Wisconsin Football Countdown: No. 64, Ken Currier
By Jim Oxley
As the countdown to the first Wisconsin football game of the season continues, Badger of Honor is taking a look at Badgers by the numbers, checking in on a different Badger or Badgers players who wore the number corresponding with the remaining days until the Badgers head to Texas to take on the Alabama Crimson Tide Saturday, Sept. 5.
Next up in our countdown, signifying 64 days until college football is back, is offensive lineman Ken Currier.
Wisconsin Badgers
Currier, a Rice Lake, Wisconsin native, had an interesting time at UW.
In 1942, he was a starting guard on an 8-1-1 team. Instead of returning to the Badgers in 1943, he headed off to serve his country as a flight instructor in World War II.
He was one of several Badgers whose playing careers were interrupted by the war, including Dave Schreiner, Elroy “Crazylegs” Hirsch, and many more. (For a great read on the subject, check out Terry Frei’s “Third Down and a War to Go”).
After returning to Wisconsin, he was selected in the 1945 NFL Draft — in the 19th round — by Detroit, but he chose to return to UW and played in 1946 and 1947.
Later in his career (1948) he was offered a contract from the Green Bay Packers, but turned the offer down to peruse more stable employment.
Who wore No. first?
• The first Badger to wear No. 64 was end John Kowalsky in 1927.
Who wears No. now?
• Redshirt freshman offensive lineman Brett Connors currently wears No. 64 for the Badgers.
Stay tuned to Badger of Honor as we continue our daily countdown in preparation of the season opener against Alabama.
Next: Wisconsin Football Experience