John Regeczi John M . Regeczi ( July 19 , 1912 – July 16 , 2003 ) was an American football player . He played at the fullback , halfback positions for the University of Michigan teams from 1932 to 1934 , including the undefeated national championship teams of 1932 and 1933 . Early years . Regeczi was born in Ironwood in Michigan ' s Upper Peninsula and grew up in Muskegon in the western Lower Peninsula of Michigan . He was the captain of the football and basketball teams at Muskegon Heights High School . He also set school records in the 100 - yard dash , the 220 - yard dash and the javelin throw . In high school , he was a running back and punter and was selected by the Detroit News as a first - team All - State football player for the State of Michigan in both 1929 and 1930 . Michigan . Regeczi enrolled at the University of Michigan where he won letters in football , basketball and baseball . Regeczi played in Harry Kipke ' s offense that won back - to - back national championships in 1932 and 1933 . Regeczi had one of his best games in a 40 – 0 win over Cornell in 1933 , a game in which Regeczi rushed for 101 yards . Regeczi gained the majority of his yards against Cornell on an 85 - yard touchdown run from punt formation in the first quarter . Regeczi also played an important role in the 1933 Michigan - Ohio State game . The game was played at Michigan Stadium in front of 93 , 508 fans — the largest crowd to see a Big Ten football game to that date . Regeczi kept Ohio State at bay with his punting and also playing at the fullback position . While he was regarded as a good running back , Regeczi won his greatest acclaim as a punter . In October 1933 , George Kirksey , writing for the United Press , said : " Regeczi , the Hungarian halfback , is probably the greatest punter for distance and accuracy in the country . . . " Regeczi suffered a knee injury at the start of the 1934 season and had difficulty regaining his speed after the injury . He was kept in the lineup in 1934 mostly due to his punting ability . The Associated Press reported in November 1934 that after three years in the starting lineup , Regeczi " found himself in the position of battling for a starting position . " Due in part to injuries to Regeczi and quarterback Bill Renner , Kipke ' s offense in 1934 was sometimes referred to as " Punt , Pass and Prayer . " A September 1934 newspaper story described Regeczi ' s role in the system : " A punt , a pass and a prayer . By Harry Kipke ' s own words , that ' s all they have over there . But when it ' s a Regeczi punting , a Renner passing , and a typical Michigan squad of good ends , good tackles , good guards , and a great center ' preying ' , how are you going to stop them ? " Regeczi was teammates with Gerald Ford , who later served as the U . S . President , on the Michigan teams from 1932 to 1934 . In 1994 interview , Ford praised Regeczi ' s punting in discussing the " Punt , Pass and Prayer " offense : " In ' 32 and ' 33 , we were undefeated , and then in ' 34 we had a tough , tough year . In those years , our offense was called a punt , a pass , and a prayer . We had an outstanding passer , Bill Renner , who broke an ankle before the season started . Our punter , John Regeczi , was the greatest college punter I ever saw and he ruined his knee . All we had left was the prayer . " Ford was selected as the Most Valuable Player on the 1934 team . Despite the injury and limited playing time in 1934 , Regeczi was selected to play on the College All ‑ Star team after his senior year . Regeczi and Gerald Ford were the only two Wolverines selected to play on the 1935 College All - Star team . Although the Chicago Bears beat the College All - Stars 5 to 0 , Regeczi ' s punting was singled out for praise in the press coverage of the game : " And the punt . The game showed this weapon the important thing in football . You noticed the Bears never came close to while Regeczi was kicking . " Later years . After graduating from Michigan , Regeczi turned down an offer to play professional baseball in the Detroit Tigers organization . In August 1935 , he was hired to coach football at L ' Anse High School in L ' Anse , Michigan . He later taught and coached at Burton Junior High School in Grand Rapids , Michigan . He coached junior high school athletics for 36 years and retired in 1973 . Regeczi was inducted into the Muskegon Area Sports Hall of Fame in 1991 . Regeczi died in 2003 in Aurora , Colorado at age 90 .