Some of these stars are truly multi-talented – it’s almost not fair! Whether they earned their way to college on an athletic scholarship or walked onto the team, these celebs definitely had what it takes to take their sports to a professional level.
Here are 20 Celebs You Didn’t Know Were Athletes in College/High School – and waay before we knew anything about them.
Jon Stewart
Best known for delivering the new on The Daily Show each night. He once played as a winger on the William & Mary men’s soccer team in college. He even made it to the varsity tea, after starting as a walk-on.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson
Before becoming a Hollywood star, The Rock was a defensive lineman for the University of Miami. He played football until he graduated in 1995. His career pivoted to wrestling for the WWE, before becoming an actor.
Bradley Cooper
The Academy Award winning actor was once part of the rowing crew at Georgetown University. He was part of the Hoyas’ Heavyweight Crew during his time at the university.
Amy Adams
Amy did track and gymnastics during her early life, even harbouring ambitions of becoming a ballerina. She was especially passionate about dance, and even started her career as a dancer in dinner theatre.
Channing Tatum
The actor played football for two years at Glenville State College in West Virginia. No wonder he looked so natural in that football uniform in 22 Jump Street!
Forest Whitaker
While in high school, Whitaker earned a football scholarship for California State Polytechnic University in Pomona. But he was forced to give up to sport due to a back injury. He then transferred to the University of Southern California (Southern Cal) on a music scholarship.
Emma Watson
While Emma was majoring in English literature, she became a major field hockey player. She joined the Brown University field hockey team in 2010.
Tom Selleck
Before he dazzled audiences with his magnificent mustache, he impressed with his basket ball skills. In the 60s, Selleck got a scholarship to Southern Cal to play on the basketball team. Meanwhile, he also pursued modeling and acting.
2 Chainz
The American rapper was a Division I basketball recruit out of high school. He went on to play one season at Alabama State University. He saw time in 24 out of 29 games.
Avril Lavigne
More like a Sk8r Girl! Avril reportedly was in ice skates by the time she was 2. The Canadian-born singer played hockey during highschool. She even revealed that she takes her rollerblades with her on tour, to play street hockey.
Ronald Reagan
During his years at Eureka College, Reagan was part of the swim team. His connection to sports got him into acting.
Kate Middleton
The Princess of Wales has played field hockey throughout her life – even playing at university. She also tried out a number of times for the team at the University of St. Andrews. And who forget her impressive talents on the tennis court!
Terry Crews
In the 90s Terry was drafted to the Los Angeles Rams. He remained in pro football until 1997, when he turned to acting. The lineman appeared in 32 games in the NFL while playing for the Rams, San Diego Chargers, Philadelphia Eagles and the Washington Redskins.
Will Ferrell
The American actor was on the soccer team in high school. Seems like his soccer days goes way before Kicking and Screaming. The Saturday Night Live star has invested in his home ground team Los Angeles FC. He became the co-owner of the MLS franchise in 2016.
Nina Dobrev
In high school, Nina partook in many sports including soccer, baseball, volleyball and basketball and football. She is also a talented gymnast. She competed for Team Canada in aesthetic gymnastics. She says one of her team mates became an Olympian, but her body could not handle the elite-level training. Thus, she entered the world of acting. Her love for sports comes from wanting to compete with her older brother. She says that everyone in her family is competitive and loves playing sports.
Matthew McConaughey
The Interstellar actor was once ranked one of Hollywood’s top 100 golfers. He is an avid golf-lover and regularly appears at golf events. He even used his first major Hollywood paycheck to buy some Titleist Balata 100s.
Keanu Reeves
Keanu played hockey at De La Salle College as a goalie. He was later recruited for the Ontario Hockey League in Canada but soon went down the path that led him to Hollywood fame.
Steve Carell
Believe or not, but the Office actor was an ince hockey goalie in high school. He casually played Division II at Denison University in Ohio…he even considered a career in the NHL. So those sweet moves during that Michael’s Birthday episode were not fake!
Geena Davis
Geena took up archery at the age of 41 and it became her life for a few years. After six months of training she became the surprise winner of several local and national tournaments. She once ranked 13th overall best archers in the US, and placed 24th in the Olympic Trials in 1999. While she didn’t go to the Olympics, it is still an amazing feat!
Gigi Hadid
Gigi was the captain of her high school volleyball team, and even considered playing the sport in college. She ultimately gave up going pro to pursue a modeling career at a college in New York.
