 Wade with Donna Reed, 1959 | |||||||||||||||||
| No. 9 | |||||||||||||||||
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| Position: | Quarterback | ||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
| Born: | October 4, 1930 Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||
| Died: | March 9, 2016 (aged 85) Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 202 lb (92 kg) | ||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||
| High school: | Montgomery Bell Academy (Nashville) | ||||||||||||||||
| College: | Vanderbilt | ||||||||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1952 / round: 1 / pick: 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||
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William James Wade Jr. (October 4, 1930 – March 9, 2016), often referred to during his playing career as Billy Wade, was an American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles Rams (1954-1960) and Chicago Bears (1961-1966).
A native of Nashville, Tennessee, Wade played college football for Vanderbilt from 1948 to 1951 and was selected as the most valuable player in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) in 1951. He was the first player selected in the 1952 NFL draft, though his professional career was delayed by two years of miliary service. During the 1958 season, he led the NFL in both total passing yards and passing yards per game. He was traded to the Chicago Bears in 1961 and led the 1963 Bears to the 1963 NFL championship, scoring both touchdowns for the Bears in the 1963 NFL Championship Game.
In 11 NFL seasons, Wade completed 1,370 of 2,523 passes (54.3%) for 18,530 yards with 124 touchdowns and 134 interceptions. He also tallied 1,334 rushing yards on 318 carries (4.2 yards per carry) and 24 rushing touchdowns.[1]