Was Joe Biden’s Grandfather an ‘All-American’ Football Player?

U.S. President Joe Biden’s core competency is a common target of his critics who believe his age and mental fortitude betray the demands of the White House.

However, such eager anticipation of missteps has sometimes led to misleading and unfair attacks on the president, such as claims that he put a veteran’s medal on backward at a commemorative ceremony or that he got lost on stage during a UN address.

Similarly, during a recent visit to Pennsylvania in support of Democratic Senate nominee John Fetterman, Biden’s recounting of a sporting detail about his grandfather’s life came under the microscope of his opponents.

The Claim

During a speech in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Joe Biden claimed that his grandfather was an All-American football player.

“And let me tell you: I’m a proud Delawarean, but Pennsylvania is my native state,” Biden said.

“It’s in my heart. I can’t tell you how much it means to me to be part of rebuilding this beautiful state.

“My grandfather Finnegan from Scranton would really be proud of me right now. No, I’m not joking, he would.

“By the way, he was an All-American football player, John, in Santa Clara.”

Some social media users appeared to doubt this claim.

The Facts

“All-American” refers to an honorary title given to outstanding athletes competing at the collegiate level.

What we do know is that Ambrose Finnegan, Biden’s grandfather, did attend Santa Clara College, as acknowledged by the college itself and through grade records shared by the school.

Records place Ambrose’s date of birth between 1884-1885, meaning he’d have attended college around 1902, which appears to be supported by accounts from Santa Clara too.

In a piece for Santa Clara Magazine, the college’s archivist Sheila Conway added that “Ambrose Finnegan won a Distinguished Premium for the 3rd Class Bookkeeping, and a Premium for 3rd Class for the Best Kept Set of Books.”

An obituary also mentions that Ambrose was a “star athlete” and that he “gained nationwide recognition for his feats while quarterback of the Santa Clara football team.”

The record-keeping isn’t as consistent or authoritative for the All-American players list though. One list compiled by the National Collegiate Athletic Bureau does not feature Ambrose’s name. Indeed; the earliest All-American player at Santa Clara wasn’t recorded until 1938.

However, it also states that the list only consists of players “who were first-team selections on one or more of the All-America teams that were selected for the national audience and received nationwide circulation.”

“Not included are the thousands of players who received mention on All-America second or third teams, nor the numerous others who were selected by newspapers or agencies with circulations that were not primarily national and with viewpoints, therefore, that were not normally nationwide in scope,” it added.

So there is a chance that Ambrose Finnegan may have been an All-American player by another token that is not recorded here or elsewhere.

Of course, there’s also the chance the story was embellished. In the 1992 book, What It Takes: The Way to the White House, which chronicled the attempted presidential campaigns of several hopefuls (including Joe Biden), author Richard Cramer writes about Ambrose Finnegan and the impact he had on his grandson.

However, as Cramer writes it, Ambrose’s prowess and fame on the football field could have been talked-up somewhat: “He [Ambrose] was a college man, and a pretty tough cookie, Little All-American quarterback for Santa Clara College (or so the family always maintained), when he and the century were young.”

Context considered, and without further record or archive research, it’s difficult to say conclusively whether or not Ambrose Finnegan was an “All-American,” particularly as the term does not appear to have one strict meaning.

Furthermore, record keeping from 1901 probably lacks the reliability required to make an authoritative judgment.

It may well be that the Biden family history is less accurate than what records may be available. Nonetheless, there simply isn’t enough evidence to dismiss the claim outright either.

Newsweek has contacted The White House for comment.

The Ruling

Unverified.

There are records that show that Joe Biden’s grandfather attended Santa Clara College and is thought to have played on its football team. Records don’t show unequivocally whether Ambrose Finnegan was an “All-American” football player, but the absence of definitive evidence to the contrary means we can’t say for certain that he wasn’t.

As noted by the National Collegiate Athletic Bureau, there are other definitions of “All-American,” which Ambrose may have been awarded or honored.

FACT CHECK BY Newsweek’s Fact Check team