William Thomas Briggs (April 6, 1925 – April 19, 2000) was a

Canadian football Canadian football () is a team sport, sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's sco ...

player who played for the

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Commo ...

and

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...

. He won the

Grey Cup The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested be ...

with the Argos in 1947 (

35th Military units *35th Fighter Wing, an air combat unit of the United States Air Force *35th Infantry Division (United States), a formation of the National Guard since World War I *35th Infantry Regiment (United States), a regiment created on 1 July 1 ...

) before moving to Edmonton, where he had three more Grey Cup wins in 1954 (

42nd 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smallest c ...

), 1955 ( 43rd), and 1956 ( 44th). Briggs was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and is often confused with another football player, William John Brigg, who played for the University of Iowa. After retiring from football, Bill pursued several careers, among them a salesman for McLaren Electronics, a master electrician and a minister with the United Church. He held the position of assistant minister at St. Andrews Wesley Church in Vancouver, British Columbia for several years. He died at a hospice in

Penticton Penticton ( ) is a city in the Okanagan Valley of the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada, situated between Okanagan and Skaha lakes. In the 2016 Canadian Census, its population was 33,761, while its census agglomeration The ce ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

in 2000. Briggs was inducted into th
Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum
in 2007, as a member of the 1954-56 Edmonton Eskimos teams.

References

External links

Edmonton Eskimos (1954-55-56)
1925 births 2000 deaths Canadian football running backs Edmonton Elks players Iowa Hawkeyes football players Toronto Argonauts players Players of Canadian football from Ontario Canadian football people from Toronto {{Canadianfootball-bio-stub