Willie Carroll Townes was an American professional football defensive end in the National Football League.
17 Facts About Willie Townes
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Willie Townes played college football for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane and was selected in the second round of the 1966 NFL draft by the Dallas Cowboys.
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Willie Townes ran track and practiced basketball.
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Willie Townes accepted a football scholarship from Indiana University, but ended up transferring after his freshman year to Coffeyville Junior College.
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Willie Townes would become one of the best defensive linemen in school's history.
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Willie Townes was a two-time All-Missouri Valley Conference selection at defensive tackle in 1964 and 1965.
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Willie Townes passed up his senior year in 1966 to sign with an NFL team, when he became eligible because he was a redshirt player whose class had graduated.
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Willie Townes was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the second round of the 1966 NFL draft and in the first round of the 1966 AFL Redshirt Draft by the Boston Patriots of the American Football League.
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Willie Townes was selected with a future draft pick, which allowed the team to draft him before his college eligibility was over, but Townes instead elected to leave college and sign with the team.
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Willie Townes started his professional career as a defensive tackle, but in the middle of his rookie season, he was moved to left defensive end, replacing Larry Stephens in the starting lineup after the seventh game.
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Willie Townes is perhaps best known for causing Bart Starr to fumble in the 1967 NFL Championship Game, commonly known as the Ice Bowl.
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Willie Townes played in only five games during the 1968 season, after suffering a serious hamstring injury and was replaced in the starting lineup by rookie Larry Cole, who would not relinquish the position back.
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Willie Townes missed the entire 1969 season due to the same injury.
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Willie Townes was released on January 25,1971, after appearing in just six games with the New Orleans Saints.
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Willie Townes fell out of favor when coach Tom Fears was fired midway through the 1970 season and replaced by JD Roberts, who disdained the aging, mostly over-the-hill players stockpiled by Fears.
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Willie Townes finished his NFL career after he was released by the New York Giants on August 24,1971.
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Willie Townes died from a heart attack on July 22,2017, in Dallas, one day after his 74th birthday.