Bill Wade: 1930-2016
Bill Wade, one of the NFL’s best people, passed away in March at the age of 85.
A member of the Tennessee Hall of Fame, Wade was one of the best quarterbacks to ever emerge from Vanderbilt, a now-legend at the school some 60 years later. In the early 50s during his time with the team, the 6’2” signal-caller was an SEC standout, tacking on an SEC Most Valuable Player award. The Tennessee native would catch the eyes of all types from the NFL, leading to his selection in the 1952 NFL Draft.
He was taken first round, first overall by the Los Angeles Rams, a team he’d spend time with until 1960 where he journeyed to Chicago to quarterback the Bears. There, he’d tally a career-high 22 touchdowns in 1961 and win the NFL Championship in 1963. He would go on to start games in every season through 1966, wrapping up his tremendous career with two Pro Bowls and two All-Pro labels attached to his name.
A member of the league’s first-overall fraternity as well as the Vanderbilt Athletics Hall of Fame, Wade’s legacy will live on thanks to his good-guy personality and determination to be his best on the field in every step of his athletic journey.