Fort Collins, The Land of the Famous?- 5 People From Fort Collins Who Made It Big

Jon Cooper may be the most recent star to come out of Fort Collins. Cooper now plays on the offensive line for the Minnesota Vikings, but he got his start right here in Northern Colorado. At Fort Collins High School Cooper was a three year starter and letter-man, and received the team MVP award his senior season. He went on to play and lead the offensive line for the University of Oklahoma where he was named to the All-Big 12 team in 2007 and 2008. Cooper had some disappointment when he went undrafted in the 2009 NFL Draft, but he signed a rookie contract with the Minnesota Vikings. After two injuries to the offensive line Cooper got his break, and he appeared in his first NFL game in week 13 of the 2010 season against the Arizona Cardinals at right guard.

Ryan Sutter may be one part of the only couple from reality TV that have not broken up. Trista Rehn picked Sutter as her match in on the 2003 ABC hit. Although Sutter no longer resides in Fort Collins he was born and raised here, but went on to move to Boulder to play football for the University of Colorado. He was then drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the 1998 NFL draft, but only last a couple seasons due to injuries. Sutter went on to become a firefighter, which he still does, in the Vail area.

Possibly the most important person to come from fort Collins, Byron "Whizzer" White is the first and only Supreme Court Justice from the state of Colorado. Not only was he famous for being a part of the supreme court from 1962 to 1993, but he also had a professional football career prior to his court days. White was an All-American halfback for the University of Colorado, where he acquired the nickname "Whizzer". After graduation he signed with the NFL's Pittsburgh Pirates (now Steelers),playing there during the 1938 season. He led the league in rushing in his rookie season and became the game's highest-paid player. White then quit football to attend Oxford University. After Oxford, White played for the Detroit Lions from 1940 to 1941. In three NFL seasons, he played in 33 games. He led the league in rushing yards in 1938 and 1940, and he was one of the first "big money" NFL players, making $15,000 a year. His career was cut short when he entered the United States Navy during World War II; after the war, he elected to attend law school rather than return to football. He was then appointed to the court by President John F. Kennedy in 1962, he served until his retirement in 1993. White died on April 15, 2002 at the age of 84 in Denver.

OK, so he only lasted in Fort Collins for two years, Jon Heder is still officially from Fort Collins. The Napoleon Dynamite star was born with a twin brother to a practice physician and his wife in Fort Collins, but were moved to Oregon when Jon was 2. Heder only recieved $1000 for his role in Napoleon Dynamite, but the low budget film blew up and made Heder a star. He has now been in many more higher budget movies such as The Benchwarmers, School for Scoundrels, Blades of Glory, Mama's Boy, and When in Rome.

John Aston is originally from Massachusetts, but has been in Fort Collins for some time now. Ashton is known for his appearances on M*A*S*H and Dallas, but also was in the all three Beverly Hills Cops movies. Ashton currently has plans to appear in an episode of Matthew Perry's TV show, Mr. Sunshine. Ashton can now be heard all over Northern Colorado on his daily sports radio show the Ashton and Davis show on 870 ESPN radio.