WILLIE WILLIAMS
Cornerback
No. 41
Grambling
"The onetime Grambling flanker doesn't get much publicity, but in 1970, for the third straight year, Willie Williams led the Giants in interceptions. The cornerback was tied for fourth place in the NFC last season with six thefts and has 20 over the last three seasons.
Willie was a 9.7 track man in college and was an eighth round pick in 1965. After a season with New York, he jumped to Oakland, but late in 1967 he returned to the Giants and has been a regular ever since. Willie was the NFL's interception leader in 1968 when he came up with 10."
-Brenda Zanger, Pro Football 1971
BENNIE MCRAE
Cornerback
No. 26
Michigan
"Only the famed George McAfee, the fastest running Bear back of all time, had the speed shown by the present bolt on defense for Chicago, Bennie McRae. A 1962 rookie who was used in a reserve role, he worked his way into the starting defensive platoon last season and his reactions and recoveries to situations helped the club lead all others in interceptions. His sheer speed is dazzling and there is none who can match him on straightaway running.
Born in Newport News, Virginia, he was one of Michigan's most telling runners and was Big Ten hurdling champion at 70 and 120 yards. Bennie was the first Negro invited to play in the North-South Shrine Game at Miami."
-Don Schiffer, Pro Football 1964
"What was Bennie Big Ten champ of in college? Indoor-outdoor 70 and 120-yard hurdles."
-1964 Philadelphia No. 21
"Bennie McRae had an upbeat year in 1965, intercepting four aerials and returning them a total of 116 yards; he ran one of them back 89 yards for a touchdown. Possessed with blazing speed, he can afford to make a mistake and still catch up with his man.
Bennie is now in his fourth NFL year."
-Jack Zanger, Pro Football 1966
"Ball-hawking Bennie picked off three enemy passes in 1966 and ran them back for a 17.7 average. He had a 53-yard return to his credit.
Bennie's great speed is a major asset to him. He was a Big Ten hurdle champion while in college."
-1967 Philadelphia No. 32
"Bennie was the interception leader on the Bears in 1967, along with Rich Petitbon and Rosey Taylor. In 1966, intercepted two of Johnny Unitas' passes in one quarter.
He was a No. 2 draft pick by the Bears in '62."
-1968 Topps No. 179
"One of the assets that makes Bennie McRae one of the league's most dangerous cornerbacks is that he has so much speed he can recover from a mistake quickly enough to prevent a touchdown. Another is that he seems to save his best plays for clutch situations. A couple of years ago, when he had only three interceptions all season, he made two of them against the Baltimore Colts to help preserve a Chicago upset victory.
Last year, Bennie came up with four interceptions to lead the club in that department. He's now in his eighth pro season since coming out of Michigan State."
-Jack Zanger, Pro Football 1969
"One of the rough, tough Chicago defensemen, Bennie gets in on nearly every play. The co-captain of the Bears delights in giving opposing quarterbacks a tough time.
Bennie is second in Bears career pass interceptions. His longest interception for a touchdown was an 89-yarder against the Lions."
-1969 Topps No. 73
"Bennie is now the leader in career interceptions among active Bears. He was the defensive co-captain in 1968 when he was credited with 32 tackles and nine assists. As the fifth defensive back, replacing an outside linebacker on certain down and yardage situations, Bennie was also credited with barrelling in on opposing quarterbacks seven times.
Bennie was the Bears' 2nd round draft pick in 1962."
-1970 Topps No. 134
"The defensive co-captain of the Bears added another interception last year to his career total, giving him 27- tops on the team. A No. 2 draft pick in 1962, he was a regular on the Bears' 1963 championship team. Bennie is a hard hitter for a little man [6-0, 180].
He was christened Benjamin Prince McRae in Pinehurst, North Carolina. He played his high school ball in Newport News, Virginia, where he still lives during the off-season."
-John Devaney, The Complete Handbook of Pro Football (1971 Edition)
SCOTT EATON
Strong Safety
No. 20
Oregon State
A No. 8 draft choice by the Giants in 1967, Scott started all 14 games as a cornerback in 1968 but has lost time to injuries in the last two seasons. Likely to be moved to safety this year, he has ten career interceptions. One of them was made in New York's 1969 home game against Philadelphia and returned for a fourth-quarter touchdown to give the Giants a 19-16 lead.
Scott won three letters in basketball at Oregon State and spent one varsity season on the gridiron as a defensive back and flanker.
SPIDER LOCKHART
Free SafetyNo. 43
North Texas State
"Only 175 pounds, Spider Lockhart can repeatedly be seen coming from his free safety spot to make tackles at the line of scrimmage. And on occasion he employs the safety blitz with devastating results.
