I posted this in the box yesterday but I'll reiterate here.
Some of these 18th and 19th century guys were tougher than shoe leather. They grew up hard. Washington was a physical specimen, a marvel for the time. He was very tall, standing over 6', big hands and big feet, and his physical strength was legendary. He was a soldier and surveyor. That means he went into uncharted territory for months on end sleeping in the dirt, finding his own food, and dodging hard-eyed Indians (sorry BNA). He was personally brave as well as demonstrated by his war service (I'm talking about the French and Indian War). That's a different kind of toughness from Truman serving in WWI or even Ford playing college football.
Earlier in this thread, somebody slammed William Henry Harrison as being too highly ranked because he died shortly after his inauguration. Read about the man's life as an Indian fighter (sorry BNA). Indians were really, really good at bushcraft and warfare so you better be damn good to go after them in their backyard. He fought in the War of 1812 and in several battles against the Indians. This wasn't like Ike invading Normandy. If he was beaten, he likely would have been killed or captured, tortured first, then killed. In ambush fights in the woods against Indians, you rarely got off more than one musket shot. You couldn't stand around a reload. So after that first shot, it was usually hand-to-hand--swords, bayonets, fists, knives, maybe a pistol. He wasn't in the front lines of these battles, but he was close and there was a direct threat to his life. He wasn't a big man, 5'8", but that was good size for the time. His war experience was far tougher than what Grant experienced in the Civil War (though Grant also served in the Mexican-American War too). Zachary Taylor was another Indian fighter (sorry BNA) who was known as a good wrestler.
These older guys didn't have hot and cold running water. They didn't have toilet paper. They didn't have central heating and air. They didn't have supermarkets.
Andrew Jackson was scrawny but tall. He was tough as hell. He's known for pistol duels but he was a brawler too. He fought a lot. Lincoln was scrawny but even taller than Jackson. He was an excellent wrestler in part due to his condition. He was abnormally tall and rangy with very large hands and feet. When he did lose his first wrestling match, it was his last. He never wrestled again.
WWII JFK was scrawny too. He was a great swimmer though, had lots of endurance. George HW Bush was a tall scrawny one in WWII as well. These guys were good athletes but they didn't grow up as hard as some of those older dudes. There is a survivor mentality, a never-give-up toughness that some of those frontier guys had that I wouldn't want to fight them.
I think Sas did a GREAT job of seeding. A lot of work went into it and it shows. No glaring errors.
TR totally deserves a 1 seed but he had health issues as a kid. Asthma and bad eyesight. That's why he took up exercise, boxing, and went west in the first place. He was mocked as a tenderfoot from back east but he quickly earned their respect. Washington and Lincoln are also no-brainers. Ford not only played football at Michigan, he was damn good AND he boxed. TR boxed. Nixon and Reagan played college football too. Ike played football. Lots boxed and wrestled. Grant was short but a very good wrestler. Taft was big and an excellent wrestler. Washington threw dudes even after he was a general.
My top three are Washington, Lincoln, and TR (in no particular order). After that it gets tricky.
Really looking forward to this.
Alex.
