Thomas Edward "Shorty" McWilliams (May 12, 1926 – January 9, 1997) 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 who played one season with the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

of 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 was drafted by 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 ...

in the eighth round of the

1948 NFL draft The 1948 NFL draft was held on December 19, 1947, at the Fort Pitt Hotel in Pittsburgh. This was the second year that the first overall pick was a bonus pick determined by lottery, with the previous year's winner Chicago Bears ineligible from t ...

and the

Los Angeles Dons The Los Angeles Dons were an American football team in the newly formed football league the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) from 1946 Los Angeles Dons season, 1946 to 1949 Los Angeles Dons season, 1949, and played their home games in the L ...

in the 16th round of the 1948 AAFC Draft. 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 ...

Mississippi State University Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Mississippi State, Mississippi, Un ...

and the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

Early life and college

McWilliams attended Meridian High School in

Meridian, Mississippi Meridian is the List of municipalities in Mississippi, eighth most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi, with a population of 35,052 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the county seat of Lauderdale County, Mississippi, ...

. McWilliams first played for the

Mississippi State Bulldogs Mississippi State Bulldogs is the name given to the college athletics, athletic teams of Mississippi State University, in Mississippi State, Mississippi. The university is a founding member of the Southeastern Conference and competes in NCAA D ...

in 1944 and again from 1946 to 1948. He recorded career totals of 1,808 rushing yards and 19 rushing touchdowns for the Bulldogs. In 1944, he was an

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

Second Team

All-American 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 ...

, the Southeastern Conference Player of the Year and ranked tenth in the

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...

vote. McWilliams was a First Team

All-SEC The All-SEC football team is an annual Southeastern Conference (SEC) honor bestowed on the best players in the conference following every college football season. Seasons Following is a list of all-conference teams in the history of the SEC: * ...

selection all four years he played for the Bulldogs. He was inducted into 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 1963 and the Mississippi State Sports Hall of Fame in 1970. In 2014, McWilliams became the sixth Bulldog to be inducted into the Mississippi State Ring of Honor. McWilliams played for the

Army Black Knights The Army Black Knights are the athletic teams that represent the United States Military Academy, located in West Point, New York. The Black Knights compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level as a non-footb ...

of the

in 1945. He was ranked eighth in the Heisman Trophy vote, while the Black Knights finished 9–0 and were named

consensus national champions A national championship in the highest level of college football in the United States, currently the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), is a designation awarded annually by various organizations to their selection of the best co ...

Professional career

McWilliams was drafted by the

with the 62nd pick in the

. McWilliams was drafted by the

with the 101st pick in the 1948 AAFC Draft. He played in 11 games for the Dons in 1949, starting two. McWilliams was selected by the

in the third round of the 1950 AAFC dispersal draft. He played in ten games for the Steelers in 1950. His career was shortened by a knee injury.

Personal life

McWilliams had four daughters and was married to Gloria Weidmann. McWilliams's brother, Billy, played football at Meridian High and

LSU Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

. Shorty became owner of

Weidmann's Restaurant Weidmann's Restaurant is a historic restaurant in Meridian, Mississippi, United States, established in 1870. It was originally listed as a contributing property to the Meridian Urban Center Historic District, listed on the National Register of Hi ...

in Meridian, Mississippi in 1955. He was also a

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

veteran.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McWilliams, Shorty 1926 births 1997 deaths American football defensive backs American football halfbacks American football quarterbacks Mississippi State Bulldogs football players Army Black Knights football players Los Angeles Dons players Pittsburgh Steelers players Players of American football from Mississippi People from Newton, Mississippi United States Army personnel of the Korean War