Jerome Ralph Williams (November 1, 1923 – December 31, 1998) was an American

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

player and coach who served as the head coach of two

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a c ...

(CFL) teams, as well as the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team play ...

of 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 majo ...

(NFL).

Early life

Williams was a native of

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the ...

. He attended

North Central High School North Central High School may refer to one of many high school in the United States: * North Central High School (Farmersburg, Indiana) *North Central High School (Indianapolis) * North Central High School (Louisiana), Lebeau, Louisiana * North Ce ...

where he was an all-city running back and All-Inland Empire Athlete of the Year (1942) as a three-sport athlete. Graduating in 1942, Williams enrolled at the

University of Idaho The University of Idaho (U of I, or UIdaho) is a public land-grant research university in Moscow, Idaho. It is the state's land-grant and primary research university,, and the lead university in the Idaho Space Grant Consortium. The Universit ...

, but with the war efforts building he made the decision to join his older brother, William H. Williams (eventual Chief Justice of the Washington State Supreme Court) in the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical r ...

. Williams became a fighter pilot flying P-38s in the Pacific theater. One of his most notable missions was as a fighter escort to both Japanese and American dignitaries traveling to

Tokyo Bay is a bay located in the southern Kantō region of Japan, and spans the coasts of Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture. Tokyo Bay is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the Uraga Channel. The Tokyo Bay region is both the most populou ...

and the peace signing on the in 1945. Returning from the war efforts, Williams enrolled at

Washington State University Washington State University (Washington State, WSU, or informally Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university with its flagship, and oldest, campus in Pullman, Washington. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant uni ...

, where he played both offense and defensive halfback for the

Cougars The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large cat native to the Americas. Its range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere. ...

from 1946 to 1948. He set the

Pacific Coast Conference The Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) was a college athletic conference in the United States which existed from 1915 to 1959. Though the Pac-12 Conference claims the PCC's history as part of its own, with eight of the ten PCC members (including ...

kickoff return record and led the Cougars in total offense in his senior season at WSU. Most notable was a punt return of 97 yards against

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

in 1947 and kickoff returns of 88 and 87 yards against

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...

and

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. In Williams' senior season (1948) he earned All-Coast honors accumulating 1,500 all-purpose yards. He participated in both the

East–West Shrine Game East West (or East and West) may refer to: * East–West dichotomy, the contrast between Eastern and Western society or culture Arts and entertainment Books, journals and magazines *''East, West'', an anthology of short stories written by Salm ...

and College All-Star Classic before joining the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC Wes ...

of the

(NFL).

Professional career

Playing career

Drafted in the seventh round of the

1949 NFL Draft The 1949 National Football League Draft was held on December 21, 1948, at The Bellevue-Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia. The draft was preceded by a secret draft meeting held November 15, 1948, at the Hotel Schenley in Pittsburgh. This was the ...

by the

, Williams played four seasons with the team, seeing most of his action as a defensive back. During his first three seasons the Rams made three consecutive trips to the NFL title game winning the 1951 NFL Championship. In his first season Williams intercepted five passes. The most memorable image of his Rams career however came in the 1951 regular season finale against the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. It is the t ...

on December 16. Following a missed Packer field goal Williams returned the attempt 99 yards for a touchdown, a record that stood until the 1971 season when Williams coached,

Al Nelson Albert "Al" Nelson (born October 27, 1943) is a former professional American football cornerback in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons for the Philadelphia Eagles. He played college football at the University of Cincinnati and ...

had a 102-yard missed field goal return, when rule changes allowed for missed field goal attempts into the end zone to be returned. Williams' desire to play on the offensive side of the ball led to his request to be traded and on May 12, 1953, Williams was sent to the

. He proceeded to lead the Eagles in total offense during his first season and in his two years caught 75 passes, rushed for over 500 yards and scored eight touchdowns. Williams served in the capacity of player-coach in 1954 before leaving the playing field for the coaching ranks.

Coaching career

Officially entering the coaching ranks the following year Williams became the head coach at the

University of Montana The University of Montana (UM) is a public research university in Missoula, Montana. UM is a flagship institution of the Montana University System and its second largest campus. UM reported 10,962 undergraduate and graduate students in the fa ...

where in three seasons his teams, while known for their competitiveness went 6–21 overall. Football wasn't the only endeavor that led to close calls for Williams as he escaped with his life on two separate occasions during harrowing crash landings of small aircraft. While piloting a private plane on May 24, 1956, Williams and assistant Lauri Niemi were knocked unconscious in a crash near the

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Monta ...

border when they were forced, through bad weather, to attempt a landing on a rural mountain road. And again on October 3, 1957, Williams with 14 of his players, while en route to

