Was Ali the only prominent boxer to be called up for the draft during Vietnam?

This is probably the answer. Thats kind of why his stand mattered so much. They were going to use him to promote a war effort he didn't agree with. Also Louis and Ali were a bit old for enlisted soldiers at that point. When you think of draftees you think of guys in their college years. The guys listed above would have all made more sense to be drafted if they were all ordinary people.

Bizzarley in WW2 Louis's replacement Bivins also got drafted(I think he did anyway) but only served a year.

 

Great question. At least in Ali’s case it seems they might’ve fast tracked him from the very early stages of the process to outright drafting.

 

Norton volunteered for the Marines.
I believe Foreman and Holmes may have possibility been too young?
Frazier was rejected. Don't know about Shavers though

 

I am sure at least two US boxers from the 1960 Olympic team ended up in Vietnam. They might have been reservists though.
Robert Carmody, a bronze medal winner in 1964 Olympics was killed in Vietnam. Again, I think he was in miltary before.

 

Didn't Joe Louis do some exhibitions for WW2? I think he gave all his winnings to charity but the IRS still taxed him from his winnings so he couldn't pay them back?

 

Middleweight contender Rip Randall (not sure if he ever made it into the top 10) mingled with all the top dogs of his day including Nino Benvenuti, Luis Rodriguez, Curtis Cokes, Virgil Akins, Kenny Lane, Manny Gonzalez, Stan Harrington and Isaac Logart, several of whom he beat. Rip was drafted and, unfortunately, was killed in Vietnam.

 

A lot of boxers probably chose to enlist as volunteers, rather than be drafted.
Volunteers generally have a lot more say in which branch and unit they end up in. In the early-to-mid 1960s when Vietnam was escalating, a lot of men volunteered to avoid the uncertainties of being drafted.

Mac Foster was in the marines.

It is worth noting the US draft was active from 1940 to 1973.
Sandy Saddler was drafted while he was world champion, if I remember rightly.

 

Mike Weaver served. He joined at 17, was in Vietnam as a teenager, spent 3 years out there, I think. Before he was a boxer (he started boxing while in marines) and years before he was a 'prominent' one.

 

Frazier already had a family,so perhaps that had some input into that?

 

Louis did loads of exhibitions whilst in the Army,he also defended his title twice,for the Army and Navy Relief Funds, taking only training expenses for his trouble.