Greatest Athletes Who Served in the Military

We often idolize athletes for sports achievements, but the true heroes sacrifice for others.

Many athletes have put their careers on hold to serve in the military. They were either drafted or voluntarily gave up their day jobs to serve their countries for the World Wars, Vietnam War, Korean War, or Iraq and Afghanistan Wars.

All-time greats have gaps in their professional careers because the honor of serving their country outweighed the glory of being an athlete. Many others also served but didn’t see combat for various reasons. They may have had to fulfill a military obligation or realized that they needed the military as much as it needed them. Their service is no less appreciated.

We often idolize athletes for their achievements in sports, but the true heroes sacrifice everything for others. And we should never forget their selflessness as veterans. These are the greatest athletes who served in the military.

Ty Cobb

Ty Cobb, sliding in 1924, had 4,189 career hits. Library of Congress

Sport: Baseball (MLB)

Pro career: 24 seasons (1905-28)

Stats: .366 lifetime average. 1911 MVP. 12-time batting champion.

Years in the military: 1 (1918)

Branch: United States Army

Bottom Line: Ty Cobb

Ty Cobb with his family in 1917. Wikimedia Commons

The only athlete on this list to serve in World War I, Ty Cobb spent 67 days in France as part of the chemical warfare branch of the Army.

He was given the role of captain and also in his group were Christy Mathewson and George Sisler, two other players in the Baseball Hall of Fame. They trained soldiers in preparation for chemical attacks by exposing them to gas chambers. That contributed to Mathewson contracting tuberculosis, which led to his death.

Cobb didn’t miss any playing time due to his military commitment, and when he returned to the Tigers in 1919, Cobb won the last of his 12 batting titles.

Jackie Robinson

Brooklyn Dodgers second baseman Jackie Robinson was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962. stf / AP Photo

Sport: Baseball (NLB, MLB)

Pro career: 11 seasons (1945, 1947-56)

Stats: 1949 MVP. Six-time All-Star. One-time World Series winner.

Years in the military: 3 (1942-44)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Jackie Robinson

Jackie Robinson served three years in the military. LOOK magazine / Wikipedia

You have to wonder how Jackie Robinson’s athletic career would have transpired had he not been drafted into the U.S. Army since he was pursuing a football career prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

While stationed in Texas, Robinson experienced racism, and that prepared him for when he would break baseball’s color barrier. Toward the end of Robinson’s stint in the army, he was transferred to Kentucky where he met a former Negro League player. He convinced Robinson to give baseball a shot after playing it at UCLA.

Robinson played in the Negro Leagues in 1945, the minors in 1946, and broke the MLB color line in 1947.

Joe Louis

Joe Louis, in a fight against Buddy Baer in 1942, was the world heavyweight champion from 1937 to 1949. AP Photo

Sport: Boxing

Pro career: 1934-51

Stats: 66-3 (52 KO). One-time heavyweight champion. 1935 AP Athlete of the Year.

Years in the military: 3 (1942-45)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Joe Louis

Joe Louis gave a series of boxing exhibitions for American troops in London in 1944. AP Photo

Joe Louis was in the middle of his reign as heavyweight champion when the attack on Pearl Harbor took place. One month later, Louis enlisted in the Army where he was placed in the Special Services Division rather than being sent into combat.

That was so the Army could take advantage of his popularity, and he took part in nearly 100 boxing exhibitions to entertain fellow soldiers. He did defend his title twice during his three-year stint and was released from military service in October 1945.

He went on to win his next four fights before losing the heavyweight championship to Ezzard Charles in 1950.

Warren Spahn

Milwaukee Braves pitcher Warren Spahn won 363 games in his career. Charles Knoblock / AP Photo

Sport: Baseball (MLB)

Pro career: 21 seasons (1942, 1946-65)

Stats: 1957 Cy Young winner. 17-time All-Star. 363 wins.

Years in the military: 3 (1942-46)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Warren Spahn

Warren Spahn in 1955. AP Photo

Warren Spahn played just four MLB games during his rookie 1942 season before enlisting in the U.S. Army for World War II. He was a combat engineer who took part in the Battle of the Bulge and was awarded the Purple Heart due to being wounded by a piece of bridge shrapnel.

Spahn missed three full major league seasons due to his service but still managed to win 363 games, which is the most by any left-handed pitcher in MLB history.

