15 Athletes Who Earned a Doctoral Degree

By Michael Terrill

15 Athletes Who Earned a Doctoral Degree

Doctoral Degree — Some athletes are content with being the best at their sport or doing just enough to earn a paycheck. Others decide to reach for the stars. Despite excelling in their sport, these 15 athletes decided to go the extra mile and earn a doctoral degree.

15. Wladimir Klitschko

Wladimir Klitschko

15. Wladimir Klitschko

Wladimir Klitschko — Ukraine boxer Wladimir Klitschko is an Olympic gold medalist who enjoys playing chess in his free time. The former boxer also has a Ph.D in Sports Science and can speak five languages. He was awarded his Ph.D from Kiev University in 2001.

14. Vitali Klitschko

Vitali Klitschko

14. Vitali Klitschko

Vitali Klitschko — Vitali Klitschko is also a world heavyweight champion just like his brother Wladimir Klitschko. Also just like his brother, Vitali has a Ph.D in Sports Science and is multilingual.

13. Ken Dryden

Ken Dryden

13. Ken Dryden

Ken Dryden — After the legendary goaltender retired from hockey, he went on to earn a history degree from Cornell and a law degree from McGill University. He then pursued careers in politics, writing, teaching and sports commentating.

12. Alan Page

Alan Page

12. Alan Page

Alan Page — Pro Football Hall of Famer Alan Page earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1978. He has since become the first African-American to serve as an Associate Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court.

11. Pat Haden

Pat Haden

11. Pat Haden

Pat Haden — Along with his impressive line of degrees, which includes a B.A. magna cum laude degree from USC and an economics degree from the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, Pat Haden also has a Juris Doctor from Loyola Law School. While at USC, the quarterback led the Trojans to two national championships.

10. Turlough O'Hare

Turlough O'Hare

10. Turlough O'Hare

Turlough O'Hare — Canadian Olympic swimmer Turlough O'Hare never finished better than eighth in the summer games. However, he did win two gold medals in the 400 and 800-metre freestyle at the 1993 Summer Universiade. O'Hare went on to earn a MD and use the degree for anesthesia research at McMaster University.

9. Ron Mix

Ron Mix

9. Ron Mix

Ron Mix — AFL Champion and San Diego Chargers Hall of Famer Ron Mix earned a Juris Doctor in Law from the University of San Diego. Since he had the degree during his playing days, he was nicknamed “The Intellectual Assassin” for his physical style of play and superior intelligence.

8. Bill Lenkaitis

Bill Lenkaitis

8. Bill Lenkaitis

Bill Lenkaitis — Former New England Patriots offensive lineman Bill Lenkaitis earned his pre-dental degree from the University of Pennsylvania. During the offseason, he continued his dental studies at the University of Tennessee College of Dentistry, where he eventually earned a D.D.S. Lenkaitis opened up his own dental practice near Schaefer Stadium, which is now known as Foxboro Stadium.

7. Frank Ryan

Frank Ryan

7. Frank Ryan

Frank Ryan — Three-time Pro Bowl selection Frank Ryan had a decent amount of success while playing professional football for the L.A. Rams, Cleveland Browns and Washington Redskins from 1958-1970. However, his true calling was in education. While still playing, he earned a Ph.D in mathematics, which he used to get an assistant professor job at Cleveland’s Case Institute during the offseason.

6. Pat McGeer

Pat McGeer

6. Pat McGeer

Pat McGeer — Canadian Olympic basketball player Pat McGeer is a member of the UBC Sports Hall of Fame. He graduated with honors in chemistry from the University of British Columbia in 1948. If that wasn’t enough, he also graduated from Princeton with a Ph.D in physical chemistry. He has helped publish more than 800 papers and three books on Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, ALS and Multiple sclerosis research.

5. Byron White

Byron White

5. Byron White

Byron White — All-American halfback Byron White was a Rhodes Scholar, a magna cum laude graduate of Yale Law School and served time as an intelligence officer in the Navy. What’s even more impressive is that he spent 31 years on the Supreme Court Justice after being appointed by President John F. Kennedy.

4. Charley Johnson

Charley Johnson

4. Charley Johnson

Charley Johnson — Charley Johnson is the only player in history to win the Sun Bowl MVP two years in a row (1959-60). In 15 seasons in professional football, he passed for 170 touchdowns and 24,410 yards. He’s also a member of the Denver Broncos Ring of Fame. Johnson earned a master’s degree and doctorate in chemical engineering from Washington University while playing for the St. Louis Cardinals.

3. Blaine Nye

Blaine Nye

3. Blaine Nye

Blaine Nye — Former Dallas Cowboys offensive lineman Blaine Nye earned two Pro Bowl selections during his playing days. He also earned a master’s degree in physics from the University of Washington and a master’s degree in business administration from Stanford University in the offseason. He didn’t stop there, though. Nye would later earn a Ph.D. in finance at Stanford Business School. He is the founder of the Stanford Consulting Group Inc.

2. Steve Young

Steve Young

2. Steve Young

Steve Young — Super Bowl champion and NFL MVP Steve Young was one of the more electric quarterbacks during his time. However, before he became the legendary signal caller, he was a simple backup to Joe Montana. It was during that time that he decided to get a law degree. After a lot of hard work, Young graduated with a Juris Doctor from BYU’s J. Reuben Clark Law School.

1. Shaquille O’Neal

Shaquille O’Neal

1. Shaquille O’Neal

Shaquille O’Neal — One of the greatest NBA players of all time, Shaquille O’Neal decided that he was much more than a basketball player. For that reason, he decided to earn a doctorate degree in education (Ed.D.) from Barry University. His thesis was on the value of humor in leadership, and he plans to use his degree in becoming a motivational speaker. Shaq has also stated he wants to go to law school.

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