Dale Barnard Waters (May 27, 1909 – December 19, 2001), nicknamed "Muddy" Waters, was an American college and professional football player who was an

offensive Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...

and

defensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...

(NFL) for three seasons during the early 1930s. Waters played college football for the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

, and thereafter, he played for three different NFL teams.

Early years

Waters was born in

Henry County, Indiana Henry County is a county located in east central Indiana, United States. As of 2020, the population was 48,914. The county seat and largest and only city is New Castle. Henry County is the main setting of the novel '' Raintree County'' by Ross ...

in 1909.Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players
Dale Waters
Retrieved July 23, 2010. He attended Newcastle High School in

Newcastle Township, Fulton County, Indiana Newcastle Township is one of eight townships in Fulton County, Indiana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 1,398 and it contained 547 housing units. History The John Haimbaugh Round Barn was listed on the National Register of Historic Pla ...

.databaseFootball.com, Players
Dale Waters
Retrieved July 23, 2010.

College career

Waters attended the

in Gainesville, Florida, where he was an

and

and varsity letterman for coach

Charlie Bachman Charles William Bachman Jr. (December 1, 1892 – December 14, 1985) was an American college football player and head coach. Bachman was an Illinois native and an alumnus of the University of Notre Dame, where he played college football. He s ...

Florida Gators football The Florida Gators football program represents the University of Florida (UF) in American college football. Florida competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division ...

team in

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhano ...

1929 This year marked the end of a period known in American history as the Roaring Twenties after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 ushered in a worldwide Great Depression. In the Americas, an agreement was brokered to end the Cristero War, a Catholi ...

and

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be ...

.
2014 Florida Gators Football Media Guide
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, p. 96, 183 (2014). Retrieved September 3, 2014. When he first reported to the freshman team, he weighed just 165 pounds. Waters was a member of the 1928 Gators team which led the nation in scoring and finished 8–1, losing only to the

Tennessee Volunteers The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the 20 male and female varsity intercollegiate athletics programs that represent the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers compete in Division I of the National Collegi ...

by a single point, 13–12. Following his 1930 senior season, he received honorable mention All-American honors from the Associated Press. He was also a

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

for the Florida Gators basketball team, lettering in 1929, 1930 and 1931, and serving as the Gators' team captain as a senior in 1931. He was rated as one of the best guards in the south. Waters graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in physical education in 1935.

Professional career

Waters became a professional football offensive lineman for the NFL's

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive ...

(),

Portsmouth Spartans The professional American football team now known as the Detroit Lions previously played in Portsmouth, Ohio, as the Portsmouth Spartans, from its founding in 1928 to its relocation to Detroit in 1934. Originally drawing players from defunct indepe ...

(), and the Boston Braves/Redskins (–).National Football League, Historical Players
Dale Waters
Retrieved May 31, 2010. During his three-season NFL career, Waters played in twenty-seven regular season NFL games, and started in twelve of them.

Coaching and administrative career

Waters spent many years at Texas Western University (now the

University of Texas at El Paso The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a public research university in El Paso, Texas. It is a member of the University of Texas System. UTEP is the second-largest university in the United States to have a majority Mexican American stude ...

) as the men's basketball head coach and an assistant football coach, also earning a master's degree at the school. In 1957 he became El Paso's district athletic director.

References

Bibliography

* Carlson, Norm, ''University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators'', Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). . * Golenbock, Peter, ''Go Gators! An Oral History of Florida's Pursuit of Gridiron Glory'', Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida (2002). . * Hairston, Jack, ''Tales from the Gator Swamp: A Collection of the Greatest Gator Stories Ever Told'', Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois (2002). . * McCarthy, Kevin M.,
Fightin' Gators: A History of University of Florida Football
', Arcadia Publishing, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (2000). . * McEwen, Tom, ''The Gators: A Story of Florida Football'', The Strode Publishers, Huntsville, Alabama (1974). . * Nash, Noel, ed., ''The Gainesville Sun Presents The Greatest Moments in Florida Gators Football'', Sports Publishing, Inc., Champaign, Illinois (1998). . {{DEFAULTSORT:Waters, Dale 1909 births 2001 deaths All-Southern college football players American football offensive linemen Basketball coaches from Indiana Basketball players from Indiana Cleveland Indians (NFL 1931) players College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Boston Braves (NFL) players Boston Redskins players Florida Gators football players Florida Gators men's basketball players People from Henry County, Indiana Players of American football from Indiana Portsmouth Spartans players University of Texas at El Paso alumni UTEP Miners football coaches UTEP Miners men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players Guards (basketball)