The Legend Moves On: “Bullet” Bill Dudley
Thursday, February 04 2010 by Tim
Likely the most talked about football player in University of Virginia history, William McGarvey “Bullet Bill” Dudley, passed away this morning.
A native of Bluefield, Virginia, Dudley came to Virginia at the age of 16 on an athletic scholarship. He saw the field some his second year, but it wasn’t until his third year that things really broke out. His senior year was, in a word, amazing.
He was the first Virginia All-American that year, and received the Maxwell Award as the best collegiate player that year – the only Virginia player ever to win the award. From his Wikipedia entry:
Dudley also led the nation in four categories: touchdowns with 18; points scored with 134; rushing average with 6.2 yards a play; and touchdowns responsible for with 29.
He went on to play for the Steelers for a season before heading to the U.S. Army Air Corps. He spent two years serving and then went back to the NFL, playing for the Steelers, the Lions and finally the Redskins. He led the Redskins in scoring all three seasons he played for them.
Since retiring for the NFL, Dudley was a football scout, an insurance agent and a member of the Virginia House of Representatives. Quite an eclectic career for that 16 year old from remote Bluefield, VA (and by remote, i mean remote – head to Blacksburg and then keep going!).
The Downtown Club of Richmond started the Bill Dudley Award in 1990, an award which is given annually to the Commonwealth’s best collegiate football player.
The University of Virginia family lost a great man today, but his legend will certainly live on.