The Romney Connection

My esteemed colleague Jason Foster raised an interesting question the other day: is Republican Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney of Massachusetts somehow related to legendary Utah State University head coach and football stadium namesake E. L. "Dick" Romney?

On the surface, the notion is intriguing for several reasons. Romney is a relatively uncommon name (just the 23439th- most common, according to this fascinating website. ) Moreover, there are the obvious Mormon connotations that are inevitably associated with Utah and the candidate.

Now, we know that Mitt is the former governor of Massachusetts, and that his father was the governor of Michigan at one time. And if you take a look at this map, you will see that both states are a shade of pale blue, which means they are directly descended from the darker blues of Utah and Idaho, obviously.

Of course, I have not had the chance to delve too deeply into the respective genealogies of the two Romneys. That sort of intensive research seemed a bit daunting for a speculative post of this nature. I did, however, manage to track down some photos of the two gentlemen for comparison:

Ernest Lowell "Dick" Romney (C), former great Utah State football coach, gazing at a hottie in the crowd while estimating her possible shortcomings as a 5th wife, at age 65

Presidential hopeful Willard Milton "Mitt" Romney, gazing at the ceiling while contemplating his favorite bran cereal, at age 60

There is another unexplored thread here: Mitt got his middle name from his father's cousin, who played QB for the Chicago Bears in the 1920s.

Speaking of Mitt's father, here is a picture of him:

Apparently he was buddies with a miniature Ernest Borgnine who used to whisper jokes into his right ear. But seriously...on a scale of who he looks like, his son finishes fourth behind Joe Biden, Pete Carrol, and potential relative Dick.

Footpolitics would like to explore the possibility of this genetic connection more thoroughly before drawing any rash conclusions.