John McEntee, who lost his White House job as Donald Trump’s assistant, started 12 games for UConn in 2011 and gained fame as a trick-shot QB.
The White House staff member who was fired Monday has a unique sports past: Before becoming President Donald Trump’s assistant, he was a starting quarterback (and football-trick-shot artist) at UConn.
John McEntee, whom The Wall Street Journal reported was escorted out of the White House on Monday because of an « unspecified security issue, » started 12 games for the Huskies in 2011 after initially joining the team as a walk-on. Known then as « Johnny, » he completed 172 of 335 passes for 2,110 yards with 12 touchdowns and eight interceptions, then started three games the following season.
« (It) was always a dream that I would play, » he said in 2011, according to The Norwalk Hour . « I thought a lot of these guys were too good and there was no way I’d ever play. I stuck with it and tried to get a little better every year. »
Though McEntee spent one season as a starter, he made more headlines for something he accomplished off the field: An elaborate trick-shot compilation that has been viewed more than 7 million times on YouTube.
« We posted it on YouTube on Tuesday and then the next day it was on the front page of Yahoo, » McEntee told CNBC in 2011, shortly after the video went viral. « I was going to have a heart attack. I couldn’t believe it. »
McEntee told the network that some of the shots took him as many as 25 attempts to perfect.
Though he is departing the White House, the 27-year-old will continue to work for the president in a different capacity. Trump’s campaign announced Tuesday that McEntee will join the president’s 2020 reelection efforts as a senior adviser for campaign operations.
Contact Tom Schad at tschad@usatoday.com or on Twitter @Tom_Schad .
