Rebels Football Legend Billy Ray Adams Passes Away

Adams stood out as one of the best players in the late 50s and early 60s under coach legendary Johnny Vaught.

Former Ole Miss Rebels fullback Billy Ray Adams passed away on June 1 at the age of 84 at his home in Madison, Mississippi. Adams stood out as one of the best players in the late 50s and early 60s under legendary coach Johnny Vaught.

Adams was also a standout on defense playing cornerback and was a three-year letterman who also earned first-team All-America and All-SEC honors during his senior season in 1961. That year, Adams led the team in rushing yards and scoring, finishing second in the SEC in rushing and leading the league in touchdowns with 10. Adams scored nine rushing touchdowns and one pick-6.

Adams completed his collegiate career with a 5.8 yards per rush average and 1,009 yards on 174 carries. In his senior season, he registered a 6.3 yards per carry average with 575 yards on 91 carries. During his time in Oxford, the Rebels compiled a record of 29-3-1, including a 10-1 record in 1959 with a Sugar Bowl win over LSU.

The Rebels finished the 1960 season as SEC champions at 10-0-1 and was named national champions after the 1959 and 1960 seasons by the various ratings systems used at the time.

The 1960 team was awarded the Grantland Rice trophy for being named National Champions by the Football Writers Association of America. 

Adams was a member of the 1959 SEC Team of the Decade and received an invitation to the 1962 Senior Bowl and to the Coaches All-American Bowl. But, his career came to a sudden end following a 37-7 regular-season finale win over Mississippi State when he was injured in an automobile accident after attending a Jackson Touchdown Club meeting where he had received the Most Valuable Player award. 

Adams was unable to play in the Senior Bowl and the Coaches All-American Bowl due to his injuries, but was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the third round of the 1962 NFL Draft. He was also drafted by the AFL's Houston Oilers, but with injuries suffered in the auto accident, he was unable to continue his football career after college. 

Adams was a native of Columbus, Mississippi where he graduated from Lee High School in 1958. He graduated from Ole Miss in 1962 and was elected to the Associated Student Body Hall of Fame. He added a Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame induction in 1987 and was honored with an induction into the Ole Miss Athletic Hall of Fame in 1990.

In 2003, he was selected as an SEC Legend, representing Ole Miss at the SEC Football Championship game in Atlanta. 

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