William Joseph Cesare (born June 2, 1955) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

who played five seasons in 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) with the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

, and

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

. 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 ...

at Memphis and

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

. Cesare also played in the

United States Football League The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...

(USFL).

Early life and college

William Joseph Cesare was born on June 2, 1955, in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. He attended

Miami Beach Senior High School Miami Beach Senior High School (Beach High, MBSH) is a secondary school located at 2231 Prairie Avenue Miami Beach, Florida, across from the Miami Beach Convention Center and Botanical Garden. It is located at the corner of Prairie Avenue and Da ...

Miami Beach, Florida Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. The municipality is located on natural and human-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean ...

. Cesare was a member of the Memphis State Tigers of

Memphis State University The University of Memphis (Memphis) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 20,000 students. The university maintains the Herff Col ...

from 1973 to 1974. He was then a member of the

Miami Hurricanes The Miami Hurricanes, known informally as The U, UM, or The 'Canes, are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida. The Hurricanes compete in NCAA Division I, Division I of the National Coll ...

of the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private university, private research university in Coral Gables, Florida, United States. , the university enrolled 19,852 students in two colleges and ten schools across over ...

from 1975 to 1977.

Professional career

Cesare signed with the

of the

(NFL) after going undrafted in the

1978 NFL draft The 1978 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held May 2–3, 1978, at the Roosevelt Hotel ...

. He was released on September 7 but re-signed on September 11. He played in ten games for the Buccaneers during the 1978 season, recovering one fumble, before being placed on injured reserve on November 30, 1978. Cesare appeared inn all 16 games in 1979 and also two postseason games. He became a free agent after the 1979 season. He mostly played

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their position. Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

during his time with the Buccaneers. Cesare was signed by the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

on March 28, 1980. He voluntarily left the team on August 20, 1980, stating he did not want to play football anymore. He was waived by the Browns on August 21, 1980. Cesare later signed with the

on December 11, 1980. He played in two games for the Dolphins during the 1980 season. He was released on February 1, 1981. Cesare signed with the Buccaneers again on May 1, 1981. He played in all 16 regular season games in 1981 and also one playoff game. He was released on September 6, 1982. Cesare was signed by the

on November 19, 1982. He was placed on injured reserve on December 1 and later activated on December 31, 1982. Overall, he appeared in two regular season games and one postseason game in 1982. Cesare became a free agent after the 1982 season. Cesare signed with the Birmingham Stallions of the

(USFL) on February 28, 1983. He started all 18 games for the Stallions during the 1983 USFL season, recording four interceptions for 52 yards, as Birmingham finished the season 9–9. Cesare played in eight games, starting one, for the

Jacksonville Bulls The Jacksonville Bulls were a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. They were members of the United States Football League (USFL) during its final two seasons, 1984 and 1985. They played their home games in the Gat ...

of the USFL in 1984 and posted one sack. He was waived on April 24, 1984. Cesare was claimed off waivers by the Pittsburgh Maulers on April 25, 1984. He was released on April 28, 1984, before appearing in any games. Cesare signed with the USFL's

New Jersey Generals The New Jersey Generals were a franchise of the United States Football League (USFL) established in 1982 to begin play in the spring and summer of 1983. The team played three seasons from 1983 to 1985, winning 31 regular season games and losing ...

on May 9, 1984. He played in seven games for the Generals in 1984. He was released on February 11, 1985.

Personal life

Cesare became a horse trainer after his football career. He was previously married to tennis player Allegra Pero, daughter of tennis player George Pero.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cesare, William 1955 births Living people American football defensive backs Miami Beach Senior High School alumni Memphis Tigers football players Miami Hurricanes football players Cleveland Browns players Miami Dolphins players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Detroit Lions players Birmingham Stallions players Jacksonville Bulls players New Jersey Generals players Players of American football from New York City Pittsburgh Maulers players American horse trainers