Bill Wade, QB of Bears' 1963 NFL championship team, dies at 85
He was not on the list.
Wade helped the Bears to the 1963 championship, scoring both touchdowns on quarterback sneaks in a 14-10 victory over the Giants on an unbearably cold day at Wrigley Field. Wade, 85, died Wednesday night in Nashville, Tenn.
Known as "Billy" during his playing days, Wade joined the Bears in 1961 at 31 and he's still prominent in the team's record books despite playing only six seasons for them with 49 starts. Wade, a two-time All-Pro, ranks sixth in career passing yards with 9,958 and third in touchdown passes with 68.
Wade completed only 10 of 28 passes for 138 yards in the title game victory over the Giants when the wind chill factor was minus-11 degrees, but he scored on sneaks of 1 and 2 yards as the Bears won their final title with Halas as coach. Wade remained close with his teammates from that era. Blind since 2002, he had been in poor health for several years.
"Bill Wade was a gentleman in every sense of the word," Bears Chairman George McCaskey said in a statement. "He carried himself with dignity in all aspects of his life. Even in more recent years when he experienced health challenges, Bill maintained a positive disposition and expressed gratitude for everything he had. Those qualities were what made him a great leader and a favorite of Papa Bear."
Known for his durability, Wade said he missed only one practice in a 14-year professional career. He started from 1961-64 for the Bears, earning All-Pro recognition in 1962 and '63. Rudy Bukich replaced him in 1965. Wade was known for his conservative play, but with the Bears' great defense in 1963 — they were No. 1 in the league, allowing only 144 points — he was the perfect choice for the offense.
"When we traded for Bill Wade, he was the right quarterback at the right time," said teammate Ed O'Bradovich, a defensive lineman. "He had the years behind him, he had the passing ability and he was a smart quarterback. The key was don't make any turnovers. They converted on third down, they ate up the clock a little bit and that gave us some help. It was an offense that was so controlled with the short passes.
"He was a very serious person. Religion and family was first and foremost to him. I never heard him say a cuss word. You can imagine with all them guys we had on that team, 'Gosh darn it' wasn't in our vocabulary. Very studious. Wonderful man."
After the Los Angeles Rams drafted him first overall in the 1952 NFL draft, Wade spent two years in the military before beginning his professional career. He is considered one of the greatest athletes in Vanderbilt history. He was raised in Nashville, where he returned to join the banking industry when his playing days ended. He was the 1951 SEC player of the year and a two-time All-American in college.
Because he was so popular in Nashville during his playing days, Bears games were shown locally on tape delay on Sundays during the season after the evening news.
"Our family is celebrating (now) that his sight is restored, that he is able to walk and run on the field again," his daughter Sharon Wade Kinser told the Tennessean. "He is free, and he is home. So much has been robbed of him in the last decade. To be able to know that he can see the beauty of heaven gives our family comfort."
Wade was 27-20-2 as a starter for the Bears after posting a 13-23 record as a starter for the Rams in seven seasons.
Bill Wade will be remembered as an all-time great Vanderbilt
quarterback, an NFL champion and a gentleman who never acted like he was
either.
“He was a superstar that never thought of himself as a
superstar,” said Hank Hillin, a long-time friend who played against Wade in
high school. “He was a gracious and kind gentleman. But his humility is what
made him so appealing.”
Wade, a Montgomery Bell Academy product and Vanderbilt Hall of Famer who is among the best athletes in Nashville history, died at age 85 Wednesday night. He was the No. 1 overall pick of the Los Angeles Rams in 1952 and earned All-Pro honors twice. He played 13 seasons for the Rams and Chicago Bears, leading the latter team to the 1963 NFL Championship.
On Thursday, Bears Chairman George H. McCaskey remembered
Wade as both a standout of the franchise’s golden age and a revered player.
“Bill Wade was a gentleman in every sense of the word. He carried himself with dignity in all aspects of his life,” McGaskey said. “Even in more recent years when he experienced health challenges, Bill maintained a positive disposition and expressed gratitude for everything he had. Those qualities were what made him a great leader and a favorite of Papa Bear (former Bears coach George Halas).”
