John Albert Elway Jr. and his Twin sister, Jana, were born on June 28, 1960 in Port Angeles, Washington to Janet and Jack Elway. His older sister Lee Ann was born one year earlier. John's father, Jack Elway, was a football coach and played a pivotal role in the development of John's lifelong value of hard work.
Highschool
During John's sophomore year of high school his family moved to San Fernando Valley, where he played at Granada Hills High School. Despite missing most of his senior year due to a torn ACL, John was the #1 recruit in the county and made the All-American team with 5,711 career passing yards and 49 passing career touchdowns.
College
John began his full ride scholarship at Stanford in 1979 where he would eventually graduate with a degree in economics.
John was a two-sport athlete playing both football and baseball. In 1981 John was drafted by the Yankees in the second round.
While at Stanford, John led the nation in touchdown passes.
While at Stanford, John led the nation in touchdown passes and upon the conclusion of his career he held nearly every PAC10 record in passing. He placed 2nd in Heisman voting, and in 2007 was named #15 on ESPN's top 25 college players in history.
Elway is the only player to throw for over 3,000 yards & rush for over 200 yards in seven straight seasons (1985–1991)
Executive career
John couldn't stay away from football for long; on January 5, 2011, Elway was named general manager and executive vice president of football operations of the Broncos.
Under Elway's management, the team signed free agent quarterback Peyton Manning. In four seasons from 2012-2015, the Broncos won four division titles, two AFC Championships, and reached Super Bowl XLVIII where they were soundly defeated 43-8 by the Seattle Seahawks despite holding the regular season's top offense.
Elway responded to the Super Bowl loss by hiring Gary Kubiak as well as a fleet of defensive talent. Elway won a third Super Bowl as part of the Broncos franchise, on February 7, 2016. Denver defeated the Carolina Panthers 24-10 in Super Bowl 50 which gave him his first Super Bowl win as Executive VP/GM and his 3rd as a Denver Bronco.
- Super Bowl XLVIII49ers 43 Broncos 8
- Super Bowl 50Carolina 10 Broncos 24
Elway won a third Super Bowl as part of the Broncos franchise, on February 7, 2016.
Business
The football field isn’t the only place John has excelled. With an economics degree as his foundation, John used his competitive drive to pursue business. During his career, he bought a fleet of car dealerships, ranging from Toyota to Nissan, that he eventually sold to AutoNation in 1997. Today, John owns 12 dealerships around the country. Crown Toyota, located in Ontario CA, is one of the top grossing dealerships in the country.
Ready for a new challenge, John used his business acumen to open four of his own steakhouses, aptly named Elway's. It is routinely referred to as the best steakhouse in Colorado. Nothing pairs better with a good steak than wine. In 2013, John launched his own wine brand, 7 Cellars, co-founded with his sports agent and long-time friend Jeff Sperbeck.
- 4STEAKHOUSES
- 2000+Stores/ Resturants sell 7 cellar's wine in the us