Adam Sparks

USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee

Bill Wade will be remembered as an all-time great Vanderbilt quarterback, an NFL champion and a gentleman who never acted like he was either.

“He was a superstar that never thought of himself as a superstar,” said Hank Hillin, a long-time friend who played against Wade in high school. “He was a gracious and kind gentleman. But his humility is what made him so appealing.”

Wade, a Montgomery Bell Academy product and Vanderbilt Hall of Famer who is among the best athletes in Nashville history, died at age 85 Wednesday night. He was the No. 1 overall pick of the Los Angeles Rams in 1952 and earned All-Pro honors twice. He played 13 seasons for the Rams and Chicago Bears, leading the latter team to the 1963 NFL Championship.

On Thursday, Bears Chairman George H. McCaskey remembered Wade as both a standout of the franchise’s golden age and a revered player.

“Bill Wade was a gentleman in every sense of the word. He carried himself with dignity in all aspects of his life,” McGaskey said. “Even in more recent years when he experienced health challenges, Bill maintained a positive disposition and expressed gratitude for everything he had. Those qualities were what made him a great leader and a favorite of Papa Bear (former Bears coach George Halas).”

Wade suffered extended illnesses and blindness in his later years. His daughter, Sharon Wade Kinser, said the family is at peace.

“Our family is celebrating that his sight is restored, that he is able to walk and run on the field again,” Kinser said. “He is free, and he is home. So much has been robbed of him in the last decade. To be able to know that he can see the beauty of heaven gives our family comfort.”

A celebration of Wade’s life is tentatively planned for April.

Wade’s father, W.J. Wade, was captain of Vanderbilt’s 1921 undefeated team. The younger Wade finished his career as one of the Commodores’ best athletes in any sport. He was among 12 members of Vanderbilt’s inaugural Hall of Fame class in 2008.

Wade was the 1951 SEC Player of the Year and a two-time All-American, and his 3,396 passing yards stood as Vanderbilt’s career record more than 30 years after his graduation.

Vanderbilt athletics director David Williams called Wade “one of the greatest guys I’ve ever met. I saw him as a great player with the Bears and a man who never complained about anything, no matter how many health issues he went through.

“He was just a very, very wonderful guy. Just Billy Wade, and that’s how I’ll always remember him.”

In the NFL, Wade played 128 games and passed for 18,530 and 124 touchdowns. He also rushed for 24 touchdowns, including two scores in the Bears’ 14-10 win over the New York Giants in the 1963 NFL title game at Wrigley Field.

But Hillin remembers Wade for who he was before his football stardom and well after his career ended.

Hillin’s Litton High School team beat a Wade-led MBA squad in the 1947 Clinic Bowl. And then nearly 50 years later, Hillin was Nashville sheriff when he began inviting Wade to speak to inmates graduating from a GED class in jail.

“He was so inspiring to those inmates, and he loved to give his time to help people like that,” Hillin said. “He never changed. He was always humble, always a wonderful friend.

“I’m really going to miss him. I already miss him now.”

Reach Adam Sparks at 615-259-8010 and on Twitter @AdamSparks.