r/whowouldwin • u/retired-tweeter • 4d ago

Battle All 47 US Presidents are running against each other in a 40 yard dash. Who wins?

Every U.S. President is magically cloned into their peak physical form, dropped onto a football field, and lined up for a 40-yard dash. Who ya got?

Favorites:

JFK: 2 sport college athlete, plus military training. Swam 3.5 miles towing an injured soldier with a bad back.

Gerald Ford: Another strong military background who was a two-way football player at Michigan.

Dwight D. Eisenhower: Extensive military career, who played halfback at west point until his injury. Guessing he was a little fast even in segregated times

Barack Obama: Gonna get a lot of votes here probably as one of the only presidents we've seen in action playing an athletic sport, but no athletic background, so you know, can't give him too much credit

Donald Trump: In doing my 20 minutes worth of research, I came across this quote from a Ted Levine in 2015 (In an article about Trump running in 2016 so...take that as you will) "He was just the best, a good athlete, a great athlete," Levine said. "He could have probably played pro ball as a pitcher. I think he threw 80 miles an hour.... He was physically and mentally gifted." So there's that (Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/donald-trump-high-school-classmates-what-he-was-like-2015-10)

All in All, I'd lean Gerald Ford. JFK had injury issues so who knows what his "prime" would have been athletically. Maybe at absolute peak and health, JFK could win, but I'm going with the 2-way football player from Michigan.

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u/spikebrennan ​ 4d ago

Richard Nixon was a tackle.

Ronald Reagan was a lineman

Joe Biden was a really good wide receiver at the high school level

George W Bush played high school ball for his prep school but I don’t know what position

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u/theguineapigssong 4d ago

W was noted as a very fast runner during his Presidency, to the point it was a hassle for his security detail to keep up with him during his runs. If the race were held for Presidents DURING their Presidency, he's definitely the winner

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u/fl4tsc4n 4d ago

W has also got SHARP reflexes. Mf dodges shoes like a pro at 50+

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u/Laszlo-Panaflex 2d ago

If there's an obstacle course involved, he's definitely winning.

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u/fl4tsc4n 2d ago

I'm picturing him dashing around doing his little snicker

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u/imprison_grover_furr 4d ago

Yup! Dubya was one fast runner!

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u/YourCummyBear 4d ago

Didn’t he run a pretty fast marathon (for his age) too in the 90s?

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u/milochuisael 4d ago

Surely W isn’t in his 90s yet. Do you mean bush sr

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u/Sekh765 ​ 4d ago

Sit down Leslie Nealson.

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u/Thanos_Stomps ​ 4d ago

I’d still take Obama or JFK in a 40 yard dash. Being fast long distance is not indicative of sprint speed and Obama played a sport well that involves a lot of sprinting.

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u/TurboRadical 3d ago

You're conflating different definitions of fast.

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u/Loretta-West 4d ago

TIL you could form quite a good presidential football team.

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u/fl4tsc4n 4d ago

Football is as American as apple pie. We love a man who plays a lil ball.

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u/Thecramosreddit 4d ago

It might be Joe Biden then because playing wr in a state that had a population of over 11 million in 1961 means he was no slouch.

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u/YourCummyBear 4d ago

Anyone can play sports in high school. It doesn’t mean you’re any good.

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u/RegularJoe62 4d ago

True, but that's one of the fastest positions on the field.

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u/MrAmishJoe 3d ago

Were talking highschool though. Source ..I was high school reciever. Even started some games. I never broke a 5 second 40

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u/RegularJoe62 3d ago

True enough. I was a cross country runner. Compared to some random guy on the street, I was probably pretty fast, but in competition I was just an average, middle of the pack guy.

Even though he was a WR (and supposedly a good one), it's hard to say if a fast HS wide out would be faster than a college linebacker. If I was to place a bet without having seen either of them play, I'd probably put my money on Ford over Biden.

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u/NopeNotConor 4d ago

I thought W was a cheerleader

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u/MeesterMeeseeks 4d ago

Think that was college

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u/OuiTuLow 4d ago

wasn't W also a cheerleader?

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u/don-again 4d ago

Obama has great jeans.

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u/fl4tsc4n 4d ago

Not football but Barry O has that L A S E R jump shot too

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u/sebblMUC 4d ago

Eisenhower was a RB

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u/El_Bean69 3d ago

A counter universe where Joe Biden is just a Steve Largent or Don Hutson level legend makes me laugh I can see it clearly