William Thomas Walls, born December 8th, 1912 in Lonoke, AR, was a professional baseball player from 1938-1941. He was the brother of Edwin Walls.
Biography
Walls also played in the National Football League from 1937-1943.
Walls died on January 3rd, 1993 in Dallas, TX.1 He was buried in Lakewood Memorial Park in Henderson, TX.2
Excerpts
"Will Walls, whose career as Pittsburgh Steelers scouting director was highlighted by the drafting of Joe Greene and Terry Bradshaw, died early Sunday at his Dallas home. Walls, a member of the TCU team that won the first Cotton Bowl Classic on Jan. 1, 1937 and an end for the New York Giants from 1938-43, was 80. Walls, scouting director for the AFL Dallas Texans in 1960-61 before starting a 10-year career with the Steelers, was renowned as a keen judge of young football talent. His strong endorsements of Greene, the defensive tackle from North Texas, and Bradshaw, the quarterback from Louisiana Tech, contributed to the then-lowly Steelers drafting them No. 1 for 1969 and 1970, laying the foundation for four Super Bowl titles. Greene and Bradshaw grew into franchise players who helped make the Steelers the NFL's team of the '70s. Both were elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility. "Will was one of those real old-fashioned scouts that had the great stories,' Steelers president Dan Rooney said Sunday. "He was a person we really liked and who helped us build a championship team.' The Steelers had the first choice in the '70, draft and Pittsburgh's greatest need was a quarterback. Walls favored Bradshaw, a relative unknown from a small school, but young Steelers head coach Chuck Noll favored Purdue's highly acclaimed Mike Phipps. Steelers founder and owner Art Rooney, Dan's father, was so impressed by Walls' evaluation that the club chose Bradshaw. Walls' survivors include his wife of 54 years, Frances; a son, Bill, of Dallas; a daughter, Mary, of Los Angeles; four grandchildren; and a sister. Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday at Sparkman-Hillcrest Chapel on Northwest Highway, followed by a 4 p.m. burial service at Lakewood Cemetery in Henderson."3
Stats
Statistics at Baseball-Reference.com.
Biography
Walls also played in the National Football League from 1937-1943.
Walls died on January 3rd, 1993 in Dallas, TX.1 He was buried in Lakewood Memorial Park in Henderson, TX.2
Excerpts
"Will Walls, whose career as Pittsburgh Steelers scouting director was highlighted by the drafting of Joe Greene and Terry Bradshaw, died early Sunday at his Dallas home. Walls, a member of the TCU team that won the first Cotton Bowl Classic on Jan. 1, 1937 and an end for the New York Giants from 1938-43, was 80. Walls, scouting director for the AFL Dallas Texans in 1960-61 before starting a 10-year career with the Steelers, was renowned as a keen judge of young football talent. His strong endorsements of Greene, the defensive tackle from North Texas, and Bradshaw, the quarterback from Louisiana Tech, contributed to the then-lowly Steelers drafting them No. 1 for 1969 and 1970, laying the foundation for four Super Bowl titles. Greene and Bradshaw grew into franchise players who helped make the Steelers the NFL's team of the '70s. Both were elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility. "Will was one of those real old-fashioned scouts that had the great stories,' Steelers president Dan Rooney said Sunday. "He was a person we really liked and who helped us build a championship team.' The Steelers had the first choice in the '70, draft and Pittsburgh's greatest need was a quarterback. Walls favored Bradshaw, a relative unknown from a small school, but young Steelers head coach Chuck Noll favored Purdue's highly acclaimed Mike Phipps. Steelers founder and owner Art Rooney, Dan's father, was so impressed by Walls' evaluation that the club chose Bradshaw. Walls' survivors include his wife of 54 years, Frances; a son, Bill, of Dallas; a daughter, Mary, of Los Angeles; four grandchildren; and a sister. Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday at Sparkman-Hillcrest Chapel on Northwest Highway, followed by a 4 p.m. burial service at Lakewood Cemetery in Henderson."3
Stats
Statistics at Baseball-Reference.com.