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OL/DL Bill Willis (National Champion, OSU HOF, CFB HOF, NFL HOF, R.I.P.)

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Today, we're all in a place that wasn't quiite as good as it was yesterday. As a Buckeyes and Browns fan, the passing of Mr. Willis comes with great sorrow. The pics of Mr. Willis' family around him on his "special day" at the Shoe are a real source of comfort, on knowing how much this man was loved.
 
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To all of BP's members, young and old:

You may have grandchildren, or it may be a couple of decades before you have children. Either way, teach your children; and teach your children to teach their children about Bill Willis. That is how Buckeyes are remembered. That is the only way that this Buckeye will never be forgotten.

He deserves at least that much.
 
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Ohio State legend Bill Willis dies at 86
Wednesday, November 28, 2007 3:18 AM
By Matthew Marx
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

"As great a football player as he was, he was three times as good a dad," Willis Jr. said.
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BuckeyeXtra - The Columbus Dispatch : Ohio State legend Bill Willis dies at 86

Bill Willis | 1921-2007
Bob Hunter commentary: Pioneer deserves to be remembered
Wednesday, November 28, 2007 5:13 AM
By Bob Hunter
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

It doesn't matter which memory of Willis you pick, there are plenty of beautiful ones from which to choose. Whether he's viewed as "the forerunner of the middle linebacker," a racial pioneer or possibly the best Ohio State football player ever, Willis deserves to be remembered.

In life and death, Willis will be one of football's everlasting treasures
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BuckeyeXtra - The Columbus Dispatch : Bob Hunter commentary: Pioneer deserves to be remembered
 
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Dispatch

Bill Willis | 1921-2007
Bob Hunter commentary: Pioneer deserves to be remembered

Wednesday, November 28, 2007 5:13 AM
By Bob Hunter


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
1128willishunter200.jpg
Jeff Hinckley | Dispatch
Bill Willis at his home in February 2000
  • Bill Willis
    1921-2007

It's funny how the mind works. When I received a call confirming the death of former Ohio State and NFL great Bill Willis last night, my first thoughts weren't of the ceremony retiring his jersey number in Ohio Stadium a few weeks ago, but of a visit he made to the Cincinnati Bengals locker room last year.
Willis was in a wheelchair, not exactly the vehicle of choice for a man whose speed made him an All-Pro middle guard and whose courage helped him break pro football's color barrier, and the Bengals treated him like royalty. Coach Marvin Lewis, who is black, seemed particularly enthralled. He spent the better part of 15 minutes talking to the then-84-year-old Willis at a time when he is usually off in some coaching sanctuary doing whatever coaches do there while reporters invade the locker room.

Continued......
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Link

OSU legend, Browns star Willis dies



COLUMBUS (AP) -- Bill Willis, a Hall of Fame guard with the Cleveland Browns who also was Ohio State's first black football All-American, died Tuesday evening, a university spokesman said. He was 86. Willis had been battling a short illness and was hospitalized, said school spokesman Steve Snapp, who was notified of the death by one of Willis' sons. No other details were released.

As great a football player as he was, he was three times as good a dad," his son Will Willis Jr., told The Columbus Dispatch.

Willis, an All-American in 1943 and 1944, had his No. 99 jersey retired at halftime of the Wisconsin-Ohio State game on Nov. 3 at Ohio Stadium.

Continued.....
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wow! sad news, but he's probably still up there twirling that Kappa cane... rest well Bill.

i was rewatching the Wiscy game over the weekend and telling my wife about Bill and Paul Brown and that, with all due respect to Jackie Robinson, the color-barrier was really broken first at the hands of a few Buckeyes. as DDB said, this is really something that we need to make sure we pass on to our children.
 
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There was a question on the board before about who should be on the Buckeye Mount Rushmore...if it is players only that are being considered, Mr. Willis, to me, is a shoe-in for that. He is a Buckeye icon, an NFL icon, a football icon, and an American culture icon for all he paved the way for, and those aren't exaggerations. He was one of our greatest and classiest ever, and he should always, always be remembered for the icon he was.
 
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