and starred in two westerns, Lone Star Ranger (1942) and Sundown Jim (1942). He later joined the army and served in World War II in the Pacific, and after the war became a pro football player with the Los Angeles Dons of the All-American Football Conference from 1946 through 1948. As a professional, he carried the ball 329 times for 1,224 yards, a 3.7 average, and scored 17 rushing touchdowns. He also caught 35 passes, six for touchdowns. Once his playing days were over, Kimbrough entered politics and served in the Texas State Legislature from 1953 to 1955. Even long after his career as a football player and a politician were over, his wife Barbara said that he still received hundreds of letters in the mail asking for his autograph. Kimbrough had to wait almost 60 years to receive his 1939 National Championship ring, being presented to him and 18 other surviving members of that year's team during a pre-game ceremony at Texas A&M's Kyle Field in 1998. On that sunny day, the Aggies took the field and shocked #2-ranked Nebraska 28-21.