Joe Francis (April 21, 1936 – April 15, 2013) led the Oregon State offense on the drive to the 1957 Rose Bowl and then played professionally in both the NFL and CFL.
Francis grew up in Hawaii and was recruited to Corvallis by coach Kip Taylor. He remained at the school after Tommy Prothro became coach in 1955. Francis played halfback from 1955-57 but frequently threw passes in the Beavers’ run-based offense. He also played defense at times.
In 1956, the Beavers lost two of their first three games but then won six in a row to claim a spot in the Rose Bowl. They tied their final regular-season game, 14-14, against Oregon while playing before a national television audience. In the Rose Bowl, Francis had 207 yards of total offense, but OSU lost to Iowa 35-19 and finished #10 in the final Associated Press poll – its highest ranking ever at the time.
Oregon State went 8-2 in 1957 with Francis being named team MVP for the second consecutive year. The Beavers could not return to the Rose Bowl because of the Pacific Coast Conference "no repeat" rule. Joe won the Pop Warner Trophy given to the top player on the West Coast and the Hayward Award as Oregon's top amateur athlete.
The Green Bay Packers selected Joe in the fifth round of the 1958 NFL Draft, and he played two seasons under Coach Vince Lombardi as back-up to Bart Starr. He played two seasons (1961-62) for the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL.
Francis was destined to become a teacher and coach. He assisted Tommy Prothro in Corvallis for two years before returning home to Hawaii to become a physical education teacher and football coach at Pearl City High School. He would also serve as an assistant at two legendary Hawaii schools, St. Louis and Kamehameha, the school where he played in his youth. Joe also managed the Outrigger Hotel showroom in Waikiki. Two of Francis' sons, Jon and Ikaika, also played in the NFL.
Joe Francis was inducted into the Oregon State Athletics Hall of Fame in 1991.