A team leader with chatter and hustle- he's the defensive captain- Spider is also the most feared defensive back on the club. Opposing passers throw into his area only when absolutely necessary, and as a result he made only four interceptions last season.
Spider, whose given name is Carl, was a thirteenth round draft choice from North Texas State in 1965, and he has been a regular with New York almost from the start."
-Brenda Zanger, Pro Football 1971
"Nicknamed Spider by coach Emlen Tunnell because of his wiry figure, Lockhart is a defensive team leader from his safety position. Last season he intercepted four passes, second on the ball club to Willie Williams. He has a total of 29 interceptions in his six-year career with the Giants. Lockhart also returns punts and kickoffs.
Born in Dallas, he was a flanker and defensive halfback in college. He also played baseball and was a hurdling star. Unnoticed in college by many scouts, Lockhart was picked 13th by the Giants on the suggestion of then-scout Pop Ivy.
He is a sales representative for the Prudential Life Insurance Company in the off-season and has a strong interest in photography. He's married, with one child."
-John Devaney, The Complete Handbook of Pro Football (1971 Edition)
"The Giants made Spider their 13th draft choice for 1965 and it has turned out to be one of the club's wisest decisions. Spider won a regular spot as a safety as a rookie and has been a solid fixture in the Giants' defensive backfield ever since.
He's a demon of a tackler and an alert ballhawk and more important, a real team leader. Spider also serves as one of the Giants' premier punt return specialists, having returned 58 punts for 290 yards and a 5.0 average in his six seasons in New York.
He played as a flanker and defensive halfback in college and carried 60 times for 237 yards, caught 32 passes for 384 yards and four touchdowns, intercepted ten passes and punted 95 times for a near 40-yard average.
In the off-season, Spider sells life insurance."
-1971 Topps No. 128
WILLIAMS AND LOCKHART: TWO FOR THE MONEY
"The Giants were training at Fairfield, Conn., on a hot, muggy July day in 1965, and as defensive backfield coach Emlen Tunnell looked around at the candidates for employment as defensive backs, he was obviously enjoying himself.
Why not? Included in the group were veterans like Jim Patton and Dick Lynch, both former All-Pro choices and interception leaders. And there were Andy Nelson, a veteran of championship Baltimore teams, and Dick Pesonen and Allen Webb, who had been in title games with the Giants.
And there were the rookies, a group which was quickly tabbed 'Emlen's Gremlins.' There was Olympic champion Henry Carr from Arizona State, a 6-3, 190-pound speedster who was the No. 4 draft choice. There was Ben Crenshaw, 6-3, 195-pound Jackson State ace who was the No. 10 selection, and there was non-rookie Clarence Childs, the 9.5 sprinter who had led the NFL in kickoff returns with a 29.0 average as a rookie in 1964, and who was now getting a try at defensive back. And there were Carl (Spider) Lockhart, a tall, skinny No. 13 draft choice from North Texas State, and Willie Williams, a 6-0, 190-pound No. 8 choice from Grambling.
From this array of defenders, perhaps the least likely to succeed, at first glance, might have been Lockhart and Williams, the former because he seemed too fragile at 172 pounds and was not particularly speedy ... and the latter since he appeared a little too short and was not overly swift.
Today, six years later, Lockhart and Williams are the sole survivors of that 1965 contingent ... they've been Pro Bowl selections ... league leaders ... All-Pro ... and what have you, proving, of course, that you can't tell a book by its cover- or a defensive back by his initial appearance.
While Spider and Willie are the key struts of the Giant secondary, close buddies on and off the field and obvious contemporaries, they have followed divergent routes to their particular pre-eminence.
Lockhart, the defensive team captain, has been a starter since that rookie year, initially as a cornerback, now as a free safety. Williams was a reserve during that 1965 yearling campaign ... jumped to the Oakland Raiders of the AFL in 1966 ... left the Raiders in 1967 and returned, with some humility, to pick up where he left off with the Giants.
Their careers, in some way, have been remarkably alike as well. In emergency situations, Lockhart has served as a punter for the Giants- and so has Williams. Lockhart has also doubled as a punt return man- and so has Williams. And for off-the-field interests, both are rabid New York Knick fans and attend as many Knick games as possible, Spider because he's a personal friend and former collegiate playing foe of Dave Stallworth, and Willie because he's a friend and former school chum of Willis Reed at Grambling.
Remarkable also is the fact that Spider and Willie picked the same year to have their individual best seasons in the way of pass interceptions. That was the 1968 campaign when Williams sniped 10 enemy aerials for 103 yards returned to lead the NFL, and Lockhart added eight for 130 yards returned, including two touchdowns. Spider's touchdown gallops with pilfered passes came in back-to-back efforts. He picked off Norm Snead of the Eagles for a 72-yard scoring scamper ... and a week later snatched Sonny Jurgensen of the Redskins for a 47-yard touchdown return.
