Bill Austin (c. 1937 – 2015)[1] was an American college football and college lacrosse player. He played as a back for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team from 1956 to 1958 and was selected by the Associated Press as a first-team player on the 1958 All-America Team.[2][3] He finished sixth in the voting for the Heisman Trophy in 1958,[4] and he rushed for 2,073 yards and scored 204 points during his college football career at Rutgers.[5] Austin also played lacrosse at Rutgers, earning honorable mention All-American accolades in 1958 and 1959. He was selected by the Washington Redskins in the in the 28th round (329th overall) of the 1959 NFL draft.[6]
| Rutgers Scarlet Knights | |
|---|---|
| Position | Fullback |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | c. 1937 |
| Died: | 2015 (aged 78) |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight | 170 lb (77 kg) |
| Career history | |
| High school | Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
A resident of Camarillo, California who spent most of his professional career as an executive of a number of bicycle manufacturers, Austin grew up in Fanwood, New Jersey and played football at Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School, graduating in 1955.[7][8]
References
edit- ^ "Rutgers football, lax great Bill Austin dies at age 78". APP. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
- ^ "Iowa's Randy Duncan Heads AP's All-American Team". Salisbury Times. Salisbury, Maryland.
- ^ "Randy Hawkins Heads A.P. All-America Team". Reading Eagle. December 4, 1958. p. 34.
- ^ "1958 Heisman Trophy Voting".
- ^ "Rutgers Football All-Americans". Rutgers University. Archived from the original on September 11, 2015. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
- ^ "1959 NFL Draft". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
- ^ O'Gorman, George. "Rutgers' Bill Austin to be honored by NJ Sportswriters", The Trentonian, January 24, 2011. Accessed October 1, 2015. "Now 74 years old and living in Camarillo, Calif. Austin is still a football legend in New Jersey, and especially on the banks of the Raritan.... Austin, a Fanwood native who earned high school stardom at Scotch Plains-Fanwood High, earned All-American honors in two sports at Rutgers as a senior."
- ^ Staff. "New inductees to Scotch Plains-Fanwood H.S. Hall of Fame", Suburban News, October 9, 2014. Accessed October 1, 2015. "Slated for induction are: William Austin. Class of 1955. Bill is in the Rutgers Hall of Fame as an All-American football player, who was drafted by the Washington Redskins."