Abner Wimberly (May 4, 1926 – September 18, 1976) was an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

player who played three seasons for 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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He also played one season in the

All-America Football Conference The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a major professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many ...

(AAFC) with the

Los Angeles Dons The Los Angeles Dons were an American football team in the newly formed football league the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) from 1946 Los Angeles Dons season, 1946 to 1949 Los Angeles Dons season, 1949, and played their home games in the L ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

. He was inducted into the LSU Athletics Hall of Fame in 1949. Wimberly died on September 18, 1976, in

Oak Ridge, Louisiana Oak Ridge is a village in Morehouse Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 124 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History The earliest inhabitants of the area were different Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Native Ame ...

, from injuries he received in the crash of a private

Piper A piper is a musician, a player of the bagpipe. As a noun proper, Piper may also refer to: People * Piper (given name) * Piper (surname) Arts and entertainment Fictional characters Comics * Piper (Morlock), in the Marvel Universe * P ...

aircraft. He and four other men from Oak Ridge were returning from

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...

where they had attended the

LSU Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

–

Oregon State Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees through all 11 of the universit ...

football game. Upon attempting to land in heavy fog around midnight, the plane crashed and four men died. There was one survivor. Prior to his death, Abner owned a successful wholesale oil products distribution company in Oak Ridge.

References

1926 births 1976 deaths Sportspeople from Morehouse Parish, Louisiana Players of American football from Louisiana American football defensive ends American football ends LSU Tigers football players Green Bay Packers players Los Angeles Dons players Western Conference Pro Bowl players Coaches of American football from Louisiana LSU Tigers football coaches Accidental deaths in Louisiana Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1976 20th-century American sportsmen {{defensive-lineman-1920s-stub