Williams has never savored a trip into the end zone, although he came close to hitting the scoring column in a razzle-dazzle play in conjunction with Lockhard (naturally) in 1969. On that occasion, against the Steelers in Pittsburgh, Spider intercepted a pass at midfield, swivel-hipped on a return, then lateraled to Willie who romped 30 yards or so into the end zone for an apparent touchdown ... only to have the spectacular called back because of a penalty.
That sort of coordination comes through the type of association that Williams and Lockhart enjoy. Knowing each other's talents, capabilities and instincts, Spider and Willie can anticipate the other's moves on the field.
'You might say that Willie and I enjoy complete rapport,' says Spider, who adds, 'and that really only comes when you play for a considerable amount of time with the other guy and know just what he can do. In my book, Willie is one helluva of a cornerback.' The mutual admiration bit continues because in Williams' estimation 'Spider is the best free safety in pro football.'
While it might seem that Spider and Willie have been a solid combination for a long time, that is not exactly precise. As a starter in his rookie campaign, Lockhart logged complete full game time through the entire season. He had four interceptions for 117 yards returned in 1965, returned punts and also punted six times for a fine 44.5 average. He upped his interception total to six steals in 1966, averaged 6.6 on his punt returns and in 1967 had five interceptions and raised his punt return average to 7.7 yards per attempt.
Over this same span, Williams was only a reserve cornerback, getting one interception in his rookie year late in the season. Playing for Oakland in 1966, Williams again saw only part-time duty, and when he came back to the Giants late in 1967, appeared in just six games and had only one interception.
The tandem finally became a fixture in 1968 when Willie won a starting job in training camp. That was the first full season together for the surviving Gremlins, and it turned out to be a banner one. Their two-man total of 18 interceptions proved to be the best in the NFL for two players from the same team, with Spider's eight steals ranking him in a tie for third in the loop behind Willie's eight swipes and nine by Kermit Alexander.
Career totals to date show Lockhart with 29 interceptions for 356 yards in his six seasons, and Willie with 22 for 280 yards returned in his career.
No less an authority than George Sauer, former Jet, has had some nice words to say about the Williams-Lockhart combination. When talking of Williams, who usually covered Sauer, the ex-Texas flash mentions that 'Willie is tough to work against, because you just know he's going to get help from Spider deep. They seem to have a communication without even having to talk to each other.'
Still another common talent between the two Gremlins is their tackling ability. Lockhart, at 175, is among the lightest of defensive backs, and while Willie is a solidly-built 190-pounder, he isn't what you might term a 'big' man. Yet both tackle with controlled ferocity and deadliness. Spider has often joked that he was 6-3 when he came into the league but is now closer to 'five-eleven the way these fullbacks have been treating me.' Actually, it's the other way around. Fullbacks who get loose on draws and quick openers invariably run into Lockhart- and the wiry safetyman hits the big 230-pounders with reckless abandon. Spider may get dazed once in a while, but he never backs off.
Williams, too, manages to make the ball-carrier pay. He's a sure open-field tackler who does his job against the sweeps, either by turning the runner inside or by making the tackle. That's always a rugged responsibility for a cornerback, but Williams does the job well ... and consistently.
It should not come as any great surprise that Lockhart and Williams room together on road trips. Defensive backs, like any other group of players, tend to stay close to each other, and it's not unusual to see Lockhart, Williams, Scott Eaton, Tommy Longo, and the others eating together or heading for a movie while on road trips. Two years ago, when the Giants played in Williams' hometown of Atlanta, Willie's wife cooked a big dinner and the entire defensive secondary attended en masse.
As far as the Yankee Stadium dressing room is concerned, Spider and Willie are on opposite sides of the spacious, carpeted room ... with Willie's location closer to the stereo system. That stereo system, incidentally, was purchased by the players out of collected fine monies, and speakers are all over the area. The thought is that music has a soothing, calming effect on players ... and since last season was the first year the stereo was installed, who's to argue?
At any rate, with Willie closer to the main control system, he usually gets his choice of the good 'Soul Sounds' that are part and parcel of the collected albums that get the big play. Both have the 'good moves' when the sounds are solid ... with most impartial observers giving Spider the honors when it comes to the good steps.
Whether it's dancing ... pass coverage ... tackling ... intercepting ... hustling ... being winners ... whatever, Spider and Willie make a good team. The hope of Giant fans is that the pair go on being as successful ... and get a chance soon to perform their playing field specialties in a championship game."
-1971 New York Giants Official Yearbook
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