Forest King Ferguson, Jr. (June 21, 1919 – May 15, 1954), nicknamed Fergie Ferguson, was an American college athlete who attended the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

and was a member of the university's

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

, boxing, and track and field teams, and later served as a decorated officer in the U.S. Army. He is remembered as one of the most remarkable athletes that the University of Florida ever produced.

Early years

Ferguson was born in

South Jacksonville, Florida South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...

, in 1919. His father, Forest K. Ferguson, Sr., was a Massachusetts native who was employed in 1920 as a boilermaker for a railroad company. His mother Frances Loretta (sometimes referred to as "Fannie") Ferguson was a New York native. Ferguson was the middle child, having an older sister, Aurora, and a younger brother, Wilbur. By 1930 and continuing through at least 1935, the family lived at Jensen in

Martin County, Florida Martin County ( es, Condado de Martín, link=) is a county located in the Treasure Coast region of the state of Florida, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 158,431. Its county seat is Stuart. Martin County is in t ...

, where Ferguson's father was employed as a fisherman.1930 Census entry for Forest Ferguson and family. Forest, Jr., age 10. Census Place: Jensen, Martin, Florida; Roll: 325; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 0001; Image: 656.0; FHL microfilm: 2340060. Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census atabase on-line1935 Florida Census entry for F.K. and Fannie Ferguson and family. Forest, Jr., age 15. Ancestry.com. Florida, State Census, 1867-1945 atabase on-line In 1937, the family moved to nearby

Stuart, Florida Stuart is a city in and the seat of Martin County, Florida, United States. Located on Florida's Treasure Coast, Stuart is the largest of four incorporated municipalities in Martin County. The population is 17,425 according to the 2020 United State ...

, where Ferguson became a multi-sport star athlete for

Martin County High School Martin County High School is a public high school in Stuart, Florida, USA, in the Martin County School Districtbr>The school enrolled 2,079 students in a 2012 census. In 2022, it was a "B" rated school through the Florida Department of Education ...

. He was later remembered for leading Martin County's high school football team to its first-ever victory over nemesis Fort Pierce High School, a game in which he caught two passes for touchdowns and two more for extra points.Bob Enns
Sports Whirlz
" ''The News-Tribune'', p. 5 (November 30, 1954). Retrieved September 28, 2014.

University of Florida

Ferguson entered the University of Florida as a freshman in the fall of 1938, and, after he became eligible as a sophomore, he quickly claimed his position as a three-year starter at

end End, END, Ending, or variation, may refer to: End *In mathematics: **End (category theory) **End (topology) **End (graph theory) ** End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous) **End (endomorphism) *In sports and games **End (gridiron football) ...

for coach

Josh Cody Joshua Crittenden Cody (June 11, 1892 – June 17, 1961) was an American college athlete, head coach, and athletics director. Cody was a native of Tennessee and an alumnus of Vanderbilt University, where he played several sports. As a versatil ...

and coach

Tom Lieb Thomas John Lieb (October 28, 1899 – April 30, 1962) was an American Olympic track and field athlete, an All-American college football player and a multi-sport collegiate coach. Lieb was a Minnesota native and an alumnus of the University ...

Florida Gators football The Florida Gators football program represents the University of Florida (UF) in American college football. Florida competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division of ...

teams from

1939 This year also marks the start of the Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Third Reich *** Jews are forbidden to ...

1941 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January–August – 10,072 men, women and children with mental and physical disabilities are asphyxiated with carbon monoxide in a gas chamber, at Hadamar Eu ...

.
Florida Football 2014 Media Guide
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 79, 94, 150, 178 (2014). Ferguson provided many of the highlights for the Gators during those years, "playing both ways," as was typical in the era of single platoon football.Norm Carlson, ''University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators'', Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia, pp. 48–49, 50 (2007). Retrieved September 28, 2014. As good or better on defense than he was on offense, his team records for career receptions (43) and career receiving yardage (668) remained unbroken until the 1960s, when Gators quarterbacks

Steve Spurrier Stephen Orr Spurrier (born April 20, 1945) is an American former American football, football quarterback and coach who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 10 seasons before coaching for 38 years, primarily in college. He is often ...