Many think he could have won 400 games had he not served, but Spahn disagreed, saying those three years matured him and allowed him to better handle life and baseball.

Ted Williams

Ted Williams had 2,654 career hits and was a lifetime .344 hitter. Ted Sande / AP Photo

Sport: Baseball (MLB)

Pro career: 19 seasons (1939-42, 1946-60)

Stats: Two-time MVP. Two-time Triple Crown winner. 521 home runs.

Years in the military: 5 (1942-46, 1952-53)

Branch: U.S. Navy, Marines

Bottom Line: Ted Williams

Ted Williams, left, enlists in the U.S. Navy and reenacts the oath-taking ceremony in Boston in 1942. AP Photo

Ted Williams is one of the few athletes who had two separate military stints and served in two branches.

He was a naval aviator during World War II but was allowed to leave training in 1942 to accept his Triple Crown award. He developed into such a good pilot that he became a flight instructor. In the six years in between his two stints, Williams won two MVP awards and his second Triple Crown.

For his second stint, he played in just six games of the 1952 season before being recalled to active duty for the Korean War. He was a captain in the Marine Corps Reserve at this point and was deployed for 15 months. Williams flew a total of 39 missions and earned many accolades and medals during his military tenure.

When he returned to the Red Sox at the end of the 1953 season, he didn’t miss a beat, hitting over .400 over the last 37 games of the season.

Joe DiMaggio

Joe DiMaggio had a lifetime .325 batting average. AP Photo

Sport: Baseball (MLB)

Pro career: 13 seasons (1936-42, 1946-51)

Stats: Three-time MVP. Nine-time World Series winner. 361 home runs.

Years in the military: 3 (1943-45)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Joe DiMaggio

Joe DiMaggio, center, front, gets sworn into the U.S. Army with other inductees in 1943 in San Francisco. Ernest King / AP Photo

In 1941, Joe DiMaggio had his legendary 56-game hitting streak and won his second MVP award. Just two years later, he enlisted in the Army for World War II and was stationed in Southern California, Hawaii and New Jersey.

He spent most of his military career playing baseball against other MLB players who were also stationed, but he also got out of shape and gained about 10 pounds. That was apparent when he returned to the diamond after three years in 1946 and had the lowest average of his career to that point.

But he bounced back the following season and won the third of his three MVPs.

Yogi Berra

Yogi Berra won 10 World Series with the New York Yankees. AP Photo

Sport: Baseball (MLB)

Pro career: 19 seasons (1946-63, 1965)

Stats: Three-time MVP. 10-time World Series winner. 18-time All-Star.

Years in the military: 2 (1943-45)

Branch: U.S. Navy

Bottom Line: Yogi Berra

New York Yankees manager Yogi Berra dances with his wife, Carmen, in 1963. AP Photo

Yogi Berra’s time with the Navy took place before his MLB career began, and it started when he was just 18 years old. A month after his 19th birthday, Berra was on Utah Beach during D-Day and was part of a six-man crew on a Navy rocket boat. The boat fired machine guns and launched rockets while also being fired upon, but Berra was never hit.

He returned to baseball in 1946 when he made his major league debut for the Yankees. His 10 World Series championships are more than any player in history, and he was the best catcher of his era.

For his contributions to the military and baseball, Berra was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015.

Chuck Bednarik

Chuck Bednarik played 14 seasons in the NFL. AP Photo

Sport: Football (NFL)

Pro career: 14 seasons (1949-62)

Stats: Two-time NFL champion. Eight-time Pro Bowler. 20 interceptions.

Years in the military: 2 (1943-45)

Branch: U.S. Air Force

Bottom Line: Chuck Bednarik

Chuck Bednarik with his wife and five children in 1962. AP Photo

After graduating high school in 1943, Chuck Bednarik joined the Air Force as a waist gunner in a B-24 Liberator. He took part in 30 bombing missions over Germany and was awarded an Air Medal and four Battle Stars.

He then returned home and attended Penn before again staying local and playing for the Philadelphia Eagles. Nicknamed “Concrete Charlie,” Bednarik was the last of the NFL’s 60-minute men and played both center and linebacker.

He was a six-time first-team All-Pro selection and was selected to the NFL’s 100th Anniversary Team in 2019.

