Ken Willard

Ken Willard
refer to caption
Willard, circa 1962
No. 40, 20
Position:Fullback
Personal information
Born: (1943-07-14) July 14, 1943 (age 81)
Richmond, Virginia, U.S.
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:219 lb (99 kg)
Career information
High school:Varina (Henrico, Virginia)
College:North Carolina (1962–1964)
NFL draft:1965: 1st round, 2nd pick
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Rushing attempts:1,622
Rushing yards:6,105
Rushing average:3.8
Rushing touchdowns:45
Receptions:277
Receiving yards:2,184
Receiving touchdowns:17
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Kenneth Henderson Willard (born July 14, 1943) is an American former professional football player who was a running back/fullback in the National Football League (NFL), where he was a four-time Pro Bowler with the San Francisco 49ers in the 1960s.

Early life

[edit]

Willard was born on July 14, 1943, in Richmond, Virginia.[1] He attend Varina High School where he was both an outstanding athlete, earning 16 letters in football, baseball, basketball and track; and was a member of academic honor societies.[2] Willard was 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m), 185 pounds (83.9 kg) in high school, with both speed and strength; running the hundred-yard dash and throwing the shot and discus for the track team.[3]

College career

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Willard received a football scholarship from the University of North Carolina in 1961 after turning down a $100,000 offer to play baseball for the Boston Red Sox.[4][5] He played for the Tar Heels from 1962 to 1964, where he led the Atlantic Coast Conference in rushing yards in 1963 and was named MVP of the same year's Gator Bowl.[6][7] He received All-ACC honors in 1963 and 1964 and was selected to the College Football All-America second-team in 1964.[2]

Willard rushed for 1,949 yards on 514 attempts over his three years at North Carolina, with 18 touchdowns. He also had 46 pass receptions for 432 yards and another touchdown.[6] Two-way player Chris Hanburger was the center on the offensive line that blocked for Willard at North Carolina,[8] and was All-ACC at center as a junior and senior.[9] Hanburger went on to an NFL career at linebacker for the Washington Redskins, and induction into the professional football hall of fame.[10]

Willard was also a member of the UNC baseball team, where he led the ACC in home runs two times[11] and is unofficially credited with the longest home run in Tar Heel history at an estimated 525 feet (160 m).[12] He was also named all-conference in baseball as a senior.[3]

Professional career

[edit]

Willard was drafted with the second pick of the 1965 NFL draft, by the San Francisco 49ers ahead of future NFL Hall of Famers Dick Butkus and halfback Gale Sayers.[13][14][15] Willard believed he was taken as a high draft pick because his draft came during the "Big Back" era, when many teams were looking to model their offense on Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers backfield of Jim Taylor and Paul Hornung; rather than relying on smaller and faster running backs.[16] In addition to Willard, first round running back picks in 1965 included large (for the time) backs like 220-pound Tucker Frederickson (No. 1),[17] 215-pound Donny Anderson (No. 7),[18] and 230-pound Tom Nowatzke (No. 11).[19][20] Willard also believed that the big back style power runners endured longer in the NFL without injuries than smaller faster backs who would make radical cuts while running, or were more likely to be blind-sided.[16]

He played nine seasons with the San Francisco 49ers and one with the St. Louis Cardinals.[1] He opted to pass on his eleventh season after two consecutive years of knee injuries in St. Louis.

Willard was a four-time Pro Bowler, selected in 1965, 1966, 1968 and 1969 and scored 45 rushing and 17 receiving touchdowns. His best year was 1968 when he ran for 967 yards and 7 touchdowns.[1] He was a member of the 49ers when the team won the NFC West title in 1970, 1971 and 1972[21][22][23] and with the Cardinals when they won the division title in 1974.[24]

In 1970, Willard rushed for 85 yards (with two fumbles) and had an 18-yard reception in the 49ers 17–14 win over the Minnesota Vikings in the divisional playoff round,[25] but lost 17–10 against the Dallas Cowboys in the conference championship game (Willard rushing for 42 yards on 13 carries).[26] In the 1971 divisional playoff round between Washington and San Francisco, a 24–20 victory for the 49ers, Willard faced off against former college teammate Chris Hanburger (Willard having 56 total yards from scrimmage);[27] but the 49ers again lost to the Cowboys in the conference championship game, where the 49ers only had 31 offensive plays in the entire game (Willard having only six carries).[28] In 1972, they lost to the Cowboys again, this time in the divisional round, 30–28; but Willard did not play in that game (unlike the previous four games where he was a starter).[29]

On the retirement of Leroy Kelly, Willard became the NFL's active leader in career rushing yards for most of the 1974 season, before being passed by O. J. Simpson in Game 11. He retired with 6,105 rushing yards (then 8th all-time)[30] and 45 rushing touchdowns (tied for 12th).

