Billy Neighbors Dies at 72: He 'Meant So Much to Alabama Football,' Says Friend
Billy Neighbors, All-American football star, died Monday at the age of 72. Although the official cause of death is still unknown, he did suffer a heart attack last weekend.
Billy Neighbors, born in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, gained national recognition on the Crimson Tide in 1961, where he played both offense and defense, becoming an All-American. After that, he played for the famous Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant at the University of Alabama as Team Captain and won the championship.
He meant a lot to Alabama football.
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"Billy meant so much to Alabama football over the decades," Alabama Athletic Director Mal Moore, a former teammate of Neighbors, said in a statement. "He was one of our first great players under Coach Bryant, and he had become a tremendous friend to me and everyone in the Alabama family."
College football recognized his contribution to the sport, and he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2003. His accomplishments in college football also helped to further his career in the sport- he played for the Boston Patriots and Miami Dolphins as well.
Neighbors' football prowess and legacy extended to his family. His brother, Sid, two of his sons, Wes and Keith, and a grandson, Wesley, all played for the Crimson Tide.
The 50th anniversary of Neighbors' 1961 championship was last year, and then, he attributed much of the success of the University of Alabama team that year to Coach Bryant, and to team members playing both sides of the ball.
"Coach Bryant was a great defensive coach," he told The Gadsen Times then. "It was unreal. Remember, we had to play both ways. We had to learn how to count to three. [Today] they don't have to."
After his football days, Neighbors' spent 40 years in the securities industry as a successful stockbroker. The change in pace didn't mean he left behind old friends though.
"Billy was easy to like. It was always easy to talk with Billy," said Moore. "We spoke three or four times a week for as far back as I can remember. I have lost a great friend and Alabama certainly lost a legend. It's just a tremendous loss."
A funeral has been scheduled for Friday at 11 a.m. in the sanctuary of First United Methodist Church, and the burial is set for Maple Hill Cemetery.
William Wesley "Billy" Neighbors is survived by his wife Susan; children, Wes, Claire, and Keith; 10 grandchildren; a sister, Mary, and many friends.