Wade suffered extended illnesses and blindness in his later
years. His daughter, Sharon Wade Kinser, said the family is at peace.
“Our family is celebrating that his sight is restored, that
he is able to walk and run on the field again,” Kinser said. “He is free, and
he is home. So much has been robbed of him in the last decade. To be able to
know that he can see the beauty of heaven gives our family comfort.”
A celebration of Wade’s life is tentatively planned for
April.
Wade’s father, W.J. Wade, was captain of Vanderbilt’s 1921
undefeated team. The younger Wade finished his career as one of the Commodores’
best athletes in any sport. He was among 12 members of Vanderbilt’s inaugural
Hall of Fame class in 2008.
Wade was the 1951 SEC Player of the Year and a two-time All-American, and his 3,396 passing yards stood as Vanderbilt’s career record more than 30 years after his graduation.
Vanderbilt athletics director David Williams called Wade
“one of the greatest guys I’ve ever met. I saw him as a great player with the
Bears and a man who never complained about anything, no matter how many health
issues he went through.
“He was just a very, very wonderful guy. Just Billy Wade,
and that’s how I’ll always remember him.”
In the NFL, Wade played 128 games and passed for 18,530 and
124 touchdowns. He also rushed for 24 touchdowns, including two scores in the
Bears’ 14-10 win over the New York Giants in the 1963 NFL title game at Wrigley
Field.
But Hillin remembers Wade for who he was before his football
stardom and well after his career ended.
Hillin’s Litton High School team beat a Wade-led MBA squad in the 1947 Clinic Bowl. And then nearly 50 years later, Hillin was Nashville sheriff when he began inviting Wade to speak to inmates graduating from a GED class in jail.
“He was so inspiring to those inmates, and he loved to give
his time to help people like that,” Hillin said. “He never changed. He was
always humble, always a wonderful friend.
“I’m really going to miss him. I already miss him now.”
Following eye surgery for glaucoma, Wade became legally blind. In an interview with Mike Downey of the Chicago Tribune on January 30, 2007, days before the Bears played in Super Bowl XLI in Miami Gardens, Florida, Wade said from his Nashville home, "I could get there for the game, but I can't see it." He added: "I've got a Bears cap on right now
Quarterbacking the Rams for seven seasons, Wade's best year
statistically was 1958, when he led the NFL in passing yards with 2,875. He
asked to be traded to the Bears in 1961 and was sent with teammates Del Shofner
and John Guzik for two players and a draft pick. Wade topped the league in 1962
in pass completions and attempts, and threw for 466 yards on Nov 11 in Dallas,
second in franchise history to Johnny Lujack (468). He was the first Bear to
record four games with 300+ passing yards in a season. In 1963, he led Chicago
to the 1963 NFL Championship Game, scoring both Bears touchdowns on two 5-yard
drives after turnovers in a 14–10 victory over the New York Giants in a game
played in freezing weather conditions at Wrigley Field.
After retiring from football in 1966, he was offered a position as the QB's coach with the Bears. Wade held the position for one year, before being offered to replace George Halas as the team head coach. He declined the opportunity at his father's advice, and the position was filled by Jim Dooley.
Career information
High school: Montgomery
Bell Academy
College: Vanderbilt
NFL Draft: 1952
/ Round: 1 / Pick: 1
Career history
As a player:
Los Angeles Rams (1954–1960)
Chicago Bears (1961–1966)
As a coach:
Chicago Bears (1967) (QB's)
Career highlights and awards
NFL champion (1963)
2× Pro Bowl (1958, 1963)
NFL passer rating leader (1961)
NFL completion percentage leader (1959)
100 greatest Bears of All-Time
SEC Player of the Year (1951)
Career NFL statistics
Pass attempts: 2,523
Pass completions: 1,370
Percentage: 54.3
TD–INT: 124–134
Passing Yards: 18,530
Passer rating: 72.2
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