Why Bo Jackson is the Best Athlete Ever

In 1999 ESPN compiled a list of who they believed were the 100 greatest athletes of the century.  Their top 10 included the likes of Michael Jordan, Babe Ruth, Wayne Gretzky, and Jack Nicklaus.  Their top 10 was a great look at the athletes who were the most popular or who achieved the most accomplishments but being a great athlete isn’t just about accomplishments.  While Babe Ruth can hit homeruns at will, I would never argue that he is a more gifted athlete than Willie Mays.  Jack Nicklaus might be the best golfer of all time, but is he really a better athlete than Jackie Robinson or Hank Aaron?  It can be argued that Michael Jordan dominated the sport of basketball unlike anybody in any other sport, but when he tried baseball he failed miserably.  So shouldn’t someone like Jim Brown who mastered several sports be considered a better athlete?  If they had taken into consideration just athletic ability alone, which is what the list suggests, then the list would look a lot different.  If the list ranked players on just their athletic ability then I think ESPN’s seventy-second choice should jump all the way up to number because the greatest athlete ever is Bo Jackson. 




I’m sure everyone remembers Bo Jackson for his “Bo Knows Bo” Nike ad campaign when he was playing baseball for the Kansas City Royals while also playing football for the Oakland Raiders.  Well Bo Jackson was playing multiple sports long before then.  Jackson was born in Bessemer, AL and attended

McAdory
High School

where he first showed off his athletic abilities.  In addition to baseball and football he also was on the track team in high school and claimed two state decathlon championships. As a senior, Bo ran for 1,173 yards on 108 carries, an average of 10.9 yards every rush, and scored 17 touchdowns.  Meanwhile he also hit 20 home runs in just 25 games on the baseball field.  Bo was so impressive on the baseball field that the New York Yankees wanted to draft him out of high school but Bo declined and instead went to college at

Auburn
University

.