Billy Ray Barnes (born May 14, 1935) 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 ...

player who was a halfback 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). 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 ...

and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

for the

Wake Forest Demon Deacons The Wake Forest Demon Deacons are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Wake Forest University, located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. They compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Assoc ...

. He was a three-time

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...

selection in the NFL. After his playing career, he became a coach.

Early life

Barnes' sports career began at Landis High School where he was a three sport star (

, football and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

) and led his 1953 football team to an undefeated season. The school's football stadium, now serving Corriher-Lipe Middle School, is named in his honor.

College career

In the fall of 1953, Barnes enrolled at

Wake Forest University Wake Forest University (WFU) is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The R ...

. Barnes made the freshman team in 1953 and the varsity team the following year. As a junior in 1955, he led the team in rushing, punt returns, kickoff returns, pass interceptions and pass receptions, setting the ACC record in pass receptions (31) and yards out of the backfield (349). After the 1955 football season ended, he joined the baseball team at

third base A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

where he hit .319, led the league in stolen bases (17) and helped Wake Forest win the 1955 National Baseball Championship. In 1956, Barnes became the first player in the ACC to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a single season when he rushed for 1,010 yards. He was the second leading rusher in the nation, an

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n and 1956 ACC Player of the Year. In 2009, he was inducted into the ACC Football Championship Game Legends Class.

Professional career

Barnes was drafted in the second round of the

1957 NFL draft The 1957 NFL draft had its first four rounds held on November 26, 1956, at the Warwick Hotel in Philadelphia and its final twenty-six rounds on January 31, 1957, at the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel also in Philadelphia. This was the 11th year th ...

by the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

. He made the

his first three years in the league (1957–1959) and was a key member of the backfield during the 1960 NFL Championship Game. During the title game against 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 ...

, Barnes ran the ball 13 times for 42 yards. He had a nine-yard run and key 13-yard pass reception on the game-winning drive, and blocked Packer

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

Bill Quinlan that helped

Ted Dean Theodore Curtis Dean (born February 25, 1938) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Philadelphia Eagles and the Minnesota Vikings. Dean played college football at ...

to score the winning

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

. Following the 1961 season, Barnes was traded to the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...

for center Jim Schrader. He had two good seasons with the Redskins, leading the team in rushing in 1962. Barnes was cut by the Redskins before the start of the 1963 season because of an injury he sustained during the pre-season. In 1965, Barnes returned to the Eagles as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

, but was traded to the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

for a draft choice before the season began. Barnes retired following the 1966 season, and became head coach of the

Continental Football League The Continental Football League (COFL) was a professional American football Minor league football (gridiron), minor league that operated in North America from 1965 through 1969. It was established following the collapse of the original United Fo ...

Charleston Rockets The Charleston Rockets were a professional American football team based in Charleston, West Virginia. They began play in 1964 as a member of the United Football League (1961–1964), United Football League, and became a charter franchise in the ...

in 1968. He eventually became an assistant coach in the NFL, and served as

Norm Van Brocklin Norman Mack Van Brocklin (March 15, 1926 – May 2, 1983), nicknamed "the Dutchman", was an American professional football player, coach and executive. He played as a quarterback and punter in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons. ...

's backfield coach for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

. Barnes was inducted into the Wake Forest University Hall of Fame in 1975 and the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 1979.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barnes, Billy Ray 1935 births Living people American football running backs Atlanta Falcons coaches Continental Football League coaches Minnesota Vikings players Philadelphia Eagles players Wake Forest Demon Deacons football players Washington Redskins players Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players People from Landis, North Carolina Players of American football from Rowan County, North Carolina