As a football player, Wistert played for National Championship teams that never lost a game in 1932 and 1933 and was a chosen All-American in 1933. The 1934 University of Michigan yearbook, the "Michiganensian", had this to say by Grantland Rice: "Wistert was unanimously selected as the best tackle in the Middle-West this year. He was an important part of Michigan's defensive line play. He was a very good tackler and it was nearly impossible to fool him on trick plays. He was keen, quick, and accurate in finding out how a play would happen." Wistert and Chuck Bernard were the leaders of the 1933 offensive line when the team went 7-0-1 with a tie to the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers.