Tom Wilson (February 24, 1944 – August 10, 2016) 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 wi ...

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

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

and collegiate level. He was the head football coach at

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

team from 1978 to 1981.

Playing career

Wilson played

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

at Corsicana High School under coach Jim Acree. He graduated in 1962. He played college football at

Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sy ...

under coach J. T. King.

Coaching career

Following his graduation from Texas Tech in 1966, Wilson became an assistant coach at Texas Tech under King and

Jim Carlen James Anthony Carlen III (July 11, 1933 – July 22, 2012) was an American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at West Virginia University (1966–1969) and Texas Tech University (19 ...

, before heading to

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

to join the coaching staff of

Emory Bellard Emory Dilworth Bellard (December 17, 1927 – February 10, 2011) was a college football coach. He was head coach at Texas A&M University from 1972 to 1978 and at Mississippi State University from 1979 until 1985. Bellard died on February 10, 2011 ...

. After Bellard resigned in the midst of the 1978 season, Wilson was appointed head coach of the Aggies on October 24, 1978. He led the Aggies to a win in the 1981 Independence Bowl. He amassed a record of 21–19 during his three and a half seasons, before being replaced by

Jackie Sherrill Jackie Wayne Sherrill (born November 28, 1943) is a former American football player and coach. He was the head football coach at Washington State University (1976), the University of Pittsburgh (1977–1981), Texas A&M University (1982–1988), a ...

in 1982. In 1984 Wilson returned to his alma mater as offensive coordinator under Jerry Moore. Moore had coached Wilson at Corsicana as an assistant under Acree. In 1986, Wilson left the collegiate ranks, coaching at Palestine High School. Finally, in 1993, he took over head coaching duties at his alma mater Corsicana, coaching the Tigers until his retirement in 1999. As a proponent of the running game, Wilson permitted Ketric Sanford to carry the ball 1,058 times during his career at Corsicana (1993–1995), which is third all-time in Texas behind

Robert Strait Robert Strait (born November 14, 1969) is a former American football running back. Strait is considered one of the best high-school football players in Texas history. While playing at Cuero High School from 1985–88, Strait rushed for 8,411 ya ...

and

Billy Sims Billy Ray Sims (born September 18, 1955) is a former American college and professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for five seasons during the 1980s. Sims played college football for the Uni ...

. Wilson guided Corsicana to the 1997 4A Division I state championship game versus

Texas City Texas City is a city in Galveston County in the U.S. state of Texas. Located on the southwest shoreline of Galveston Bay, Texas City is a busy deepwater port on Texas's Gulf Coast, as well as a petroleum-refining and petrochemical-manufacturing ...

, but lost 34–37.

Head coaching record

College

*Wilson took over from Bellard after 6 games

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Tom 1944 births 2016 deaths American football quarterbacks Texas Tech Red Raiders football coaches Texas Tech Red Raiders football players Texas A&M Aggies football coaches High school football coaches in Texas People from Corsicana, Texas Players of American football from Texas