Holt Rast (October 10, 1917 – November 22, 1998) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

player and entrepreneur who founded Rast Construction. Rast served in the

United States 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 ...

from 1942 to 1946 and was later elected to serve in the

Alabama House of Representatives The Alabama State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of state of Alabama. The House is composed of 105 members representing an equal number of districts, with each constituency contai ...

from 1958 to 1966. He was appointed by Governor

George Wallace George Corley Wallace Jr. (August 25, 1919 – September 13, 1998) was an American politician who served as the 45th governor of Alabama for four terms. A member of the Democratic Party, he is best remembered for his staunch segregationist and ...

to assist with the development of the

Alabama Sports Hall of Fame The Alabama Sports Hall of Fame (ASHOF) is a state museum located in Birmingham, Alabama, dedicated to communicating the state’s athletic history. The museum displays over 5,000 objects related to athletes who were born in Alabama or earned fame ...

in 1967 and founded Rast Construction in 1975.

College football

Rast played

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 footbal ...

for coach Frank Thomas at the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...

from 1939 to 1941. He was a unanimous All-American pick in 1941. Rast, along with teammates

Don Whitmire Donald Boone Whitmire (July 1, 1922 – May 3, 1991) was an American football tackle who played college football from 1941 to 1944 at the University of Alabama and the United States Naval Academy (USNA). He is one of only four college football ...

and Jimmy Nelson, was selected MVP of the 1942 Cotton Bowl Classic. Rast scored on a 10-yard interception return during that 29–21 win over

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

. Rast was drafted by the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

1942 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 – WWII: The Declaration by United Nations is signed by China, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Soviet Union, and 22 other nations, in wh ...

in the 18th round with the 170th pick. Rast did not play for the Bears, however, he entered the U.S. Army after his graduation in 1942. He was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in the Class of 1977 for football. In 1994, he was selected by the Southeastern Conference as an SEC Football Legend.

World War II

After graduating from the University of Alabama in 1942, Rast 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, cl ...

. He was a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in the 9th Division Combat Engineers, and was twice wounded. He was awarded the

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

with

oak leaf cluster An oak leaf cluster is a ribbon device to denote preceding decorations and awards consisting of a miniature bronze or silver twig of four oak leaves with three acorns on the stem. It is authorized by the United States Armed Forces for a speci ...

, the

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

and

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

. Rast was honorably discharged in 1946 at the rank of

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

Business and political career

After World War II Rast served as President of Rast, Gregory and Dean Construction Engineers from 1946 to 1976. In 1976 the company was renamed Rast Construction where he served as Chairman until his retirement. Rast was elected to membership in the

from Jefferson County in 1957 and was reelected to that post in 1962 and served until 1966. He was selected by his peers as the chairman of the Jefferson County delegation.Tuscaloosa News, Sept 16 1963
/ref> Among the many civic responsibilities he agreed to accept over the years are membership on the Jefferson County Planning and Zoning Board, and President and Promoter of the Dixie Bowl.

References

External links

Alabama Sports Hall of Fame profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rast, Holt 1917 births 1998 deaths Players of American football from Birmingham, Alabama Sportspeople from Portsmouth, Virginia American football ends Alabama Crimson Tide football players All-American college football players United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army officers Recipients of the Silver Star 20th-century American politicians Members of the Alabama House of Representatives