Jack Weisenburger John Edward " Jack " Weisenburger ( born August 2 , 1926 ) is a former American football and baseball player . He played college football for the University of Michigan from 1944 to 1947 and was the starting fullback for the undefeated 1947 Michigan Wolverines football team that became known as the " Mad Magicians " and has been rated as the greatest football team in Michigan history . He later played professional baseball for five years from 1948 to 1952 . Early years . Weisenburger was born in Muskegon County , Michigan in August 1926 . His father , Merle Weisenburger , was an Ohio native who worked as a laborer in a pattern shop . His mother , Ada Weisenburger , was a Michigan native . At the time of the 1930 United States Census , Weisenburger lived in Norton Shores , Michigan with his parents and two brothers , Robert ( born c . 1923 ) and Kenneth ( born c . 1929 ) . He attended Muskegon Heights High School where he played varsity football ( three years ) , basketball ( two years ) , baseball ( four years ) , and track ( one year ) . He was an all - conference basketball player and was selected as the class president in his sophomore , junior and senior years . The 1944 Muskegon Heights High School yearbook said of him , " Ferocious in football , and a good fellow always . " University of Michigan . Weisenburger played college football as a halfback , fullback and quarterback at the University of Michigan from 1944 to 1947 . He started five games at fullback for the 1944 Michigan Wolverines football team , and played five games at fullback and one at halfback for the 1945 team . In 1946 , he started the season as a fullback , but suffered a broken jaw in an early game against Army . Weisenburger ended up starting three games at quarterback and one each at fullback and halfback for the 1946 team . As a senior , Weisenbuger was the starting fullback for the 1947 Michigan Wolverines football team that finished the season with a 10 – 0 record and outscored opponents 394 to 53 . The 1947 team became known as the " Mad Magicians " and is considered by some to be the greatest Michigan team of all time . One sports writer referred to the 1947 backfield ( Weisenbuger , Bob Chappuis and Bump Elliott ) as " a backfield full of pervasive shadows that flit about like wraiths . " The 1947 Michigan team is also notable for head coach Fritz Crisler ' s innovation of modern platoon football ; Weisenburger was one of two Michigan players in 1947 ( the other was Bump Elliott ) who played both offense and defense . He finished his football career by scoring three touchdowns in the 1948 Rose Bowl against the USC Trojans . He scored the game ' s first touchdown ten minutes into the game and added two more later in the game . He later recalled , " What astonished me was the ease with which our line opened holes for us . It was one of those days when everything clicked . " Michigan won the game 49 to 0 . Weisenburger also played as an infielder for the Michigan Wolverines baseball team from 1945 to 1948 . Weisenburger ' s contributions to the baseball team were described as follows : " One of Michigan ' s outstanding all - around athletes , Jack Weisenburger , the spinning fullback of the Rose Bowl eleven , was equally at home on the Wolverine diamond . In his four year baseball career at Michigan , Weisenburger alternated between shortstop and the outfield . He led the Maize and Blue batting parade last season and will captain the squad during the 1948 campaign . " Weisenberger was a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity at Michigan . He graduated from Michigan in 1948 with a degree in physical education . Professional baseball . Weisenburger was drafted by the Washington Redskins of the National Football League and the New York Yankees of the All - America Football Conference , but he opted instead to play professional baseball . He played professional baseball from 1948 to 1952 for the Pawtucket Slaters ( 1948 ) , Milwaukee Brewers ( 1949 – 1951 ) , Denver Bears ( 1949 ) , Evansville Braves ( 1951 ) and Tulsa Oilers ( 1952 ) . During his career , he played mostly as a third baseman , but also as an outfielder , second baseman and shortstop . He had his best season in 1950 , when he played in 121 games for the Brewers and compiled a . 404 slugging average with 20 doubles , 13 home runs , and 43 RBIs . Later years . After retiring from baseball , Weisenburger had a successful career in the insurance business at Mt . Pleasant , Michigan . From 1948 to 1960 , Weisenburger was also a registered official for high school athletics . During that time , he officiated at almost 150 high school football games and almost 600 basketball games . Weisenburger was inducted into the Muskegon Area Sports Hall of Fame in 1991 .