Willie Smith (offensive tackle, born 1937)

Willie Smith

refer to caption

Smith in 1958
No. 71, 63
Position: Tackle, Guard
Personal information
Date of birth: (1937-11-01) November 1, 1937
Place of birth: Little Rock, Arkansas
Height: 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight: 255 lb (116 kg)
Career information
High school: Dunbar High School
College: Michigan
NFL Draft: 1959 / Round: 8 / Pick: 94
Career history
Career NFL statistics
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Willie Smith (born November 1, 1937) is a former American football player. A native of Little Rock, Arkansas, Smith attended Dunbar High School, a segregated high school for African-American students. He was teammates during high school with Jim Pace, and the two of them opted to attend the University of Michigan where they were teammates for the school's football team.[1] Smith played college football as a tackle for the Michigan Wolverines football team from 1956 to 1958.[2] He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the eighth round (94th overall pick) of the 1959 NFL Draft, but he opted instead to play in the American Football League. Smith appeared in all 14 games for the 1960 Denver Broncos, mostly at the right guard position.[3] In August 1961, the Broncos traded Smith to the Oakland Raiders for Gene Prebola.[4] He was the starting left guard for the 1961 Oakland Raiders, appearing in all 14 games.[3][5] He was placed on waivers by the Raiders in late August 1962.[5]

References

  1. ↑ "Parade and Dinner to Salute Jim Pace On Michigan Star's Visit to Little Rock". The New York Times. December 21, 1957.
  2. ↑ "University of Michigan All-time Rosters Search Page". University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library.(Enter Smith as the last name and Willie as the first name on the search page, and press enter)
  3. 1 2 "Willie Smith". pro-football-reference.com.
  4. ↑ "Vikings Get Halfback Released by Giants". The Milwaukee Journal. August 11, 1961.
  5. 1 2 "Raiders Cut Five Gridders". St. Joseph Gazette. August 22, 1961.
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