Education
Valparaiso University.
Valparaiso University.
Born and raised in western Wisconsin, Thurston accepted a basketball scholarship at Valparaiso in northwest Indiana, and didn"t begin play collegiate football for the Crusaders until his junior season (1954). He led Valparaiso to an Indiana Collegiate Conference title and was twice selected All-American. Thurston was also named All-Conference for the 1954 and 1955 seasons, while being named the Conference"s Top Lineman in 1955.
He was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the fifth round of the 1956 NFL draft.
Often paired with fellow guard Jerry Kramer, he led the Packers" vaunted Lombardi power sweep running attack. Thurston was named to the 1961 and 1962 All-Pro teams.
Along with two former Packer teammates—Herb Adderley and Forrest Gregg—Thurston is one of only three players in pro football history to play on six World Championship teams. He was inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame in January 1975.
Thurston was well known for his response to a sportswriter"s question about how he prepared for the famous Ice Bowl game, where the gametime temperature was 13 degrees below zero.
Thurston responded that he drank "about 10 vodkas" in order to stay warm. Thurston remained popular in Wisconsin after his playing days and could often be found at Fuzzy"s, a bar he owned not far from Lambeau Field. Thurston was elected to the Indiana Football Hall of Fame in 1982, and the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 2003.
He was the first athlete ever to be voted in by the people of Wisconsin, even though the Hall had been founded in 1951.
Thurston died at age 80 in Green Bay, after several years of declining health, battling Alzheimer"s disease and cancer.