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20 Actors You Didn't Know Were Sports Stars

Soccer and rugby player It makes sense that Jackman has always been athletic. He recently posted a #throwbackthursday of him with his soccer team (he's in the bottom row, second from the right), but growing up in Australia, the future Wolverine also played a lot of rugby. He told People back in 2015 that he used sports to let out his frustrations . In playing rugby my rage would come out, rage that I identify as Wolverine rage," he said. "I'd be somewhere in a ruck in rugby, get punched in the face and I'd just go into a white rage. Instagram/@thehughjackman - Instagram

Channing Tatum Channing Tatums story is legendary he was discovered while stripping, and much of Magic Mike was based on Tatums own life. Now hes a successful Hollywood actor known for his chiseled body and incredible dance moves. Thinkstock

College football player But it wasnt just stripping that got Tatum those abs. He was also a great football player, a stand-out in high school and was recruited to play for Wake Forest University. However, he admitted to the Chicago Tribune back in 2012 that because his grades were terrible, his scholarship offer was rescinded, and he transferred to Glenville State College on another football scholarship. He left after one year to pursue... other things. Instagram/@channingtatum - Instagram

Burt Reynolds Somehow, it doesn't surprise us that Reynolds held his own on the field. And if you've seen Reynold's most famous sports movie, you can probably already guess which sport. Archive Photos - Getty Images

College football player Reynolds was a star running back at Florida State and was later inducted into the Seminoles athletic hall of fame. Collegiate Images - Getty Images

Jamie Foxx Jamie Foxx is an actor, comedian, former Mens Health cover guy, and even dabbles in music. Hes got a lot of talents, to say the least. But when he was a kid, there was only one thing on his mind and it was no where close to a screen or a stage. Astrid Stawiarz - Getty Images

High school football and basketball player Foxx was actually quite the high school athlete. He played basketball and football, but, growing up in Texas, his focus was football. He had aspirations to play for the Dallas Cowboys, and was even the first person in his high school's history to pass for over 1,000 yards . Instagram/@iamjamiefoxx - Instagram

Carl Weathers Weathers, who played Apollo Creed in the Rocky series, went pro before calling it quits. But, no, it wasn't for boxing. Vincent Sandoval - Getty Images

Football player Weathers played linebacker for San Diego state and then for the Oakland Raiders under coach John Madden in 1970. He retired after only eight games, looking to focus on acting. Now heres a guy who made a great career choice. Mitchell Leff - Getty Images

Josh Duhamel Josh Duhamel is another one of those Hollywood actors who has aged like a bottle of fine wine . Part of his secret to looking and feeling good as he gets older, of course, includes working out regularly. Michael Hickey - Getty Images

College football quarterback Turns out, Duhamel has always taken fitness very seriously. He was a college quarterback for Minot State University in North Dakota. Not only was he good enough to play college football, he was a standout Minot State inducted him into its hall of fame a few years ago. Instagram/@joshduhamel - Instagram

Terry Crews Terry Crews. He's that really, really intense actor from Brooklyn Nine-Nine that never ceases to put a smile on our faces. Ilya S. Savinok - Getty Images

NFL player Back in the day, however, Crews was a formidable force on the gridiron, playing defensive end and linebacker in the NFL for the Washington Redskins, San Diego Chargers and the Los Angeles Rams. We can only imagine how terrifying it was to run into him on the field. Instagram/@terrycrews - Instagram

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson Dwayne The Rock Johnson will be the first one to tell you to that absolutely nothing good in life comes without a hell of a lot of hard work. If he isnt filming, promoting, or creating a game show , hes working out. And being a dad. He is the busiest man in Hollywood. Aaron Davidson/Getty Images - Getty Images

From Professional Football Aspirations... The Rock also has a long athletic history, which speaks to why hes such a beast in the gym. Before he became an actor, Johnson had aspirations to be a professional football player. He was good enough to get a full-ride scholarship to the University of Miami to play football, and won a national championship with the team. However, he never made the NFL cut. Instagram/@therock - Instagram

