Ted R. Provost (born July 26, 1948, in

Navarre, Ohio Navarre (named after the Navarre region in Spain) is a village in Stark County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,957 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Canton-Massillon, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area. Navarre was the home of Orla ...

) is a former star high school, university and professional football player. As a high school athlete at Fairless High School he

lettered Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

three seasons as a

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

and defensive back. He was also outstanding in

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

and track. He was inducted into the Stark County High School Football Hall of Fame in 2004. Provost attended the

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...

and was a Buckeye from 1967 to 1969. He was key member of the 1968 national championship team as a

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are two slightly dif ...

. He was nicknamed "Tree" by legendary coach

Woody Hayes Wayne Woodrow Hayes (February 14, 1913 – March 12, 1987) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Denison University (1946–1948), Miami University in Oxford, Ohio (1949–1950), and Ohio State University (1951 ...

after he collected so many of the "leaf" awards that were put on players helmets. The name did not come from his 6-foot 3 inch and 185 pound size. He was twice an All

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

all star (1968 and 1969) and was an

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n in 1969. His career interception total at Ohio State still ranks third all time He was inducted into the

Ohio State Varsity O Hall of Fame The Ohio State Varsity "O" Hall of Fame is the athletic hall of fame for The Ohio State University. Its purpose is to recognize individuals who have contributed to the honor and fame of the university in the field of athletics. An athlete must h ...

in 2006. He was drafted by 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 ...

's Los Angeles Rams in the 7th round (162nd overall) of the

1970 NFL Draft The 1970 National Football League Draft was the 35th National Football League Draft and the first of the league's modern era, following the merger of the National Football League with the American Football League. It was held on January 27–28, ...

but was later traded to the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansi ...

. He played 7 games with Minnesota in 1970 and 2 games with the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

in 1971. Provost continued as a professional with the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

, playing five seasons from 1972 to 1977. He was twice named an All- West Division all-star. Ted Provost was successful after his football career, owner of Ted Provost Builders, a construction company in

Hilliard, Ohio Hilliard is a city in Franklin County, Ohio, United States. The population was 37,114 at the 2020 census. It is a suburb of Columbus and part of Norwich Township. Hilliard is home to the Early Television Museum (the only one of its kind in Uni ...

.Directory
He and his wife 2nd wife Ruth have three children, Michael, Douglas, and Molly. On September 24, 2010, Mr. Provost was inducted into the Fairless High School Hall of Honor.

Notes

1948 births Living people American football defensive backs American players of Canadian football Canadian football defensive backs Ohio State Buckeyes football players People from Navarre, Ohio Players of American football from Ohio Saskatchewan Roughriders players People from Hilliard, Ohio {{Defensiveback-1950s-stub