There is a version of O.J. Simpson’s life that never occurred, one in which he was completely excluded from major college football due to his poor grades, drifted aimlessly, and no one ever heard the name “The Juice.” He was not drawn back by a wealthy patron or a dramatic intervention. The football team at the San Francisco junior college was in need of a running back.
Simpson was raised in the low-income Potrero Hill housing projects in San Francisco, where survival frequently took precedence over education. He had been arrested three times by the time he was a young adolescent and was involved with the Persian Warriors, a street gang. A fortuitous meeting with baseball legend Willie Mays is said to have changed him. Although it’s difficult to pinpoint the precise significance of that moment, Simpson acknowledged that it helped steer him in a different direction. In 1965, he graduated from Galileo High School as a truly explosive football player rather than with any notable academic achievements.
His high school grades were insufficient to draw in serious college recruiters, which was the issue. He was not receiving major programs. Simpson therefore enrolled at City College of San Francisco, formerly known as the Community College of San Francisco, in 1965, not so much as a backup plan as it was his only practical choice. It’s the kind of action that could discreetly save or end a career before it even begins.
Something clicked at City College. He was selected to the Junior College All-American team and played both defensive and running back. The Prune Bowl was won by the football team. Suddenly, he received calls from colleges that had previously disregarded him. When people concentrate on the later drama of his life, they miss a lesson hidden in that sequence: if a two-year detour through a junior college is taken seriously, it can open doors that appeared to be permanently closed.
Simpson moved to the University of Southern California in 1967. As a child, he had admired the program, and USC was pleased to have him. One of the most successful two-year runs in college football history ensued. With 1,543 yards and 13 touchdowns in his junior year and 1,880 yards in his senior year, he led the country in rushing both seasons. In 1967, USC took home a national championship. In retrospect, Simpson’s decision to finish second in the Heisman that year still seems dubious. There was no discussion in 1968. He won the Heisman Trophy by a margin of 1,750 points, which at the time was the biggest in the award’s history.
Unlike most NFL legends, O.J. Simpson’s education was not a straight-line, recruited out of high school narrative. It was cut off, rerouted, and somewhat self-made. In actuality, he is the first of three Heisman Trophy winners to have attended junior college; this fact is often overlooked in favor of everything else that happened after his playing career. The years spent in junior college were not insignificant. They could be considered the cornerstone.
It’s worth taking a moment to consider that. Due in large part to a community college giving him two years to prove himself, an eighteen-year-old with subpar grades and a troubled past went on to have one of the most renowned college football careers ever documented. It was an unusual route. The outcome wasn’t.
The education story stands out despite the harsh criticism that history has leveled at Simpson the man. It belongs to a younger version of him, one who is still learning the ropes and making progress one yard at a time.
