31 Facts About Ralph Wilson

1.

Ralph Wilson was best known as the founder and owner of the Buffalo Bills, a team in the National Football League.

2.

Ralph Wilson was one of the founding owners of the American Football League, the league with which the NFL merged in 1970, and was the last of the original AFL owners to own his team.

3.

Ralph Wilson was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2009.

4.

Ralph Wilson was a 1936 graduate of Detroit University School, now University Liggett School.

5.

Ralph Wilson eventually purchased several manufacturing outlets, construction firms, television and radio stations, and founded Ralph Wilson Industries.

6.

Ralph Wilson tried to put together a team in Miami, but was turned down.

7.

Ralph Wilson was a guiding force in AFL policies that ensured success, such as gate and television revenue sharing.

8.

Ralph Wilson helped keep those franchises afloat, likely saving the entire league from folding.

9.

In 1989, after league commissioner Pete Rozelle announced his retirement, Ralph Wilson was on the six-member committee who was tasked with nominating potential candidates for the open position.

10.

Ralph Wilson was one of the league's most outspoken owners, even near the end of his life.

11.

Ralph Wilson voted against the Cleveland Browns' relocation to Baltimore in 1995.

12.

Ralph Wilson publicly rebuked NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue in an open letter in 1998 over league policy, which disallowed criticism of referees, after poor officiating had a direct impact on a Bills loss that season.

13.

Ralph Wilson was one of two owners to oppose the league's former collective bargaining agreement.

14.

Ralph Wilson retired from the position of president in 2001, giving operational control to General Manager Tom Donahoe; Ralph Wilson retook control of the team's operations in 2006.

15.

Ralph Wilson again retired as team president, this time surrendering all control of the team's operations to Russ Brandon, on January 1,2013.

16.

Ralph Wilson continued to consult with Brandon on team and league operations up until his death.

17.

Ralph Wilson maintained a permanent residence in Grosse Pointe Shores, Michigan with his wife, Mary McLean, whom he met in 1989.

18.

Ralph Wilson had three daughters from his first marriage to Janet McGregor Wilson, two of whom became involved in team business: Linda Bogdan, Pro Football's first female scout, was the franchise's Corporate Vice President until her death.

19.

Ralph Wilson was a 1992 inductee of the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame.

20.

Ralph Wilson broke his hip in a fall at his home in July 2011, causing him to miss the Bills' home opener for the first time in franchise history.

21.

Ralph Wilson issued a statement saying that he was undergoing physical therapy and hoped to attend at least one game during the season.

22.

Ralph Wilson was hospitalized in August and early September 2012 with an unspecified infection and missed the entire 2012 season.

23.

Ralph Wilson died at his home on March 25,2014, of natural causes at the age of 95.

24.

Ralph Wilson's estate held the franchise in trust until its sale to Buffalo Sabres owners Terry and Kim Pegula in September 2014.

25.

On January 31,2009, Ralph Wilson was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame along with former Buffalo Bills defensive end Bruce Smith.

26.

Ralph Wilson was officially inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, August 8,2009, with ESPN icon Chris Berman acting as his "presenter".

27.

Ralph Wilson was scheduled to receive his Hall of Fame ring in a halftime ceremony during the Bills game against the Cleveland Browns on October 11,2009.

28.

However, Ralph Wilson cancelled the event at the last moment, without notifying the press or fans, and no explanation was given.

29.

Ralph Wilson donated US$2.5 million to the construction of a "Pro Football Research and Preservation Center" at the Hall of Fame; the facility was named in Ralph Wilson's honor on August 13,2012.

30.

Ralph Wilson was involved for a number of years in the sport of Thoroughbred horse racing both as a breeder and as an owner in France and the United States.

31.

Ralph Wilson bred Santa Anita Derby winner Jim French, as well as two-year-old European superstar Arazi, winner of the 1991 Breeders' Cup Juvenile and European Horse of the Year.