A year before Jackie Robinson famously donned a Brooklyn Dodgers uniform, Bill Willis' passion for football conquered the barriers of discrimination and changed the course of the game forever.
The world knows the story of the baseball legend as the desegregation of professional sports, but outside of football circles, the history of the former Ohio State standout and NFL Hall of Famer is far-reaching but almost unknown.
Raised by his grandfather and mother in Columbus, Ohio, the future all-around football star was more interested in track than football when he attended Columbus East High School.
"I had a brother, Claude, who was about six years older than me," Willis said. "He was an outstanding football player, a fullback in high school and I was afraid I would be compared with him."
A Trailblazer On and Off the Field
02-28-2007, 09:10 PM
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