Ken Willard

Kenneth Henderson Willard (born July 14, 1943) is an American former professional football player who was a running back/fullback in the National Football League (NFL), where he was a four-time Pro Bowler with the San Francisco 49ers in the 1960s. College career Willard received a football scholarship from the University of North Carolina in 1961 after turning down a $100,000 offer to play baseball for the Boston Red Sox. He played for the Tar Heels from 1962 to 1964, where he led the Atlantic Coast Conference in rushing yards in 1963 and was named MVP of the same year's Gator Bowl. He received All-ACC honors in 1963 and 1964 and was selected to the College Football All-America second-team in 1964. He was also a member of the UNC baseball team, where he led the ACC in home runs two times and is unofficially credited with the longest home run in Tar Heel history at an estimated . Professional career Willard was drafted with the second pick of the 1965 NFL Draft, by the San Francisco 49ers ahead of future NFL Hall of Famers Dick Butkus and Gale Sayers. He played nine seasons with the San Francisco 49ers and one with the St. Louis Cardinals. He opted to pass on his eleventh season after two consecutive years of knee injuries in St. Louis.