Joseph Ponsetto was an American football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 player who was the starting quarterback

Quarterback

Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...

 for the University of Michigan

University of Michigan

The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...

 Wolverines football

Michigan Wolverines football

The Michigan Wolverines football program represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins and the highest winning percentage in college football history...

 teams of 1944 and 1945. Playing under head coach Fritz Crisler

Fritz Crisler

Herbert Orin "Fritz" Crisler was an American football coach who is best known as "the father of two-platoon football," an innovation in which separate units of players were used for offense and defense. Crisler developed two-platoon football while serving as head coach at the University of...

, Ponsetto led the 1944

1944 Michigan Wolverines football team

The 1944 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1944 college football season. The team's head coach was Fritz Crisler. The Wolverines played their home games at Michigan Stadium.-Schedule:-Starters:...

 team to an 8–2 record and a #8 ranking in the final AP Poll

AP Poll

The Associated Press College Poll refers to weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling sportswriters across the nation...

. Ponsetto was selected as an All-Big Ten

Big Ten Conference

The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...

 quarterback in 1944 and was elected captain of the 1945 team

1945 Michigan Wolverines football team

The 1945 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1945 college football season. The team's head coach was Fritz Crisler...

. He also handled place-kicking responsibilities for the Wolverines, converting four extra points against Minnesota, four more against Purdue

Purdue Boilermakers football

The Purdue Boilermakers football team is the intercollegiate football program of the Purdue University Boilermakers. The program is classified in the NCAA's Division I Bowl Subdivision, and the team competes in the Big Ten Conference. The Boilermakers have an all-time record of...

, and five against Penn

Penn Quakers football

The Penn Quakers football team is the college football team at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA. The Penn Quakers have competed in the Ivy League since its inaugural season of 1956, and are currently a Division I Football Championship Subdivision member of the National...

 in 1944. Ponsetto led the 1945 team to a 7–3 record and a #6 ranking in the final AP Poll.
After graduating from Michigan, Ponsetto became a dentist in the Grand Rapids, Michigan

Grand Rapids, Michigan

Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...

area.