Ben Wilson (January 15, 1926 – October 2, 1970) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

player and coach. He served as the head football coach at

Wichita State University Wichita State University (WSU) is a public research university in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. The university offers more than 60 undergraduate degree programs in more than 200 areas of study in ...

from 1969 until three games into the 1970 seasons when he was killed in a plane crash. On October 2, 1970, Wilson and his wife, Helen, were killed along with 14 players on the team and several others during the

Wichita State University football team plane crash In clear and calm weather in Colorado at 1:14 p.m. MDT on Friday, October 2, 1970, a chartered Martin 4-0-4 airliner crashed into a mountain eight miles (13 km) west of Silver Plume. Operated by Golden Eagle Aviation, the twin-engine ...

en route to a game at

Utah State University Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public land-grant research university in Logan, Utah. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. With nearly 20,000 students living on or near campus, USU is Utah's ...

. The remaining team members completed the season under assistant coach

Bob Seaman Joseph Robert Seaman (March 28, 1932 – August 13, 2018) was an American football coach. He served as the head football coach at Wichita State University from 1971 to 1973 and at Emporia State University from 1979 to 1982, compiling a career col ...

.MEMORIAL '70, Wichita State University

Head coaching record

College

References

External links

* 1926 births 1970 deaths People from Cadiz, Ohio Coaches of American football from Ohio Players of American football from Ohio American football centers American football linebackers Heidelberg Student Princes football coaches Heidelberg Student Princes football players Virginia Cavaliers football coaches Wichita State Shockers football coaches High school football coaches in Ohio Accidental deaths in Colorado Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1970 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States {{1960s-collegefootball-coach-stub