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| Position: | Quarterback Halfback Defensive back | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | (1926-04-14)April 14, 1926 Birmingham, Alabama, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died: | August 20, 2016(2016-08-20) (aged 90) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Birmingham (AL) Woodlawn | ||||||||
| College: | Alabama | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1948: 1st round,1st pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Coaching profile at Pro Football Reference | |||||||||
Harry Vincent Gilmer Jr. (April 14, 1926 – August 20, 2016) was an American professionalfootballhalfback andquarterback in theNational Football League (NFL) for theWashington Redskins andDetroit Lions. He was inducted into theCollege Football Hall of Fame in 1993.
Born inBirmingham, Alabama, Gilmer attended and playedhigh school football at itsWoodlawn High School.[2] He often utilized the technique of leaping high into the air to pass the ball because, as a child, he often played pickup games with teammates who were much older and thus taller than he was; Gilmer was then one of the first players to popularize the "jump pass" when he continued using the technique at the collegiate level.[3]
After high school, Gilmer playedcollege football at theUniversity of Alabama, where he was the lefthalfback from1944 to1947. As a freshman, he was 8 for 8 in passing attempts during a loss againstDuke University in theSugar Bowl.[2] Gilmer's best year was his sophomore season, when he led the nation in touchdown passes–thirteen–and he ran for nine touchdowns. He had 79 rushing attempts with an average gain of 7.0 yards and a passing percentage of .648 on 88 attempts. His total offense, 1,457 yards, was second in the nation.[2] Gilmer also spent time as apunter andkickoff returner and, in his junior year, he returned 37 punts; his average, 14.5 yards, led the nation.[2]
During the1945 season, Gilmer led Alabama to theRose Bowl, where they beat theUniversity of Southern California 34–14. In his career, Gilmer passed for 26 touchdowns and ran for 24. He passed for 2,894 yards and rushed for 1,673. His punting average was 36.4 yards. He averaged 28.7 yards on kickoff returns, 13.5 on punt returns.[2] He twice finished fifth in the voting for theHeisman Trophy in both 1945 and 1947.
Gilmer was the first overall pick in the1948 NFL draft, selected by theWashington Redskins, where he played from1948 to1954. He then was traded to theDetroit Lions forBert Zagers and Bob Trout, where he played in1955 and1956 under head coachBuddy Parker.
After retiring as a player, Gilmer became an assistant coach with thePittsburgh Steelers under Parker in1957.[2][4] After four years there and four with theMinnesota Vikings underNorm Van Brocklin, he succeededGeorge Wilson as Lionshead coach in January1965.[4][5][6] His two-year record of 10–16–2 (.393) included a 4–9–11966 campaign.[7] His unpopularity with Lions fans reached a climax after a 28–16 loss to theMinnesota Vikings atTiger Stadium in the regular season finale on December 11, when he was pelted withsnowballs while exiting the field.[8] He was fired in early January 1967,[9] succeeded by assistant coachJoe Schmidt.[7][10][11]
Gilmer was inducted into theAlabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1973[1] and theCollege Football Hall of Fame in 1993. In 1999,Sports Illustrated named him the 37th greatest Alabama sports figure.[12] Gilmer died on August 20, 2016, at the age of 90.[13] Until his death, he lived inSt. Louis[1] along with his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
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