Rocky Marciano

Rocky Marciano never lost a fight. AP Photo

Sport: Boxing

Pro career: 1947-55

Stats: 49-0 (43 KO). One-time heavyweight champion. Three-time Ring Magazine Fighter of the Year.

Years in the military: 3 (1943-46)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Rocky Marciano

Rocky Marciano in 1955. AP Photo

Drafted into the Army as a 19-year-old in 1943, Rocky Marciano was stationed in Wales as a part of the 150th Combat Engineers. He helped ferry supplies across the English Channel to Normandy for two years, and once World War II ended, he spent another year stationed in Fort Lewis, Washington.

During this time, he competed as an amateur boxer and posted an 8-4 record. Those four losses would be the only ones of his career. After Marciano turned pro in 1947, he never suffered defeat.

He won the heavyweight title, finished 49-0 and is the only heavyweight champion to retire undefeated.

Marion Motley

Marion Motley, left, was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1968. AP Photo

Sport: Football (NFL)

Pro career: 9 (1946-53, 1955)

Stats: Two-time rushing champion. 1940s All-Decade Team. 4,720 rushing yards.

Years in the military: 1 (1944-45)

Branch: U.S. Navy

Bottom Line: Marion Motley

Marion Motley in 1976. Dave Pickoff / AP Photo

After dropping out of college in 1943, Marion Motley joined the U.S. Navy a year later during World War II. There, he was sent to the Navy’s boot camp in Chicago, where he played on a military team coached by the then-coach of Ohio State, Paul Brown.

Two years later, the Cleveland Browns were formed, and Brown became the team’s first head coach. Motley wrote a letter to Brown expressing interest in joining the team and he – along with three other players – became the four men to break football’s color barrier seven months before Jackie Robinson did the same for baseball.

Motley won five championships with the Browns and was the second black player ever to be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, following Emlen Tunnell.

Stan Musial

Stan Musial had 3,630 career hits. Warren M. Winterbottom / AP Photo

Sport: Baseball (MLB)

Pro career: 22 seasons (1941-44, 1946-63)

Stats: Three-time MVP. Three-time World Series winner. 475 home runs.

Years in the military: 1 (1945-46)

Branch: U.S. Navy

Bottom Line: Stan Musial

Stan Musial had a baseball school for sailors. AP Photo

Stan Musial’s last game of the 1944 season was a Game 6 World Series victory to give the Cardinals their second title in three seasons.

He then enlisted in the Navy the following year where he was assigned non-combat duty in Maryland before being assigned to Special Services in Hawaii. He was able to play baseball every day in Hawaii, and when he returned to major leagues in 1946, he put up his second MVP season.

The Cardinals also won the World Series after missing the postseason during Musial’s deployment to give them three championships over five seasons (1942, 1944, 1946).

Arnold Palmer

Arnold Palmer won seven majors. AP Photo

Sport: Golf

Pro career: 1954-2006

Stats: 62 PGA Tour wins. 7 major championships. Two-time PGA Tour Player of the Year.

Years in the military: 3 (1951-54)

Branch: U.S. Coast Guard

Bottom Line: Arnold Palmer

Arnold Palmer served three years in the U.S. Coast Guard. Wikimedia Commons

Arnold Palmer was attending Wake Forest on a golf scholarship when he dropped out in 1951 to enlist in the Coast Guard. While at the Coast Guard Training Center in New Jersey, Palmer designed and built his first golf course, a nine-hole pitch and putt layout.

Shortly after his enlistment term ended, Palmer turned pro and went on to win seven majors, including being a four-time Masters winner.

Those design skills he first used during training never deserted him, and Palmer designed more than 300 golf courses around the world.

Willie Mays

Willie Mays scored 2,062 runs in his career. John Rooney / AP Photo

Sport: Baseball (MLB)

Pro career: 22 seasons (1951-52, 1954-73)

Stats: Two-time MVP. 24-time All-Star. 660 HR.

Years in the military: 2 (1952-53)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Willie Mays

Pvt. Willie Mays was inducted into the U.S. Army in 1952. AP Photo

Willie Mays was the AL Rookie of the Year in 1951, but just weeks into his sophomore season, he was drafted for the Korean War. In his last at-bat before joining the Army, Mays — who played for the New York Giants – received a standing ovation from Dodgers fans in Brooklyn.

