William Elton "Bucky" Moore (May 5, 1905 – December 18, 1980) was an American 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 played two 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

Chicago Cardinals The professional American football team now known as the Arizona Cardinals previously played in Chicago, Illinois, as the Chicago Cardinals from 1898 to 1959 before relocating to St. Louis, Missouri, for the 1960 through 1987 seasons. Roots ca ...

and

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

. He played

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at Loyola College of New Orleans. Moore was nicknamed "the Dixie Flyer".

Early life

William Elton Moore was born on May 5, 1905, in

McComb, Mississippi McComb is a city in Pike County, Mississippi, United States. The city is approximately south of Jackson. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 12,790. It is the principal city of the McComb, Mississippi Micropolitan Statis ...

. He attended

McComb High School McComb High School is a public school in McComb, Mississippi, United States, serving 740 students in grades 912, as of 2017. Most of its students are African American. During segregation, black students attended Burlund High School, now Higgins Mi ...

in McComb and Poplarville High School in

Poplarville, Mississippi Poplarville is a city and the county seat of Pearl River County, Mississippi, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 2,894. It hosts an annual Blueberry Jubilee, which includes rides, craft vendors and rodeos. History Pop ...

College career

Moore played

for the

Loyola Wolf Pack The Loyola Wolf Pack are the athletic teams representing Loyola University New Orleans in intercollegiate athletics. The Wolf Pack are a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing in the Southern ...

of Loyola College of New Orleans. He was on the freshman team in 1925 and was a three-year

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from 1926 to 1928. In 1926, he rushed for 1,131 yards, breaking the single season national record previously held by

Red Grange Harold Edward "Red" Grange (June 13, 1903 – January 28, 1991), nicknamed "the Galloping Ghost" and "the Wheaton Iceman", was an American professional American football, football Halfback (American football), halfback who played for the Chicag ...

. The 1926 Wolf Pack outscored their opponents 355 to 30 and had a perfect 10–0 record. Moore was injured for most of the 1927 season. In 1928, he had a 93-yard run against Spring Hill and a 98-yard run against

Ole Miss OLE, Ole or Olé may refer to: * Olé, a cheering expression used in Spain * Ole (name), a male given name, includes a list of people named Ole * Overhead lines equipment, used to transmit electrical energy to trams, trolleybuses or trains Co ...

. He was inducted into the Loyola Wolf Pack Hall of Fame in 1964, the

Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum is located in Jackson, Mississippi. The hall of fame was established in 1961 and is currently located in a museum that displays the achievements of Mississippi athletes. The museum opened on July 4, ...

in 1965, and the Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame in 1979.

Professional career

Moore played for the semi-professional Memphis Tigers in 1929. On December 15, 1929, he scored a receiving touchdown in a 20–6 exhibition game victory over the 1929 Green Bay Packers, who were 12–0–1 during the

1929 NFL season The 1929 NFL Season was the tenth regular season of the National Football League. The league increased back to 12 teams with the addition of the Staten Island Stapletons, Orange Tornadoes and Minneapolis Red Jackets and the re-entry of the ...

. Moore also scored a receiving touchdown in a 16–6 Tigers' victory over the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

. Moore signed with the

of the

in 1932. He played in four games, all starts, for the Cardinals during the 1932 season, rushing 21 times for 42 yards and one touchdown while also catching two passes for eight yards. He became a free agent after the season. Moore was signed by the

of the NFL in 1933. He appeared in five games, starting three, for the Pirates during the team's inaugural 1933 season, recording 16 carries for 42 yards. He was released in 1933. Moore played in four games, starting three, for the Louisville Bourbons of the

American Football League The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, AFL–NFL merger, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Foot ...

in 1934, scoring one rushing touchdown and one passing touchdown.

Personal life

Moore was nicknamed "the Dixie Flyer" during his football career. At one point, he was so popular that Elmer Chocolate based out of

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

named a candy bar after him, called "Dixie's Best". He died on December 18, 1980, in McComb, Mississippi.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moore, Bucky 1905 births 1980 deaths Players of American football from Mississippi American football halfbacks American football defensive backs Loyola Wolf Pack football players Chicago Cardinals players Pittsburgh Pirates (football) players People from McComb, Mississippi American Football League (1934) players