John Cannady was born May 9, 1923, in Charleston, S.C. He played at Spartanburg High School for three years and after his father died in 1939, he moved to Owensboro, Ky. Colleges were interested and Big John had his choice. He chose Indiana. “I wanted to go where I thought in my heart was the greatest conference in the world.” He spent his early years on both offense and defense – at center and linebacker. He played at Indiana from 1943 to 1946, helping the team win the Big Ten title for the first time in 67 years. He was named All-American in 1945. He was named on of Indiana University’s 11 greatest players in 1970.

The first professional football player from Charleston, Big John was the New York Giants second round draft pick in 1947 and played from 1947 to 1954. And there was his College All-Star game, the same series that has been played at Soldier Field since 1934. Big John and his All-Star buddies whipped the Chicago Bears 16-0 in 1947 before 103,000 fans. A teammate of Frank Gifford from 1952 to 1954, Big John was a member of the Giants’ 1950 squad that finished with a 10-2 record and tied for first place in the American Conference. He played in the league’s Pro Bowl game in 1950 and 1952. He played the first NFL Pro Bowl and was twice named All-Pro in 1951 and 1955. Big John returned home, to Charleston, and opened a tavern near the waterfront. “Big John’s” is named after the man who, in the fall of 1951, was voted the most outstanding player in the NFL.

He was a member of the National Football League Players Association, and Indiana University Members Association. He was named to the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame in 1991, and to the Post and Courier’s list of South Carolina’s 100 greatest athletes of the 20th century. He was loved by everyone and helped everyone. Big John passed away September 28, 2002. He was 79.

The current owners of Big John’s strive to ensure that the legend lives on and that Big John would be proud of the tavern today.