NFL career statistics

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Regular season

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Year Team GP GS Att Yds TD Rec Yds TD Fum
1965 SF 14 14 189 778 5 32 253 4 7
1966 SF 14 14 191 763 5 42 351 2 7
1967 SF 13 13 169 510 5 23 242 1 1
1968 SF 14 14 227 967 7 36 232 0 4
1969 SF 14 14 171 557 7 36 326 3 6
1970 SF 14 14 236 789 7 31 259 3 3
1971 SF 14 14 216 855 4 27 202 1 8
1972 SF 14 11 100 345 4 24 131 1 3
1973 SF 14 10 83 366 1 22 160 1 2
1974 STL 7 2 40 175 0 4 28 1 0
Career 132 120 1,622 6,105 45 277 2,184 17 41

Postseason

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Year Team GP GS Att Yds TD Rec Yds TD Fum
1970 SF 2 2 40 127 0 3 40 0 2
1971 SF 2 2 25 49 0 2 16 0 0
1974 STL 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Career 5 4 66 176 0 5 56 0 2

Honors

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In 1985, he was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame[2] and was honored as an ACC Football Legend in 2013.[31]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c "Ken Willard Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 29, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c Kenneth Willard. Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved October 14, 2023.
  3. ^ a b Howard, Jonathan (February 25, 2019). "Varina: Ken Willard". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  4. ^ Smith, Sonny (March 19, 1961). "Sonny Smith's Carolina Sports". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. Spartanburg, South Carolina. p. C-2. Retrieved September 9, 2023.
  5. ^ Mann, Jimmy (September 28, 1964). "A Tar Heel Surrenders Money Bags For Pigskin". St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. p. 3-C. Retrieved September 9, 2023.
  6. ^ a b "Ken Willard College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits". Sports Reference. Retrieved September 9, 2023.
  7. ^ "North Carolina Guns Down Air Force Eleven, 35–0". Youngstown Vindicator. Youngstown, Ohio. December 29, 1963. pp. D-1, D-4. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
  8. ^ "No. 6: Chris Hanburger". northcarolina.rivals.com. June 9, 2022. Retrieved March 7, 2025.
  9. ^ "No. 6: Chris Hanburger". northcarolina.rivals.com. June 9, 2022. Retrieved March 7, 2025.
  10. ^ "Chris Hanburger | Pro Football Hall of Fame". pfhof. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  11. ^ (May 19, 2022). Top 40 UNC football and basketball players of all time: No. 25 - Ken Willard. tarheeltimes.com. Retrieved October 14, 2023.
  12. ^ Brown, Daniel; Craig, Roger (2013). 100 Things 49ers Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die. Triumph Books. p. 80. ISBN 1623682754.
  13. ^ "The 1965 NFL Draft, Pro Football Hall of Fame". pfhof. Retrieved March 29, 2025.
  14. ^ "Gale Sayers | Pro Football Hall of Fame". pfhof. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  15. ^ "Dick Butkus | Pro Football Hall of Fame | Pro Football Hall of Fame". pfhof. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  16. ^ a b "WHAT A WAY TO MAKE A LIVING". Sports Illustrated Vault | SI.com. November 16, 1970. Archived from the original on November 28, 2020. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  17. ^ "Tucker Frederickson Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  18. ^ "Donny Anderson Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  19. ^ "Tom Nowatzke Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  20. ^ "1965 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  21. ^ "1971 San Francisco 49ers Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  22. ^ "1970 San Francisco 49ers Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  23. ^ "1972 San Francisco 49ers Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  24. ^ "1974 St. Louis Cardinals Roster & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  25. ^ "Divisional Round - San Francisco 49ers at Minnesota Vikings - December 27th, 1970". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  26. ^ "Championship - Dallas Cowboys at San Francisco 49ers - January 3rd, 1971". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  27. ^ "Divisional Round - Washington Redskins at San Francisco 49ers - December 26th, 1971". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  28. ^ "NFC Championship - San Francisco 49ers at Dallas Cowboys - January 2nd, 1972". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  29. ^ "Divisional Round - Dallas Cowboys at San Francisco 49ers - December 23rd, 1972". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  30. ^ Norris, Luke (September 23, 2020). "Ranking the 3 Players Taken Ahead of Gale Sayers in the 1965 NFL Draft". Sportscasting | Pure Sports. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  31. ^ (September 25, 2013). Willard Named An ACC Legend. go heels.com. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
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