and

John Reaves Thomas Johnson "John" Reaves (March 2, 1950 – August 1, 2017) was an American college and professional football player who was a quarterback for 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) and three seasons in the United States Football L ...

were throwing passes to star receivers Charles Casey,

Richard Trapp Richard Earl Trapp (born September 21, 1946) is an American former college and professional football player who was a wide receiver in the American Football League (AFL) for two seasons during the late 1960s. Trapp played college football for ...

and Carlos Alvarez in pro passing schemes. He had a dramatic impact on the Gators' prospects almost immediately as a sophomore starter in 1939, and played a key role in the Gators' 7–0 upset of coach

Frank Leahy Francis William Leahy (August 27, 1908 – June 21, 1973) was an American football player, coach, college athletics administrator, and professional sports executive. He served as the head football coach at Boston College from 1939 to 1940 and at ...

Boston College Eagles The Boston College Eagles are the athletic teams that represent Boston College, located in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivisio ...

in Boston. The Gators stopped the Eagles inside the Gators' 15-yard line five times, while Ferguson recorded six tackles for a loss, including a dramatic tackle of Eagles quarterback

Charlie O'Rourke Charles Christopher "Chuckin' Charlie" O'Rourke (May 10, 1917 – April 14, 2000) was an American football player and coach. He played college football as a quarterback at Boston College and professionally with Chicago Bears of the National Foo ...

on a fourth-down play from the Gators' 4-yard line, dropping O'Rourke nine yards behind the line of scrimmage. Memorably, he scored both touchdowns on receptions for 45 and 74 yards in a 14–0 upset of the

Miami Hurricanes The Miami Hurricanes (known informally as The U, UM, or The 'Canes) are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida. The Hurricanes compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic A ...

in 1941, while totaling 123 yards; ''The Miami Herald'' reported the game score as "Forrest Ferguson 14; University of Miami 0."Associated Press,
Funeral Rites Held For Forrest Ferguson, Gator Grid All-America
" ''St. Petersburg Times'', p. 14 (May 20, 1954). Retrieved September 25, 2014. Less often remembered was the key role he played against Miami on defense: his tackles of Miami ball carriers behind the line of scrimmage totaled 62 yards of losses. The 74-yard touchdown catch remained the longest reception in team history until 1954. Seven days later, he figured prominently in the Gators' 14–7 victory over the

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets is the name used for all of the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), located in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia. The teams have also been nicknamed the Rambl ...

.Associated Press,
Florida Defeats Georgia Tech, 14–7
" ''The New York Times'' (November 23, 1941). Retrieved October 3, 2014. First, he stripped the ball from a Yellow Jackets ball carrier on the Georgia Tech 28-yard line, and then two plays later, he caught a pass from Gators halfback Tommy Harrison, and when cornered by defenders he lateraled the ball to tackle Milton Hull for the touchdown. Forrest Ferguson

During his 1941 senior season, Ferguson caught a total of 26 passes in 10 games. He also led the 1941 Florida football team with 36 points scored and 420 minutes played; the 1942 ''Seminole'' yearbook referred to him as a "defensive bulwark," "colorful," and "unpredictable." After the season, he received first-team All-

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

(SEC) honors, and was an honorable mention All-American selection by

Grantland Rice Henry Grantland "Granny" Rice (November 1, 1880July 13, 1954) was an early 20th-century American sportswriter known for his elegant prose. His writing was published in newspapers around the country and broadcast on the radio. Early years Rice wa ...

in ''Collier's'' magazine. Following his final college football season, Ferguson became the State of Florida collegiate heavyweight boxing champion, and won the

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It has ...

(AAU) national championship in the

javelin throw The javelin throw is a track and field event where the javelin, a spear about in length, is thrown. The javelin thrower gains momentum by running within a predetermined area. Javelin throwing is an event of both the men's decathlon and the ...

with a distance of 203 feet, 6 and 1/2 inches, in 1942. During the spring of 1942, he also played at first base for the

Florida Gators baseball The Florida Gators baseball team represents the University of Florida in the sport of baseball. Florida competes in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA), and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference (S ...

team. Ferguson graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in education in 1942.

Military service

Several months after the United States entered

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Ferguson joined the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

in 1942, and was commissioned as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

after attending officers' candidate school. On June 6, 1944, he led a platoon in the anti-tank company, 116th Infantry Regiment of the 29th Infantry Division in the Allies'

D-Day landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D ...

