American football executive (1918-2014)
American football player
Ralph Cookerly Wilson Jr.
(October 17, 1918 ? March 25, 2014) was an American businessman and sports executive. He was best known as the founder and owner of the
Buffalo Bills
, a team in the
National Football League
(NFL). He was one of the
founding owners
of the
American Football League
(AFL), the league with which the NFL merged in 1970, and was the last of the original AFL owners to own his team. At the time of his death he was the oldest owner in the NFL, at age 95, and the third-longest tenured owner in NFL history (over 54 years, behind the 63 years
George Halas
owned the
Chicago Bears
and almost equal to the 55 years
Art Rooney
owned the
Pittsburgh Steelers
,
[1]
although Rooney's ownership and team operations were interrupted in the 1940s due to some complicated dealings).
[2]
He was inducted into the
Pro Football Hall of Fame
in 2009.
Career
[
edit
]
Wilson grew up in
Detroit, Michigan
, the son of salesman Ralph Wilson Sr. and his wife Edith Cole.
[3]
Choosing to go out of state to attend the
University of Virginia
(where he joined the
Phi Delta Theta
fraternity), Wilson returned to Michigan for graduate school at the
University of Michigan Law School
.
[4]
He was a 1936 graduate of Detroit University School, now
University Liggett School
. Before
Pearl Harbor
,
[5]
he enlisted in the
U.S. Navy
and served in the
Atlantic
and
Pacific Theaters
.
[6]
After the war ended, he took over his father's insurance business and invested in Michigan area mines and factories. He eventually purchased several manufacturing outlets, construction firms, television and radio stations, and founded Ralph Wilson Industries.
[7]
Wilson got wind of
Lamar Hunt
's plans for a new league, the American Football League, to challenge the NFL. He tried to put together a team in
Miami
, but was turned down. His next choice was Buffalo, where the AFL's first choice of owner,
Pat McGroder
, had declined to start a team. In September 1959, Wilson sent Hunt a telegram with the words, "Count me in with Buffalo.”
[8]
He named his new team the Bills, after
a previous team
that had played in the
All-America Football Conference
from 1946 to 1949. On October 28, 1959, the Buffalo Bills officially became the seventh AFL team. Wilson made professional football a resounding success in a "small market", signing such stars as
Cookie Gilchrist
,
Jack Kemp
, and
Tom Sestak
and Hall of Famers
Billy Shaw
and
O. J. Simpson
.
He was a guiding force in AFL policies that ensured success, such as gate and television revenue sharing. As one of only three AFL owners to be on relatively solid financial ground (along with Hunt and
Bud Adams
), Wilson lent the financially troubled
Oakland Raiders
$400,000
[9]
and was also willing to lend money to
Billy Sullivan
of the
New England Patriots
. Wilson helped keep those franchises afloat, likely saving the entire league from folding (the AFL was unique among professional football leagues in that not a single AFL franchise folded in its history). In November 1963, Wilson along with then Raiders general manager
Al Davis
lobbied successfully to have AFL games postponed the Sunday after President
John F. Kennedy
's assassination; NFL games were played as scheduled.
[10]
Wilson was most concerned about his team's financial solvency and was largely indifferent to the Bills' on-field success;
O. J. Simpson
later noted of his contract negotiations with the Bills that when Simpson's agent told Wilson of Simpson's potential to make the team a championship contender, Wilson shot back "What good would a championship do me? All that means is everybody wants a raise."
[11]
In 1989, after league commissioner
Pete Rozelle
announced his retirement, Wilson was on the six-member committee who was tasked with nominating potential candidates for the open position. Wilson's nominee, his former quarterback Jack Kemp, declined to pursue the post, as he had already taken a position in the U.S. Cabinet. (The job ultimately went to league attorney
Paul Tagliabue
.)
After the original naming rights deal on the Bills' current stadium expired in 1998, the facility's name was changed from
Rich
Stadium to Ralph Wilson Stadium; it would not receive a new naming rights deal until 2016, after his death and the subsequent sale of the team. According to an article on msn.com, Wilson, described as "stubborn", turned down numerous naming rights deals for the stadium.
[12]
Wilson was one of the league's most outspoken owners, even near the end of his life. Wilson voted against the
Cleveland Browns
'
relocation to Baltimore
in 1995.
[13]
He publicly rebuked NFL Commissioner
Paul Tagliabue
in an open letter in 1998 over league policy, which disallowed criticism of referees, after poor officiating had a direct impact on a Bills loss that season.
