Adrian College is a private, co-educational liberal arts college related to the United Methodist Church in the city of Adrian, Michigan.

The school is approximately a 45-minute drive from Ann Arbor and Toledo, Ohio, and 90 minutes from Detroit. Its campus is on approximately 100 acres (0.4 km²) and features newly constructed facilities with modern designs and historic buildings recognized for their past, such as Downs Hall, home of the Theatre Department.

The college had its origin as a theological institute founded by Wesleyan Methodists at Leoni, Michigan, in 1845. This institution merged with Leoni Seminary, another Methodist school, in 1855 to form Michigan Union College. In 1859, that institution closed and its assets were transferred to Adrian to establish Adrian College. The college was chartered by the Michigan Legislature on March 28, 1859, under the first president of the college, abolitionist Asa Mahan. In the early stages of the American Civil War the college volunteered itself as a base for the formation of Michigan regiments for the Union side. The current Valade Hall building sits on the site of the former base camp for these soldiers.

Adrian Lewis Peterson (born March 21, 1985), nicknamed "A. D." (for "All Day"), "A. P." and "Purple Jesus", is an American football running back for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). Peterson was selected by the Vikings with the seventh overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Oklahoma.

While at Oklahoma, Peterson set the NCAA freshman rushing record with 1,925 yards as a true freshman during the 2004 season. As a First-team All-American, he became the first freshman to finish as the runner-up in the Heisman Trophy balloting behind USC quarterback Matt Leinart. Peterson finished his college football career as the Sooners' third all-time leading rusher.

Following his stellar first pro season in which he set an NFL record for most rushing yards in a single game (296), Peterson was named the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. He was then awarded the MVP award for his performance in the Pro Bowl and became only the fifth player in NFL history to have more than 3,000 yards through his first two seasons. In 2010, he became the fifth fastest player to run for 5,000 yards, doing so in his 51st game. Currently, Peterson has the fourth highest average rushing yards per game total in NFL history (min. 50 games) with an average of 92.5, trailing Jim Brown (104.3), Barry Sanders (99.8) and Terrell Davis (97.5).