Ernest Warriner Williamson (September 9, 1922 – March 6, 2002) 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 play professional as a tackle in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) for the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

and

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

and in the

All-America Football Conference The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the ...

(AAFC) for the

Los Angeles Dons The Los Angeles Dons were an American football team in the newly formed football league the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) from 1946 to 1949, and played their home games in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The Dons were the first profes ...

. Williamson played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

. He served as the head football coach at Sewanee: The University of the South in

Sewanee, Tennessee Sewanee () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Franklin County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 2,535 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Tullahoma, Tennessee Micropolitan Statistical Area. Sewanee is best known as the home of ...

from 1954 to 1956, compiling a record of 2–22–1.

Early life and college career

Williamson was born in

Crewe, Virginia Crewe is a town in Nottoway County, Virginia, United States. The population was 2,326 at the 2010 census. History Crewe was founded in 1888 as a central location to house steam locomotive repair shops for the Norfolk & Western Railroad (now call ...

and attended Crewe High School. After graduating high school, he enlisted in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

and became a member of the

Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football The Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football represented the Naval Station Great Lakes, the United States Navy's boot camp located near North Chicago, Illinois, in college football. The 1918 Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football team compiled a 6–0 ...

team and he played for coach

Paul Brown Paul Eugene Brown (September 7, 1908 – August 5, 1991) was an American football coach and executive in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) and National Football League (NFL). Brown was both the co-founder and first coach of the Clevela ...

. He served in the South Pacific during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. After attending

The Apprentice School The Apprentice School is a four to eight-year apprenticeship vocational school founded in 1919 and operated by Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company in Newport News in the U.S. state of Virginia. The school trains students for careers in ...

Newport News, Virginia Newport News () is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the 5th most populous city in Virginia and 140th most populous city in the Uni ...

, Williamson attended and played

at the

(UNC) in 1946. The

1946 North Carolina Tar Heels football team The 1946 North Carolina Tar Heels football team was an American football team that represented the University of North Carolina in the Southern Conference during the 1946 college football season. In their fourth year under head coach Carl Snavely ...

won the

Southern Conference The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly ...

title and lost to

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

in the

Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...

. Williamson received an undergraduate degree in 1951 and a master's degree from UNC in 1952, both in physical education.

Professional career

Williamson was drafted in the tenth round of the

1947 NFL Draft The 1947 National Football League Draft was held on December 16, 1946, at the Commodore Hotel in New York City, New York. The National Football League in this draft made the first overall pick, a bonus pick determined by lottery. The Chicago B ...

by the

. He then played for the

and the

of the

(AAFC), before a knee-injury ended his playing career.

Coaching and administrative career

In 1952, Williamson was hired as line coach for the football team and head coach for the

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

team at Sewanee: The University of the South in

. He served as an assistant football coach for two seasons before succeeding William C. White as head coach of the

Sewanee Tigers football The Sewanee Tigers football team represents Sewanee: The University of the South in the sport of American football. The Tigers compete in NCAA Division III as members of the Southern Athletic Association. Three Sewanee Tigers are members of the ...

in 1954. In 1957, Williamson returned to the University of North Carolina to head the Educational Foundation, a foundation that raises money for scholarships for student-athletes, which he led for three decades. Williamson received the William R. Davie Award from the UNC Board of Trustees in 1986 to recognize his distinguished service to the University. He also was the recipient of a Priceless Gem from the Department of Athletics in 1982 and a Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1997.

Death

Williamson died on March 6, 2002, in

Chapel Hill, North Carolina Chapel Hill is a town in Orange, Durham and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Its population was 61,960 in the 2020 census, making Chapel Hill the 17th-largest municipality in the state. Chapel Hill, Durham, and the state ca ...

, after suffering a stroke.

Head coaching record

College football

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Williamson, Ernie 1922 births 2002 deaths American football tackles Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football players Los Angeles Dons players New York Giants players North Carolina Tar Heels football players Sewanee Tigers football coaches Washington Redskins players College track and field coaches in the United States College wrestling coaches in the United States United States Navy personnel of World War II People from Crewe, Virginia Coaches of American football from Virginia Players of American football from Virginia