Michael Keller Ditka, Jr. (born October 18, 1939) is a former American football NFL player, television commentator, and coach. Ditka coached the Chicago Bears for 11 years and New Orleans Saints for three years. Ditka and Tom Flores are the only two people to win Super Bowls as a player, an assistant coach, and a head coach. Ditka was the only individual to participate in both of the last two Chicago Bears' championships, as a player in 1963 and as head coach in 1985.

Ditka was born as Michael Dyczko in the Pittsburgh-area town of Carnegie, Pennsylvania on October 18, 1939. The oldest child of Mike Sr. and Charlotte, he grew up in nearby Aliquippa, Pennsylvania with siblings Ashton, David, and Mary Ann. Mike Sr., a welder, was one of three brothers of a Ukrainian family in the coal mining and steel manufacturing area in Western Pennsylvania. The surname "Dyczko" was difficult to pronounce in his hometown, so the family name was changed to "Ditka." Ditka attended St. Titus School.

A three-sport star at Aliquippa High School, Ditka hoped to escape his hometown's manufacturing jobs by attending college with a football scholarship. Planning to become a dentist, he was recruited by Notre Dame, Penn State, and University of Pittsburgh. Ditka played for the University of Pittsburgh from 1958–1960, where he also became a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity. He started all three seasons and is widely considered one of the best tight ends in college football history. In addition to playing tight end, he also served as the team's punter. He led the team in receiving in all three of his seasons with them and was a first team selection on the College Football All-America Team in his senior year. In 1986, he was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame.

James Joseph "Jim" Harbaugh (pronounced /ˈhɑrbɔː/; born December 23, 1963) is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head coach for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League. Harbaugh agreed to a five-year deal with the San Francisco 49ers on January 7, 2011. Previously, he was the head coach at Stanford University for four seasons and the University of San Diego for three seasons. Harbaugh is also a former NFL quarterback who played for the Chicago Bears, Indianapolis Colts, Baltimore Ravens, and San Diego Chargers. He was selected by the Bears with the 26th pick in the first round of the 1987 NFL Draft. He played college football at Michigan. Harbaugh and his older brother, Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh, are the first pair of brothers to serve as head coaches in NFL history.

Harbaugh's father was an assistant coach at Michigan under Bo Schembechler for seven seasons during the 1970s. Jim played for the junior league Ann Arbor Packers, then for Tappan Junior High, and attended Pioneer High School. When his father became defensive coordinator at Stanford for the 1980 season, Jim transferred to Palo Alto High School in California, where he graduated in 1982.

John William "Johnny" Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American television host and comedian, known for thirty years as host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962–1992). Carson received six Emmy Awards, the Governor Award, and a 1985 Peabody Award. He was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 1987. Johnny Carson was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1992 and received a Kennedy Center Honor in 1993.

Although his show was already successful by the end of the 1960s, during the 1970s Carson became an American icon and remained so until his retirement in 1992. He adopted a casual, conversational approach with extensive interaction with guests, an approach pioneered by Arthur Godfrey and previous Tonight Show hosts Steve Allen and Jack Paar. Late night hosts David Letterman, Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien, Craig Ferguson, and Jimmy Fallon have all cited Carson's influence on their late-night talk shows, which resemble his in format and tone.

Carson was born in Corning, Iowa, in the year 1925, to Homer Lloyd "Kit" Carson, a power company manager, and Ruth Hook Carson, who was of Irish descent. He grew up in the nearby towns of Avoca, Clarinda, and Red Oak in southwest Iowa before moving to Norfolk, Nebraska, at the age of eight. At the age of twelve, Carson found a book on magic at a friend's house and immediately purchased a mail-order magician's kit. He debuted as "The Great Carsoni" at fourteen and was paid $3; many other performances at local picnics and country fairs followed.

Merril DuAine Hoge (pronounced /ˈhɒdʒ/; born January 26, 1965) is a former professional American football player. He played seven seasons at running back for the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers and Chicago Bears, retiring after the 1994 season. Since 1997 he has been a football analyst for ESPN television.

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Hoge in the tenth round of 1987 NFL Draft with the 261st pick overall. After seven seasons with the Steelers, Hoge signed with the Chicago Bears as a free agent in 1994, but played in only five games with only six carries and 13 receptions.

During a game against the Chiefs in Kansas City, Hoge received a concussion and, five days later, the team doctor approved him to resume playing during a telephone call without examining him to determine if he had recovered; he was still suffering post-concussion symptoms.

Hoge sustained another concussion several weeks later, and had to be resuscitated after he stopped breathing. He spent 48 hours in the intensive-care unit and was forced to retire due to brain injury. Hoge had to learn to read again and experienced memory loss, confusion and headaches. He later sued the Bears team doctor and won a $1.55 million judgment.

Timothy Richard Tebow ( /ˈtiːboʊ/; born August 14, 1987) is an American football quarterback for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the University of Florida, winning the Heisman Trophy in 2007 and appearing on BCS National Championship-winning teams in the 2006 and 2008 seasons. After graduating, he was drafted by the Denver Broncos as the 25th overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft. Tebow is known as a dual threat quarterback, adept at both rushing and passing the football. With his unorthodox NFL quarterback skills, frequent demonstrations of his religious devotion, and his team's success, Tebow has attracted unprecedented praise, criticism, and attention from the sporting media and beyond. Commenting on Tebow's play and the attention he has garnered, many football players and observers have said that they "have never seen anything like it."

Tebow played quarterback for Nease High School in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida and was ranked among the top quarterback prospects in the nation as a high school senior. He ultimately chose to attend the University of Florida. As a backup and situational quarterback, Tebow helped the Gators win the national championship during the 2006 college football season. Tebow was the Gators' starting quarterback during the 2007 season when he became the first college sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy. In 2008, Tebow led Florida to a 13-1 record and its second national championship in three years, and was named the offensive MVP of the national championship game. The Gators again went 13–1 in 2009, Tebow's senior year. At the conclusion of his college career, he held the Southeastern Conference's all-time records in both career passing efficiency and total rushing touchdowns, appearing second and tenth (respectively) in the NCAA record book in these categories.