[14]
He was one of two owners (the
Cincinnati Bengals
'
Mike Brown
being the other) to oppose the league's former (pre-2011) collective bargaining agreement. (Wilson and Brown were commended for their foresight when the agreement later led to the
2011 NFL Lockout
.)
[15]
He also negotiated a deal to have his team play
home games in Toronto
from 2008 until 2014.
[16]
Wilson retired from the position of president in 2001, giving operational control to general manager
Tom Donahoe
;
[17]
Wilson retook control of the team's operations in 2006.
[18]
Wilson again retired as team president, this time surrendering all control of the team's operations to
Russ Brandon
, on January 1, 2013.
[19]
He continued to consult with Brandon on team and league operations up until his death.
Personal life
[
edit
]
Wilson maintained a permanent residence in
Grosse Pointe Shores, Michigan
with his wife, Mary McLean, whom he met in 1989.
[3]
He had three daughters from his first marriage to Janet McGregor Wilson, two of whom became involved in team business: Linda Wilson Bogdan (1948?2009), Pro Football's first female scout, was the franchise's Corporate Vice President until her death. Another daughter, Christy Wilson Hofmann, served as a consultant in the area of merchandising. The third daughter, Edith Wilson (1951?2020) was never involved with the franchise. The highest ranking relative in the organization was Mary Owen, Wilson's niece, who served as Vice President of Strategic Planning until the team was sold.
[20]
Wilson and his first wife divorced in 1970 after 26 years of marriage and shortly after their youngest daughter, Edith, turned 19.
[21]
Beginning in the 1990s, Wilson maintained a small, but very valuable, art collection, including works by
Claude Monet
,
Edouard Manet
and
Alfred Sisley
; this collection was valued in the tens of millions of dollars.
[22]
Wilson was a 1992 inductee of the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame. He was a 33rd degree
Scottish Rite
Freemason
.
[23]
Declining health and death
[
edit
]
Wilson broke his hip in a fall at his home in July 2011, causing him to miss the Bills' home opener for the first time in franchise history.
[24]
The injury resulted in him needing to use a wheelchair. He issued a statement saying that he was undergoing physical therapy and hoped to attend at least one game during the season. Wilson also stated that he was "very surprised" by the team's 41?7 victory over Kansas City in Week 1. He was hospitalized in August and early September 2012 with an unspecified infection and missed attending games in the entire 2012 season.
[20]
In April 2013, Wilson was reported as "doing really well," with a statement that he hoped to make the 2013 home opener.
[25]
Wilson died at his home on March 25, 2014, of natural causes at the age of 95.
[26]
His estate held the franchise in trust until its sale to
Buffalo Sabres
owners
Terry
and
Kim Pegula
in September 2014.
[27]
The proceeds from the sale were used to form an endowment for the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation, which funds charitable causes in the Buffalo and Detroit areas, in accordance with Wilson's instructions for the money set forth prior to his death.
[28]
The donation amounted to $1.2 billion and would be given away over the next two decades.
[29]
The organization was overseen for a few months by his niece Mary Owen until its sale to the Pegulas was completed on October 8, 2014.
[30]
On January 31, 2009, Wilson was elected to the
Pro Football Hall of Fame
along with former
Buffalo Bills
defensive end
Bruce Smith
.
[31]
The
Hall of Fame game
, played the day after the 2009 inductions, strayed from the usual AFC?NFC format and instead was contested by two original
American Football League
teams: the
Buffalo Bills
and the
Tennessee Titans
(formerly the
Houston Oilers
).
[32]
This matchup was announced after Wilson was elected. Like Wilson, Titans owner
Bud Adams
was the only owner his team has ever had, and the two were the only living members of the "
Foolish Club
", the founders of the original eight AFL teams. Wilson and Adams are two of only four men who have owned a professional football franchise continuously for fifty years (
George Halas
, who owned the
Chicago Bears
from 1920 until his death in 1983, is the third, and
William Clay Ford Sr.
, Wilson's neighbor, who owned the
Detroit Lions
from 1961 to 2014, is the fourth).
The Hall of Fame game on Sunday, August 9, was a kickoff to the 2009 season, which would have been the 50th season of play for the AFL, if the NFL had not merged with it. Wilson was officially inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, August 8, 2009, with
ESPN
icon
Chris Berman
acting as his "presenter".
[33]
Wilson was scheduled to receive his Hall of Fame ring in a halftime ceremony during the Bills game against the Cleveland Browns on October 11, 2009. However, Wilson cancelled the event at the last moment, without notifying the press or fans, and no explanation was given. It was widely speculated that Wilson cancelled the event out of fear of being booed by Bills fans for the team's chronic poor performance on the field and a series of highly unpopular managerial decisions. He was eventually presented with the ring on November 1.
[34]
Wilson donated US$2.5 million to the construction of a "Pro Football Research and Preservation Center" at the Hall of Fame; the facility was named in Wilson's honor on August 13, 2012.
[35]
Thoroughbred racing
[
edit
]
Wilson was also involved for a number of years in the sport of
Thoroughbred horse racing
both as a
breeder
and as an owner in
France
and the United States. He bred
Santa Anita Derby
winner
Jim French
, as well as two-year-old European superstar
Arazi
, winner of the 1991
Breeders' Cup Juvenile
and
European Horse of the Year
.
[36]
Another horse, Outta Here, raced in the
2003 Kentucky Derby
and finished in seventh place.
Philanthropy
[
edit
]
- The Ralph C. Wilson Jr. School of Education,
St. John Fisher University
,
Rochester, New York
.
- The Mary & Ralph Wilson Jr. Hospice Inpatient Unit of Hospice Buffalo is named after him.
- The Wilson Building, Cheektowaga, New York.
- Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Athletic Field at the NFL/Youth Education Town-Boys & Girls Club at the Dick & Sandy Dauch Campus in Detroit, Michigan.
- Ralph C Wilson Jr. Foundation:
- Two $100 million posthumous donations, in honor of Wilson's 100th birthday, to the park systems in Buffalo and Detroit respectively; the former is the largest philanthropic donation in Western New York history
[37]
- $6 million grant to the
Explore & More Children's Museum
in
Canalside
, Buffalo, which was renamed after Wilson.
[38]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"List of NFL Owners-Past and Present"
.
Footballgeography.com
. Archived from
the original
on October 23, 2018
. Retrieved
September 12,
2018
.
- ^
Dvorchak, Robert.
"1940s put Steelers to tests that nearly break them"
.
Post-Gazette.com
. Retrieved
September 12,
2018
.
- ^
a
b
Gaughan, Mark.
Father's example inspired Wilson in football and business
.
The Buffalo News
. Retrieved March 26, 2014.
- ^
"Ralph Wilson, Virginia '40"
.
PhiDeltaTheta.org
. Phi Delta Theta Fraternity
. Retrieved
September 12,
2018
.
- ^
"Lieut.Wilson at Tokyo Meet"
(PDF)
.
digitize.gp.lib.mi.us
. Grosse Pointe Public Library
. Retrieved
June 12,
2022
.
- ^
Graham, Tim (March 21, 2011).
"WWII Museum honors Ralph Wilson"
.
ESPN
.
- ^
Shea, Bill.
"Ralph Wilson, Grosse Pointe Shores resident and Buffalo Bills owner, dies at 95"
.
Crain’s Detroit Business
. Crain Communications, Inc
. Retrieved
September 12,
2018
.
- ^
Warren, Matt (17 June 2011).
"Best Moments in Bills History, No. 23: Miami Turns Down Ralph Wilson"
.
SB Nation: Buffalo Rumblings
. Vox Media
. Retrieved
September 10,
2018
.
- ^
Damien, Levi (25 March 2014).
"Raiders wouldn't exist without Ralph Wilson: Legendary Bills owner passes at 95"
.
Silverandblackpride.com
. Vox Media
. Retrieved
September 12,
2018
.
- ^
Roth, Leo.
"Leo Roth: Ralph Wilson made right call in wake of JFK's death"
.
Democrat & Chronicle
. Retrieved
September 11,
2018
.
- ^
"The O.J. Simpson interview: On prison, 'retirement' and football"
. 16 March 2018.
- ^
"The most at-risk sports teams - MSN Money"
. Archived from
the original
on 2011-07-14
. Retrieved
2009-07-18
.
- ^
Shapiro, Leonard.
"OWNERS APPROVE MOVE OF NFL TEAM TO BALTIMORE"
.
The Washington Post
. Retrieved
September 11,
2018
.
- ^
Ralph Wilson - Remember This One?
Archived
2015-10-18 at the
Wayback Machine
WBEN
. Retrieved March 30, 2014.
- ^
Myers, Gary (14 May 2011).
"Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson never wanted that deal NFL owners now can't seem to stomach"
.
NYDailyNews.com
. New York Daily News
. Retrieved
September 11,
2018
.
- ^
Riordan, Tim (16 July 2014).
"Worst Buffalo Sports Moments #15 - The Bills play in Toronto"
.
SB Nation
. Vox Media
. Retrieved
September 10,
2018
.
- ^
Pollock, Chuck (2 January 2016).
"Donahoe gets another chance with the Eagles"
.
OleanTimesHerald.com
. Olean Times Herald
. Retrieved
September 11,
2018
.
- ^
"Bills owner fires Donahoe, will be team president"
.
ESPN
. 4 January 2006
. Retrieved
September 11,
2018
.
- ^
Simon, Howard (January 1, 2013).
"Bills Owner Ralph Wilson Gives Up Control Of Franchise"
.
WGR
. Archived from
the original
on March 25, 2014
. Retrieved
January 1,
2013
.
- ^
a
b
Update: Wilson still hospitalized
Archived
2013-02-09 at
archive.today
.
WGRZ
. Retrieved September 1, 2012.
- ^
"Lawrence Daily Journal World Archives, Feb 3, 1971, p. 28"
.
NewspaperArchive.com
. 1971-02-03
. Retrieved
2018-11-14
.
- ^
Wawrow, John (June 5, 2014).
Bills owner's estate auctioning off art collection
.
Associated Press
. Retrieved June 5, 2014.
- ^
"Ralph Wilson Receives Distinguished Service Medal"
.
The Northern Light
. November 2010. Archived from
the original
on 2013-04-15
. Retrieved
1 January
2013
.
- ^
Brown, Clifton.
"Broken hip ends Wilson's home opener streak"
.
SportingNews.com
. Sporting News Media
. Retrieved
September 11,
2018
.
- ^
Sullivan, Jerry (12 April 2013).
"Ralph shooting for home opener"
.
The Buffalo News
. Archived from
the original
on 16 April 2013
. Retrieved
12 April
2013
.
- ^
"Ralph Wilson, owner of Buffalo Bills, dies at 95"
.
Buffalonews.com
. Retrieved
26 November
2021
.
- ^
Buscaglia, Joe (3 April 2014).
"Mary Wilson Named Controlling Owner of the Bills"
.
WGR
. Archived from
the original
on 7 April 2014.
- ^
Graham, Tim (October 3, 2014).
Mary Owen to leave Bills, remain powerful overseeing Wilson Foundation
Archived
2014-10-05 at the
Wayback Machine
.
The Buffalo News
. Retrieved October 3, 2014.
- ^
"Ralph Wilson's Foundation to Donate $1.2 Billion Over the Next Two Decades"
.
Sportsnaut.com
. 2015-07-22
. Retrieved
2020-10-22
.
- ^
"Sale of Bills unanimously approved"
.
ESPN
. October 8, 2014
. Retrieved
March 7,
2021
.
- ^
"Ralph Wilson"
.
phideltatheta.org
. Retrieved
September 10,
2018
.
- ^
"Bills vs. Titans in 2009 Hall of Fame Game"
.
ProFootballHOF.com
. Retrieved
September 12,
2018
.
- ^
"CHRIS BERMAN'S REACTION TO SERVING AS RALPH WILSON JR.'S PRESENTER"
.
ProFootballHOF.com
. Retrieved
September 10,
2018
.
- ^
"Ralph Wilson Receives Ring"
.
ProFootballHOF.com
. Retrieved
September 10,
2018
.
- ^
"Pro Football Hall to unveil Wilson center"
.
Bizjournals.com
. Retrieved
November 26,
2021
.
- ^
Anderson, Dave (26 January 1991).
"SPORTS OF THE TIMES; 25 Years Ago, Mara, Wilson Fueled Merger"
.
The New York Times
.
- ^
"Ralph Wilson's biggest gift yet: $100M to transform LaSalle Park, trails"
. 17 October 2018.
- ^
"Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation announces $6 million for Explore and More"
.
WGRZ
. 14 February 2018
. Retrieved
2019-05-10
.
Ralph Wilson
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Stadiums
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Culture
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Lore
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Rivalries
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Division championships (14)
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Conference championships (4)
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League championships (2)
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Wall of Fame
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Media
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Owners
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Running backs
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ends
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Tight ends
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Pre-modern era
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Linebackers
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Special teams
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Italics
denotes members who have been elected, but not yet inducted.
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