 Ramsey on a 1950 Bowman football card | |||||||||
| No. 20 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Positions | Guard Linebacker | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1920-03-16)March 16, 1920 Townsend, Tennessee, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died | September 16, 2007(2007-09-16) (aged 87) Signal Mountain, Tennessee, U.S. | ||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||
| Listed weight | 219 lb (99 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Knoxville (TN) | ||||||||
| College | William & Mary | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1943: 14th round, 124th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
Playing | |||||||||
Coaching | |||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| Head coaching record | |||||||||
| Regular season | 11–16–1 (.411) | ||||||||
| Coaching profile at Pro Football Reference | |||||||||
Garrard Sliger"Buster" Ramsey (March 16, 1920 – September 16, 2007) was an American professionalfootball player for theCollege of William and Mary andChicago Cardinals. He was defensive coordinator for threeDetroit Lions championship teams in theNational Football League (NFL) in the 1950s before he became the first head coach of theBuffalo Bills in the newAmerican Football League.
After a stint in the United States Navy during World War II, Ramsey played for theChicago Cardinals from 1946 to 1951. During his time there, Ramsey was a member of the 1947 NFL World Championship team.
In 1951, Ramsey served as aplayer-coach for the Cardinals before becoming theDetroit Lions’ defensive coordinator in 1952. During his tenure with the Lions, Ramsey developed the4-3 defense, a staple of modern football. In addition, he was among the first coaches toblitzlinebackers in a package called Red Dog. With Ramsey as defensive coordinator the Lions won three World Championships in the 1950s. He developed a number of Lions greats including future Hall of FamersJack Christiansen,Yale Lary andJoe Schmidt among others.
In 1960,Ralph C. Wilson Jr. purchased the Buffalo Bills franchise in the fledging American Football League. Wilson did so with visions of another 1950s Detroit Lions dynasty -- his new team even adopted their silver-and-blue color scheme. Given his Lions pedigree, Ramsey was considered to be the ideal candidate for the head coach position as one of the first significant hires in the organization.
The Bills struggled to score points in their first two seasons, which often negated their stellar play at the other side of the ball. Ramsey was fired after the1961 AFL season, but not before he laid the foundation for a defense that would become the foundation for 1964 and 1965 league championship teams. He would go on to serve as the defensive coordinator for thePittsburgh Steelers from 1962 to 1964.
Ramsey had a brother,Knox Ramsey, who also played for the College of William and Mary, and later professionally for the Chicago Cardinals andWashington Redskins. Ramsey was elected into theVirginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1974, and theCollege Football Hall of Fame in 1978.
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Ties | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| BUF | 1960 | 5 | 8 | 1 | .393 | 3rd in AFL Eastern | – | – | – | – |
| BUF | 1961 | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 4th in AFL Eastern | – | – | – | – |
| BUF Total | 11 | 16 | 1 | .411 | – | – | – | – | ||
| AFL Total[1] | 11 | 16 | 1 | .411 | – | – | – | – | ||
| Total | 11 | 16 | 1 | .411 | – | – | – | – | ||