J. C. Watts rose to fame as a quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners, leading the Sooners to two Orange Bowl Championships. After graduating college, Watts was recruited to join the Canadian Football League. Following his football career, Watts became a Baptist pastor, ran for Congress, and became the first African American elected to statewide office in Oklahoma. He enjoyed four terms in the U.S. Congress, each year winning a larger margin of the vote. In 1997, Watts delivered the Republican response to President Clinton’s State of the Union address and later became well known for authoring the legislation for President George W. Bush’s faith-based initiative as chairman of the Republican Conference. As a congressman, Watts was known as a “devoted conservative.” Watts retired from Congress and began lobbying and opened his own business. He is the father of six children and resides with his wife in Fairfax, Virginia.