No Huddle

Presidential Endorsements: Athlete Style

Photo Credit: AFP Photo, Nicholas Kamm

Election Day is upon us! 

Now, we all know about famous celebrities who endorse certain political candidates. From Oprah to Clint Eastwood, the political spectrum can swing from the far left to the far right. 

Last night, even ESPN's Chris Berman got into the act and interviewed both President Obama and Republican Nominee Mitt Romney during Monday Night Football. 

Athletes, however, don't want to be left out of the mix! So, that made me curious, are there any athlete endorsements? And if so, who is red and who is blue?

Well, this debating between which athletes supported which candidate started way back in October when the two were just starting their first debates. 

Mr. Romney had reportedly accepted the endorsement, with great delight, of golfing legend Jack Nicklaus, who he deemed "the greatest athlete of the 20th century."

President Obama had issue that statement, as Muhammed Ali had been honored as "sportsman of the century", and who ironically also endorsed Obama. 

It seems the President has taken the lead in NBA players and coaches, present and past. This who support him include Magic Johnson, Vince Carter, Michael Jordan, Carmelo Anthony, and Doc Rivers.

Apparently Mr. Romney doesn't rate well amongst young gymnasts, such as the "fierce five" who won gold at the London Games. Unfortunately, most of those women are not old enough to vote yet. 

However, he has made a splash in the skating world, as world class skaters Dorothy Hamill, Kristi Yamaguchi, Dan Jansen, and Scott Hamilton all say they will vote for the Republican candidate. And fortunately, they are all way over the age of 18. 

But an interesting parallel between the two candidates seem to be that even though both sides are getting money from their supporters, it seems Obama's supporters are making videos. 

Check out Vince Carter and Victor Cruz in their Barack Obama campaign ads:

Where are the pro-Romney videos at? C'mon Man!

Anywho, aside from these videos, which athletes are donating big sums of money to ensure their candidate gets the victory?

Let's see, New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez donated a whopping sum of, wait for it, $250 in support of Romney. Could he have not added another 0 at the end of that sum? C'mon Man! Boston Bruins legend Bobby Orr decided to one up A Rod by maxing out with $5,000 to Romney, as did famed Hollywood producer Jerry Bruckheimer, while Oakland A's owner Lewis Wolff gave $2,500. 

On the other hand, Obama's supporters don't play around as all these famous athletes and celebrities all donated the maximum amount of $5,000: Vernon Davis, Magic Johnson, Patrick Ewing, John Legend, Ellen DeGeneres, George Clooney, Will Smith, Barbra Streisand, and the list goes on and on. 

I guess we'll see later today whose supporters did just enough for the win! 

Do you vote red or blue?