Wallace Hashim Chambers (May 15, 1951September 22, 2019) 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 ...

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

for the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

and

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

for the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

in the 1970s. He was selected with the eighth overall pick by the Bears in the 1973 NFL Draft out of

Eastern Kentucky University Eastern Kentucky University (Eastern or EKU) is a public university in Richmond, Kentucky. As a regional comprehensive institution, EKU also maintains branch campuses in Corbin, Hazard, Lancaster, and Manchester and offers over 40 online un ...

, and played previous to that for

Mount Clemens High School Mount Clemens High School was established in the 19th century. It is located in Mount Clemens, Michigan, United States. It is a part of Mount Clemens Community Schools. History * 1834 - Mount Clemens Community School District was formed * 185 ...

, where he graduated in 1969.

College

Chambers attended

Professional career

Chambers was chosen as the

NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Various entities present a National Football League Rookie of the Year Award each season to the top rookie(s) in the National Football League (NFL). The NFL considers the (rookie) of the year awards by the Associated Press (AP) to be its official ...

following the

1973 NFL season The 1973 NFL season was the 54th regular season of the National Football League. The season was highlighted by O. J. Simpson becoming the first player to rush for 2,000 yards in one season. The season ended with Super Bowl VIII when the Mi ...

and was selected to play in the

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

three times (1973,

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

and

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

). Chambers was named All-Pro following the 1976 campaign, 1976 NFL linemen of the year, NFC defensive player of the year (1975 and 1976) and also garnered second-team All-Pro honors in 1973, 1974 and 1975.

Coaching career

Following his playing career Chambers coached at the

University of Northern Iowa The University of Northern Iowa (UNI) is a public university in Cedar Falls, Iowa. UNI offers more than 90 majors across the colleges of Business Administration, Education, Humanities, Arts, and Sciences, Social and Behavioral Sciences and grad ...

, at

East Carolina University East Carolina University (ECU) is a public university, public research university in Greenville, North Carolina. It is the fourth largest university in North Carolina. Founded on March 8, 1907, as a Normal school, teacher training school, East ...

, and for the

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

. In 1989 Chambers was a defensive coach for the New York Jets under

Joe Walton Joseph Frank Walton (December 15, 1935 – August 15, 2021) was an American football player and coach who retired after 20 years as the head coach and creator of the football program at Robert Morris University. Walton played eight seasons in t ...

. He then served as the defensive line coach for the WLAF's

Ohio Glory The Ohio Glory were a professional American football team in NFL Europe. They played one season (1992) in the World League of American Football, which later became NFL Europe. Columbus, Ohio was awarded the WLAF franchise after the Raleigh-Dur ...

in their sole season in 1992 under head coach

Larry Little Larry Chatmon Little (born November 2, 1945) is an American former professional football player who was an offensive guard in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Bethune–Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Flori ...

Personal life

Chambers had trouble standing up during the last 10 years of his life due to knee and back problems and spent a great deal of his time in a wheel chair or using a walker. He lived in

Saginaw, Michigan Saginaw () is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the seat of Saginaw County. The city of Saginaw and Saginaw County are both in the area known as Mid-Michigan. Saginaw is adjacent to Saginaw Charter Township and considered part of Greater ...

with his wife Patsy Chambers. Chambers died on September 22, 2019 at the age of 68.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chambers, Wally 1951 births 2019 deaths American football defensive ends American football defensive tackles Chicago Bears players East Carolina Pirates football coaches Eastern Kentucky Colonels football players Ohio Glory coaches New York Jets coaches Northern Iowa Panthers football coaches Tampa Bay Buccaneers players National Conference Pro Bowl players National Football League Defensive Rookie of the Year Award winners Sportspeople from Columbus, Georgia Players of American football from Columbus, Georgia People from Phenix City, Alabama