He spent most of his time stationed at an army base in Virginia and ended up missing roughly 180 games of action. In his first season back, Mays won the first of his two MVPs, and many believe that had he not missed the time, he would have broken Babe Ruth’s home run record before Hank Aaron did.

Paul Arizin

Paul Arizin was a 10-time NBA All-Star Paul Vathis / AP Photo

Sport: Basketball (NBA)

Pro career: 10 seasons (1950-52, 1954-62)

Stats: 10-time All-Star. Two-time scoring champ. 22.8 PPG.

Years in the military: 2 (1952-54)

Branch: U.S. Marines

Bottom Line: Paul Arizin

Paul Arizin was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1978. NBA

After leading the NBA in scoring during the 1951-52 season, Paul Arizin was one of the frontrunners to win MVP the following season. But just before that season, Arizin was selected for the U.S. Marines and spent two years out of basketball while serving in the Korean War.

Despite not playing for two-and-a-half years, Arizin picked up right where he left off when he returned and was an All-Star during the 1954-55 season.

He collected his second scoring title two seasons later and retired in 1962 as second on the NBA’s all-time scoring list.

Roberto Clemente

Roberto Clemente had 3,000 career hits, including 240 home runs. AP Photo

Sport: Baseball (MLB)

Pro career: 18 seasons (1955-72)

Stats: 1966 MVP. 15-time All-Star. 12-time Gold Glove winner.

Years in the military: 1 (1958-59)

Branch: U.S. Marines

Bottom Line: Roberto Clemente

Roberto Clemente gets a combat helmet after being sworn into the Marine Corps in 1958. AP Photo

Just days after the 1958 season ended, Roberto Clemente joined the reserve force of the United States Marine Corps. He served a six-month active duty commitment in the Carolinas and Washington, D.C., and continued to serve during the offseason until 1965.

During his six-month stint, Clemente benefitted physically from the Marines training program as he gained 10 pounds of muscle and eliminated chronic back pain. The additional strength also helped him on the diamond as Clemente averaged six home runs a season prior to serving and 16 home runs per season afterward.

In 2003, he was inducted into the USMC Sports Hall of Fame.

Elgin Baylor

Elgin Baylor, center, was a 10-time All-NBA player but never won an NBA title. AP Photo

Sport: Basketball (NBA)

Pro career: 14 seasons (1958-72)

Stats: 11-time All-Star. 27.4 PPG. 13.5 RPG.

Years in the military: 1 (1961-62)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Elgin Baylor

Elgin Baylor at Seattle University in 1957. Ed Johnson / AP Photo

Elgin Baylor was part of the Army Reserve but was called into active duty during the middle of the 1961-62 season. He was stationed in Fort Lewis, Washington, which is 1,100 miles from where Baylor played with the Lakers.

But Baylor made both situations work as he served during the week and then used his weekend pass to play in NBA games. He was able to play in 48 of 80 games that season and averaged a career-high of 38.3 points per game.

The Lakers lost in the NBA Finals that season, but in Game 5 of the series, Baylor scored 61 points, which remains an all-time NBA record.

Ken Norton Sr.

Ken Norton, left, beat Muhammad Ali on a split decision in 1973. Jeff Robbins / AP Photo

Sport: Boxing

Pro career: 1967-81

Stats: 42-7 (33 KO). One-time heavyweight champion. USMC Sports Hall of Famer.

Years in the military: 4 (1963-67)

Branch: U.S. Marines

Bottom Line: Ken Norton Sr.

Ken Norton spent four years in the Marines. Wikimedia Commons

Nicknamed “The Fighting Marine,” Ken Norton took up boxing while serving in the Marines. He won three All-Marine heavyweight titles and then decided to turn pro after being discharged.

Norton won his first 29 pro fights and then shocked the world by winning his 30th bout and defeating Muhammad Ali for the heavyweight championship. Norton and Ali went on to have a trilogy of fights – all that went the distance – and Ali prevailed in the last two.

Norton died in 2013 after a series of strokes, and one-time foe George Foreman referred to him as “the fairest of them all.”

Roger Staubach

Roger Staubach had an 85-29 record at quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. Ray Stubblebine / AP Photo

Sport: Football (NFL)

Pro career: 11 seasons (1969-79)

Stats: Two-time Super Bowl champion. 22,700 passing yards. 153 touchdowns.