Omaha Beach Omaha Beach was one of five beach landing sectors designated for the amphibious assault component of operation Overlord during the Second World War. On June 6, 1944, the Allies invaded German-occupied France with the Normandy landings. "Omaha" r ...

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

-occupied

Normandy, France Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

. After landing in the second wave of the amphibious assault, Ferguson and his platoon, as well as the survivors from the first wave, were pinned down on the beach by heavy rifle, machine gun and artillery fire from the German defenders, and their advance was blocked by extensive barbed wire and other enemy obstacles. Ferguson rose under fire, cleared a passage through the enemy obstacles with a

Bangalore torpedo A Bangalore torpedo is an explosive charge placed within one or several connected tubes. It is used by combat engineers to clear obstacles that would otherwise require them to approach directly, possibly under fire. It is sometimes colloquially ...

, and was gravely wounded while leading his men in a direct frontal assault against the enemy. Ferguson was awarded the U.S. Army's

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) *Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) *Distinguished Service Cross (U ...

, the nation's second highest medal for gallantry, for "extraordinary heroism" in combat on June 6, 1944.

Death and legacy

Ferguson never fully recovered from his head wound, and died from complications arising from his war-time injuries on May 15, 1954, at the Veterans Administration Hospital in

Coral Gables, Florida Coral Gables, officially City of Coral Gables, is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The city is located southwest of Downtown Miami. As of the 2020 U.S. census, it had a population of 49,248. Coral Gables is known globally as home to the ...

; he was 34 years old. Following a community memorial service at the First Baptist Church in Stuart, he was buried with military honors in All Saints Cemetery in

Jensen Beach, Florida Jensen Beach is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Martin County, Florida, United States. The population was 12,652 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Port St. Lucie, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Histor ...

. After his death, several of his former Gators teammates established what is commonly known as the "

Fergie Ferguson Award The Forest K. Ferguson Award, commonly known as the "Fergie Ferguson Award," is presented annually to a senior member of the Florida Gators football team in memory of one of the University of Florida's greatest athletes. Namesake The award tak ...

" in his memory; since 1955, it has been presented annually to the senior player for the Florida Gators football team "who displays outstanding leadership, character and courage." He was later inducted into the

University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame The University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame includes over 300 former Florida Gators athletes who represented the University of Florida in one or more intercollegiate sports and were recognized as "Gator Greats" for their athletic excellence ...

as a "Gator Great," and was unanimously elected to the

Florida Sports Hall of Fame The Florida Sports Hall of Fame (FSHOF) is an association dedicated to honoring athletes with outstanding achievement in sports in Florida. It has expanded its goals to include encouraging physical fitness among Florida's citizens through the examp ...

by the 65 participating Florida sportswriters in 1957.Forrest Ferguson Named To Hall
" ''Ocala Star-Banner'', p. 11 (February 27, 1957). Retrieved September 28, 2014.

References

Bibliography

* Carlson, Norm, ''University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators'', Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). . * Golenbock, Peter, ''Go Gators! An Oral History of Florida's Pursuit of Gridiron Glory'', Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida (2002). . * Hairston, Jack, ''Tales from the Gator Swamp: A Collection of the Greatest Gator Stories Ever Told'', Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois (2002). . * McCarthy, Kevin M.,
Fightin' Gators: A History of University of Florida Football
', Arcadia Publishing, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (2000). . * McEwen, Tom, ''The Gators: A Story of Florida Football'', The Strode Publishers, Huntsville, Alabama (1974). . * Nash, Noel, ed., ''The Gainesville Sun Presents The Greatest Moments in Florida Gators Football'', Sports Publishing, Inc., Champaign, Illinois (1998). . {{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, Forest K. 1919 births 1954 deaths American football ends United States Army personnel killed in World War II Florida Gators baseball players Florida Gators boxers Florida Gators football players Florida Gators men's track and field athletes People from Stuart, Florida Sportspeople from Martin County, Florida Players of American football from Florida Track and field athletes from Florida Boxers from Florida Baseball players from Florida Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) United States Army officers American male boxers People from Jensen Beach, Florida Martin County High School alumni