Provo, Utah Provo ( ) is the List of cities and towns in Utah, fourth-largest city in Utah, United States. It is south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the largest city and county seat of Utah County, Utah, Utah County and is home to Bri ...

to face the Brigham Young Cougars, were forced down for yet another emergency landing. After the 1957 season Williams returned to Philadelphia to serve as the Philadelphia Eagles defensive back coach under head coach

Buck Shaw Lawrence Timothy "Buck" Shaw (March 28, 1899 – March 19, 1977) was an American football player and coach. He was the head coach for Santa Clara Broncos football, Santa Clara University, the California Golden Bears football, University of Califor ...

with the team capturing the 1960 NFL Championship in a thrilling 17–13 victory over

Vince Lombardi Vincent Thomas Lombardi (June 11, 1913 – September 3, 1970) was an American football coach and executive in the National Football League (NFL). Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history, and he is recognized a ...

. It was also during this season that Williams came up with one of his most notable contributions to the game, devising the "nickel" defensive scheme, a scheme still employed by most football programs today. Shaw retired after the 1960 season but new coach

Nick Skorich Nicholas Leonard Skorich (June 26, 1921 – October 2, 2004) was an American football player and coach. Skorich played guard at Bellaire High School and the University of Cincinnati before joining the United States Navy in 1943. After the end ...

kept Williams on his staff until their dismissal at the conclusion of the 1963 season. New ownership and the arrival of a new coach and general manager in

Joe Kuharich Joseph Lawrence Kuharich (April 14, 1917 – January 25, 1981) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of San Francisco from 1948 to 1951, and at the University of Notre Dame from 1959 ...

led to Williams accepting an assistant coaching position with the

Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium and are the third-o ...

of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Shortly after the conclusion of the 1964 season Williams was elevated to head coach and compiled a 40–23–1 record over the next four years. He earned

CFL Coach of the Year The Annis Stukus Trophy is a Canadian Football League trophy, which is presented annually by the Edmonton Eskimos Alumni Association to the Coach of the Year, as determined by the members of the Football Reporters of Canada. The Trophy is named aft ...

honors in 1967. His teams reached the playoffs three times and competed in the 1968

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 ...

(the first time in 19 years) On May 9, 1969, after another ownership change in Philadelphia, Williams was hired as the Eagles new head coach. While building a competitive team with minimal talent Williams endured but a 7–22–2 record during his first two seasons. After promises by owner Leonard Tose to honor William's 3-year contract Tose released Williams after just the first three games of the '71 pre-season. Tose was the recipient of Williams' parting disdain calling the owner "a man without courage or character", words that would likely cost Williams a second head coaching opportunity in the NFL. Williams was replaced by

Ed Khayat Edward Michel Khayat (born September 14, 1935) is a thirty-five year National Football League veteran, ten years as a player (117 game total) and twenty-five as a coach. He was a starting defensive tackle for the victorious Philadelphia Eagles i ...

, and finished the 1971 season as an assistant with the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conferenc ...

. On January 19, 1972, Williams returned to the CFL when he was named head coach of the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Tim Hortons Fie ...

. In just his first season the Ti-Cats reached the pinnacle of Canadian professional football, winning the Grey Cup in a 13–10 thriller over the Western Conference champion Saskatchewan Roughriders. Williams resigned after four seasons with the Tiger-Cats on December 12, 1975, following a 5–10–1 season. In his four years with Hamilton, Williams compiled a 30–29–1 record and a Grey Cup title. After briefly turning to ranching in Arizona, Williams made one last foray into football, returning as offensive coordinator with the

. He was later promoted to head coach on October 5, 1981, upon the firing of

Ardell Wiegandt Ardell Leonard Wiegandt (born June 28, 1940) is a former Canadian football coach. He was the coach of the Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete i ...

but once again retired from coaching football after that season, finishing out the 1981 season with a 1–3 record (the Stampeders finished 6–10 overall). He returned to Arizona to become part owner in a flight charter service and enjoy retirement in Prescott and later, Chandler.

Death

In 1990 Jerry was diagnosed with a rare form of

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

and spent two months in the hospital eventually making a full recovery. By 1998 however his health began to fail and on December 31 he died at his home in Chandler, Arizona with his wife, middle son and youngest daughter by his side.

Head coaching record

College

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Jerry 1923 births 1998 deaths American football defensive backs Calgary Stampeders coaches Cleveland Browns coaches Hamilton Tiger-Cats coaches Los Angeles Rams players Montana Grizzlies football coaches Philadelphia Eagles players Philadelphia Eagles coaches Washington State Cougars football players United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II United States Army Air Forces officers Players of American football from Spokane, Washington Deaths from cancer in Arizona Deaths from leukemia Philadelphia Eagles head coaches