Years in the military: 4 (1965-69)

Branch: U.S. Navy

Bottom Line: Roger Staubach

Roger Staubach graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1965 and won the Heisman trophy in 1963 as the Navy quarterback. Jacoby Harris / AP Photo

After graduating from the Naval Academy in 1965, Roger Staubach had a four-year military commitment and spent part of that time in Vietnam. He was a Supply Corps officer for one year during the war and then spent the rest of his commitment in the United States.

While still with the Navy in 1968, Staubach used his annual military leave to attend the Dallas Cowboys’ rookie camp and officially joined the team one year later. Even though his NFL career started at 27 years old, Staubach was one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history.

He played on five teams that went to the Super Bowl, winning two of them, and owns the fourth-highest winning percentage by a quarterback in NFL history.

Arthur Ashe

Arthur Ashe won three Grand Slam titles. AP Photo

Sport: Tennis

Pro career: 1969-80

Stats: 1085-337 record. Three-time Grand Slam winner. 1975 ATP Player of the Year.

Years in the military: 3 (1966-69)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Arthur Ashe

Arthur Ashe in 1963. AP Photo

Arthur Ashe played tennis and was a member of the ROTC (Reserve Officers’ Training Corps) during his time at UCLA. After graduating, he joined the Army, where he worked as a data processor at West Point.

While in the Army, Ashe had to maintain his amateur status in tennis since there wasn’t enough time for him to be both a pro and an active Army member. As a result, when Ashe won the $14,000 first-place prize at a tournament, he could not accept it and instead just got $280, a $20 stipend for 14 days.

After being discharged in 1969, Ashe went onto a Hall of Fame career and remains the only black man to win singles titles at Wimbledon, the U.S. Open and the Australian Open.

Nolan Ryan

Nolan Ryan pitched 27 seasons in the majors. AP Photo

Sport: Baseball (MLB)

Pro career: 27 seasons (1966, 1968-93)

Stats: Eight-time All-Star. 324 wins. 5,714 K.

Years in the military: 1 (1967)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Nolan Ryan

Nolan Ryan in 1975. Nolan Ryan Beef / Facebook

After throwing three innings in his rookie season in 1966, Nolan Ryan served a six-month stint with the Army in the first half of 1967.

He didn’t see any combat during the Vietnam War, but further military commitments stunted his development when he returned to the Mets in 1968. He had to report back to the Army every other weekend, which disrupted Ryan’s schedule and the Mets’ rotation.

He didn’t find his groove until he was traded to the Angels in 1972, the first of his 11 seasons leading the league in strikeouts. His 5,714 strikeouts are the most in MLB history and nearly 1,000 more than anyone else.

Bill Bradley

Bill Bradley was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1983. AP Photo

Sport: Basketball (NBA)

Pro career: 10 seasons (1967-77)

Stats: Two-time champion. 12.4 PPG. 3.2 RPG.

Years in the military: 1 (1967)

Branch: U.S. Air Force

Bottom Line: Bill Bradley

Bill Bradley during his Princeton days in 1965. John Lent / AP Photo

Bill Bradley has lived quite the life. After being drafted by the Knicks in 1965, he put off the NBA for Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. Two months before graduation, Bradley dropped out and joined the Air Force Reserves, where he had a six-month stint on active duty.

In December 1967, he finally made his NBA debut and one year later took a special exam to graduate from Oxford. Bradley spent a decade with the Knicks and was a starter on their only two championships in franchise history.

Two years after retiring, he became a U.S. senator from New Jersey and spent 18 years in the role.

Rocky Bleier

Rocky Bleier played 11 seasons in the NFL and won four Super Bowls. Suzanne Vlamis / AP Photo

Sport: Football (NFL)

Pro career: 11 seasons (1968, 1971-80)

Stats: Four-time Super Bowl champion. 3,865 rushing yards. 25 touchdowns.

Years in the military: 1 (1968-69)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Rocky Bleier

Rocky Bleier at a military hospital in Tokyo, Japan, in 1969. Henri Huet / AP Photo

After limited playing time as a rookie with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1968, Rocky Bleier was drafted into the Army for the Vietnam War, where he operated a grenade launcher.