...To The WWE You probably know the story from here. After a career as a professional football player didnt pan out, Johnson became a professional wrestler, where he adopted his nickname The Rock and became a legend in the WWE. The rest, so far, is history. (Here are a few more facts you didn't know about The Rock . Ron Elkman/Sports Imagery - Getty Images

Forest Whitaker Jim Spellman - Getty Images

College football player Whitaker wasnt just a fictional football player in Fast Times at Ridgemont High. He gained a football scholarship to California State Polytechnic University in Pomona. After sustaining a back injury, he turned to the arts. IMDB

Tommy Lee Jones Tommy Lee Jones is one of those older guys that you just dont want to mess with. The Academy Award winner is one of the most successful actors in Hollywood. But his talents go far beyond the big screen. Axelle/Bauer-Griffin - Getty Images

Harvard Football Player Not only did Jones go to college at Harvard, he was an offensive lineman for the Crimson's football team. He was part of Harvard's 1968 undefeated season, and was also part of the historic 1968 Game , where Harvard beat Yale 29-29. (Yes, you read that right.) Collegiate Images - Getty Images

Tom Selleck Tommaso Boddi - Getty Images

Jon Stewart Comedian Jon Stewart is known for his ability to make us laugh, but not as well-known for his athletic prowess. Turns out he was a pretty fit guy growing up. Brad Barket - Getty Images

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College soccer player Stewart was a talented athlete growing up, and actually played college soccer for William and Mary . He was pretty good, too. College of Williams & Mary - Twitter

Joel McHale Actor Joel McHale was originally recruited to the University of Washingtons crew team. He decided to try out for another sport. Jim Spellman - Getty Images

College football player After only playing football his freshman year in high school, McHale walked on to the University of Washington as a tight end. He earned a Rose Bowl ring. Otto Greule Jr - Getty Images

George Clooney George Clooney, AKA the Silver Fox, had dreams very different from being a massive Hollywood star growing up. Ray Tamarra - Getty Images

High school athlete, MLB dreams Clooney played basketball and baseball in high school, with aspirations of being a professional baseball player. He was enough of a standout player in high school to be invited to try out for the Cincinnati Reds, which apparently didn't go so well after he couldn't hit a curveball . Jeff Kravitz - Getty Images

Ed O'Neill Ed O'Neill is best-known for playing Al Bundy on Married With Children and as Sofia Vergara's husband on Modern Family. But his career almost went a very different direction. Todd Williamson - Getty Images

College football player ONeill was one hell of a football player when he was younger. He was an offensive lineman for Youngstown State University, then had a short stint as an undrafted free agent with the Pittsburgh Steelers . Although he was cut after a week, the fact he was even on an NFL roster for a period of time is impressive enough. Patrick Wymore - Getty Images

Jason Statham You may only know Jason Statham as one of Hollywood's most well-known action stars. His acting career alone is impressive, and he even gave us some of his secret success tips . Shutterstock/Statham - Shutterstock

Near-Olympic Diver However, turns out Stathams success has spanned far beyond the big screen, and he may be the most impressive former athletes on this list. The actor used to be a competitive diver, representing Great Britain at the Commonwealth Games in 1990 and nearly making it to the Olympics . BENAINOUS/HOUNSFIELD/LEGRAND - Getty Images

Chris Pratt Chris Pratt has a knack for being to make people laugh, whether hes playing a dinosaur trainer or a superhero. Hes also proven what a disciplined guy he is in the gym, considering how ripped he is today. (Check out what the former Men's Health cover guy told us about how he got fit.) Greg Doherty - Getty Images

Dan MacMedan - Getty Images

High school football player and wrestler That discipline started way back when he was a teenager. Pratt played football and wrestled in high school. He recently showed off some wrestling moves with Randy Couture, who coached him once in high school . But his real love growing up was football, and to this day credits the sport with helping him more with his acting career than any sort of theater training. Instagram/@prattprattpratt - Instagram

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