Willie Leon Manley (May 20, 1926 – March 13, 2010) 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 Player may refer to: Role or adjective * Player (game), a participant in a game or sport ** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games ** Athlete, a player in sports ** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who i ...

and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

. He was born in

Hollis, Oklahoma Hollis is a city in and the county seat of Harmon County, Oklahoma, Harmon County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 2,060 at the United States Census, 2010, 2010 census. History The city was named for George W. Hollis, a local busine ...

. He lettered for three seasons as

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 ...

at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...

from 1947 to 1949. He was selected in the

1950 NFL draft The 1950 NFL draft was held January 20–21, 1950, at the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia. With the league absorbing the Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns, and San Francisco 49ers from the All-America Football Conference, these three t ...

by 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 ...

and was on their roster in 1950 and 1951. Later from 1953 to '54 he played for the

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at Commonwealth Stadium. The E ...

of the

Western Interprovincial Football Union The West Division is one of the two regional divisions of the Canadian Football League (CFL), its counterpart being the East Division. With a few exceptions, a senior men's football championship has been contested in Western Canada since 1911 ...

. After his playing career was through Manley pursued a coaching career and was a longtime assistant under

Darrell Royal Darrell K Royal (July 6, 1924 – November 7, 2012) was an American college football player, coach, and athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Mississippi State University from 1954 to 1955, the University of Washington ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, first as

offensive line 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 (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line ( ...

coach and later succeeding

Don Breaux Donald Carl Breaux (born August 3, 1940) is an American former professional football player and coach. He played college football at McNeese State College and in the American Football League (AFL). He served two stints as an assistant coach u ...

offensive coordinator An offensive coordinator (OC) is a Coach (sport), coach responsible for a gridiron football team's offense (American football), offense. Generally, the offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second ...

. Royal was Manley's childhood friend and later a high school and college teammate. Manley died in March 2010 in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

References

1926 births 2010 deaths American football offensive guards Colgate Raiders football coaches Edmonton Elks players Green Bay Packers players Louisiana–Monroe Warhawks football coaches Oklahoma Sooners football players Texas Longhorns football coaches Wyoming Cowboys football coaches High school football coaches in Oklahoma People from Hollis, Oklahoma Players of American football from Oklahoma Players of Canadian football from Oklahoma 20th-century American sportsmen {{UOklahoma-stub