His group was ambushed and had a grenade land near them, which caused shrapnel into his lower leg and resulted in the loss of part of his foot. He went through several surgeries but vowed to return to the football field after getting a letter in the hospital from Steelers owner Art Rooney.

Bleier spent the entire 1970 season on injured reserve while rehabbing, then returned to the field in 1971 and played 10 more seasons. He spent his entire career with the Steelers, complementing Franco Harris in the backfield and collecting four Super Bowl rings.

David Robinson

David Robinson scored 20,790 points in his NBA career. David Scarbrough / AP Photo

Sport: Basketball (NBA)

Pro career: 14 seasons (1989-2003)

Stats: Two-time champion. 1994-95 MVP. 21.1 PPG.

Years in the military: 2 (1987-89)

Branch: U.S. Navy

Bottom Line: David Robinson

David Robinson graduated from the Naval Academy and served two years in the military. NBA

Despite being a Hall of Famer, Robinson didn’t play organized basketball until his senior year of high school. Because of that, he attracted little interest from major programs and decided to go to the Naval Academy after posting a 1,320 on his SAT.

But Robinson – who was 6 feet, 6 inches as a senior – had grown to 6 feet, 8 inches when he started college and was two inches above the Navy height limit. He received a waiver to gain acceptance and was a staff officer in the Civil Engineer Corps.

After being selected No. 1 in the 1987 NBA draft, Robinson fulfilled his two-year military commitment as a civil engineering officer before making his debut with the San Antonio Spurs in 1989.

Mike Anderson

Mike Anderson averaged 4.4 yards per carry in his NFL career. Ed Andrieski / AP Photo

Sport: Football (NFL)

Pro career: 8 seasons (2000-07)

Stats: Offensive Rookie of the Year. 4,067 rushing yards. 42 touchdowns.

Years in the military: 4 (1992-96)

Branch: U.S. Marines

Bottom Line: Mike Anderson

Mike Anderson served four years in the Marines. Steve Ruark / AP Photo

Since he didn’t participate in any sports in high school, Mike Anderson wasn’t on anyone’s radar so he bypassed college to join the Marines.

He was a communications specialist who was deployed on peacekeeping missions to Kenya and Somalia while also playing on the Marines’ contact football team. There, he was seen by an assistant coach from a JUCO, which kickstarted his college football career that ended after two years at Utah.

He joined the NFL in 2000 as a 27-year-old rookie but landed in the perfect place as a running back in the Broncos’ zone-blocking scheme. He ran for nearly 1,500 yards and 15 touchdowns as a rookie and remains in the top five in Broncos history in both rushing yards and rushing touchdowns.

Ahmard Hall

Tennessee Titans running back Ahmard Hall rushes during a game against the Indianapolis Colts in the first quarter of an NFL football game in Indianapolis, Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009. Michael Conroy / AP Photo

Sport: Football (NFL)

Pro career: 6 seasons (2006-11)

Stats: 73 receptions. 561 receiving yards. 2 touchdowns.

Years in the military: 4 (1998-2002)

Branch: U.S. Marines

Bottom Line: Ahmard Hall

Ahmard Hall, right, in 2005. Harry Cabluck / AP Photo

In between high school and college, Ahmard Hall served in the 3rd Battalion of the Marines where he had missions to Kosovo and Afghanistan.

He then attended the University of Texas where he won a national championship in 2005, and when that team visited the White House afterward, Hall received special acknowledgment for his service.

He spent his entire six-year NFL career as a fullback with the Tennessee Titans and he helped pave the way for Chris Johnson’s 2000-yard rushing season in 2009.

Bobby Lashley

Bobby Lashley started his pro wrestling career in 2005. Tom Strattman / AP Photo

Sport: Pro Wrestling, Mixed Martial Arts

Pro career: 2005-present

Stats: 11-time champion. Six-time world champion. 15-2 MMA record.

Years in the military: 3 (2000-03)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Bobby Lashley

WWE Superstar Bobby Lashley in 2019. Charles Sykes / AP Photo

As the son of an Army drill sergeant, Bobby Lashley grew up on military bases and then followed in his father’s footsteps.

After being an NAIA amateur wrestling champion in college, Lashley joined the Army where he continued to compete and won a gold medal in the International Military Sports Council freestyle event. When his term ended, Lashley stayed in wrestling but moved to the professional version and also took up mixed martial arts.

