William Layton Roaf (born April 18, 1970), nicknamed "Nasty", 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 an offensive tackle 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) for 13 seasons. 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 ...

for Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, where he earned consensus

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 ...

honors. He was a first-round pick in the 1993 NFL draft, and played professionally for the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

and Kansas City Chiefs of the NFL. An 11-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 and nine-time All-Pro, he was enshrined in the

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional football (gridiron), professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, 1963, the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of profes ...

in 2012 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2014.

Early life

Roaf was born in

Pine Bluff, Arkansas Pine Bluff, officially the City of Pine Bluff, is the List of municipalities in Arkansas, tenth-most populous city in the U.S. state of Arkansas and the county seat of Jefferson County, Arkansas, Jefferson County. The population of the city wa ...

.National Football League, Historical Players
Willie Roaf
. Retrieved February 15, 2012. He graduated from Pine Bluff High School,databaseFootball.com, Players, . Retrieved February 15, 2012. where he played for the Pine Bluff Zebras

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

and basketball teams. He was lightly recruited out of high school, and even considered pursuing basketball instead of football in college. His father, Clifton George Roaf, was a dentist and his mother, Andree Layton Roaf, was the first black woman to serve on the

Arkansas Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Arkansas is the highest court in the state judiciary of Arkansas. It has ultimate and largely discretionary appellate jurisdiction over all state court cases that involve a point of state law, and original jurisdiction ...

."Andree Yvonne Layton Roaf (1941–)"
at ''Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture'' (retrieved July 1, 2009)."Andree Layton Roaf, first black woman to serve on Arkansas Supreme Court, dies at 68"
,

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 ...

at KFSM-TV website, July 1, 2009.

College career

Roaf received an athletic scholarship to attend

Louisiana Tech University Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public university, public research university in Ruston, Louisiana, United States. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and Carnegie Classification of Institu ...

, where he had an outstanding career for the Bulldogs from 1989 to 1992. Known for his blocking ability and his considerable speed for his size, he was recognized as a consensus first-team

, and was also a finalist in his senior year for the

Outland Trophy The Outland Trophy is awarded to the best 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 g ...

for the best offensive lineman in college. Roaf made appearances in the Hula Bowl and the East–West Shrine Game.

Professional career

He began his professional football career with the NFL's

, who selected him with the eighth pick of the first round in the 1993 NFL draft. The draft pick was acquired from the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

for the rights to Pat Swilling. Roaf played nine seasons for the Saints;Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players
Willie Roaf
. Retrieved February 15, 2012. he was named to seven

s, and won a spot on both the NFL 1990s All-Decade Team and the 2000s All-Decade Team, making him the most awarded player in Saints history. Roaf suffered a season-ending injury in 2001 and then was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs in March 2002 for a conditional draft choice. He played four more seasons with the Chiefs, and was selected for the

in each of those four years, for a total of 11 Pro Bowl selections. His election to the Pro Football Hall of Fame was announced on February 4, 2012. Roaf played a pivotal role in the run block on the offense with the most rushing touchdowns back to back seasons in NFL history. #1,4 & 5. On July 28, 2006, Roaf told the '' Kansas City Star'' that he was retiring from football. General manager Carl Peterson said he was holding out hoping that Roaf would reverse his decision, but Roaf said he was "solid" on retirement. In 2009 Roaf took his first coaching job, as the offensive line coach at Santa Monica College in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

. Roaf has been elected to Sports Halls of Fame for Louisiana Tech Athletics (in 2003), Arkansas (in 2007), Louisiana (in 2009), Greater New Orleans (in 2012), and the New Orleans Saints (in 2008). East West Shrine (2018) He was elected to the

on February 4, 2012, in his second year of eligibility. Roaf went into the Saints Ring of Honor (2013) Arkansas Black Hall of Fame along with his mother, a legacy inductee. (2013) Roaf was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2014. Roaf is also in the Kansas Chiefs Chiefs Hall of Honor (2011), was as NFL 100th Anniversary Team finalist (2019), and has been inducted to the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame (2022).

Personal life

Roaf has two sisters and one brother. His sister Phoebe Alison Roaf is the Episcopal Bishop for the Diocese of West Tennessee. Roaf has four children and one step daughter. He is married to Angela Hernandez Roaf.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Roaf, Willie 1970 births Living people All-American college football players American Conference Pro Bowl players American football offensive tackles College Football Hall of Fame inductees Kansas City Chiefs players Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football players National Conference Pro Bowl players New Orleans Saints players Players of American football from Pine Bluff, Arkansas African-American Episcopalians American Episcopalians Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen