Billy Cannon

William Abb Cannon (August 2, 1937 – May 20, 2018) was an American football running back and tight end who played professionally in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL). He attended Louisiana State University (LSU), where he played college football as a halfback, return specialist, and defensive back for the LSU Tigers. At LSU, Cannon was twice unanimously named an All-American, helped the 1958 LSU team win a national championship, and received the Heisman Trophy as the nation’s most outstanding college player in 1959. His punt return against Ole Miss on Halloween night in 1959 is considered by fans and sportswriters to be one of the most famous plays in LSU sports history.

Cannon was selected as the first overall pick in the 1960 NFL Draft and as a first-round territorial pick in the 1960 American Football League draft, resulting in a contract dispute that ended in court. Cannon played in the AFL for the Houston Oilers and Oakland Raiders before ending his football career with the Kansas City Chiefs of the NFL. He began his professional career as a halfback for the Oilers. A two-time AFL All-Star, Cannon led the league in rushing and all-purpose yards in 1961. He was named the most valuable player of the first two AFL championship games, which were won by the Oilers. He was moved to fullback and later tight end after being traded to the Raiders, with whom he won another league championship in 1967. That season, he played in the second AFL–NFL World Championship game, retroactively known as Super Bowl II, in which his team was defeated by the Green Bay Packers.

Cannon became a dentist after retiring from football. In 1983, after a series of bad real estate investments, he became involved in a counterfeiting scheme and served two and a half years in prison. In 1995, he was hired as a dentist at Louisiana State Penitentiary, a position he held until his death in 2018. His jersey number 20 was retired by LSU football in 1960, and he was inducted into the LSU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1975, the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1976, and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008.