He’s won multiple championships in both sports to go with his three NAIA national championships in amateur wrestling.

Pat Tillman

Pat Tillman played four seasons in the NFL. rivalmike / Twitter

Sport: Football (NFL)

Pro career: 4 seasons (1998-2001)

Stats: 374 tackles. 3 interceptions. 2.5 sacks.

Years in the military: 2 (2002-04)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Pat Tillman

Every day, his legend grows bigger. Department of Defense / Wikimedia Commons

For an entire generation of sports fans, Pat Tillman is the face of athletes that served in the military. While over a dozen NFL players have ended their careers to join the military – and then were killed in action – Tillman is the only one of those to do so in the last 50 years.

Tillman was the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year as a linebacker at Arizona State. He then moved to safety but stayed in Phoenix and played for the Cardinals for four seasons before enlisting in the Army eight months after the 9/11 attacks.

He was part of the Army’s invasion of Iraq in September 2003 before being deployed to Afghanistan, where he was killed by friendly fire in April 2004. Tillman was posthumously awarded with numerous decorations including a Purple Heart, Silver Star, promotion to corporal, and having his jersey retired by both Arizona State and the Arizona Cardinals.

Lacey Evans

Lacey Evans, top, during a World Wrestling Entertainment match in 2019. Amr Nabil / AP Photo

Sport: Pro wrestling

Pro career: 2014-present

Stats: One-time APW heavyweight champion. No. 23 on PWI Female 100 (2019).

Years in the military: 5 (2009-14)

Branch: U.S. Marines

Bottom Line: Lacey Evans

Lacey Evans served five years in the Marines. LaceyEvansWWE / Twitter

A wrestling state champion in high school, Lacey Evans enrolled in the Marines soon after graduating and was assigned to the Special Reaction Team. That group is responsible for security at bases when they’re under threat or hostage situations.

While in the Marines, Evans obtained her bachelor’s degree, started her own construction business and began her pro wrestling career on the independent circuit. Two years after being discharged, Evans joined WWE under their developmental brand NXT, and she made her WWE debut at the Royal Rumble in 2019.

Alejandro Villanueva

Alejandro Villanueva made his NFL game debut in 2015. Phelan M. Ebenhack / AP Photo

Sport: Football (NFL)

Pro career: 6 seasons (2014-present)

Stats: Two-time Pro Bowler. 80 games. 1 touchdown.

Years in the military: 3 (2010-13)

Branch: U.S. Army

Bottom Line: Alejandro Villanueva

Alejandro Villanueva served three years in the Army. Eagles / Twitter

Alejandro Villanueva was born into a military family and attended West Point where he played both on the offensive line and at receiver. After going undrafted in 2010, Villanueva was commissioned into the Army as a second lieutenant. He had three separate deployments to Afghanistan for a total of 20 months before being signed by the Eagles in 2014.

At that time, Villanueva said if he didn’t make a regular-season roster then he would serve a fourth tour of duty in Afghanistan, and while he didn’t make the Eagles, he was scooped up by the Steelers.

He spent the 2014 season on Pittsburgh’s practice squad and became a starter the following season. He has manned Ben Roethlisberger’s blindside ever since.

Giannis Antetokounmpo

Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was the 2019 NBA MVP. Nell Redmond / AP Photo

Sport: Basketball (NBA)

Pro career: 7 seasons (2013-present)

Stats: 2018-19 MVP. Four-time All-Star. Three-time All-NBA.

Years in the military: 1 (2016)

Branch: Greek Army

Bottom Line: Giannis Antetokounmpo

Giannis Antetokounmpo served in the Greek military. Greek Gateway / Facebook

As a Greek citizen who permanently lives overseas, Giannis Antetokounmpo had to serve a mandatory three-month military stint back in the summer of 2016.

He and his older brother Thanassis joined the Hellenic Army in Athens where they were assigned to a signal unit. Giannis was still able to get in some work on the basketball court that summer, and when he returned for the 2016-17 NBA season, his scoring average jumped six points, he made his first All-Star team and was named the league’s Most Improved Player.

Two years later, the “Greek Freak” was named NBA MVP and became the fifth player born outside of the U.S. to win the award.

Related: Pat Tillman, a True Hero