Willie Irvin, a pioneering edge rusher who played one season in the NFL for the Philadelphia Eagles, died March 21. He was 96.
Irvin made history as the first Black football player from St. Augustine, Florida to play in the NFL when he became the Eagles’ first black player to take the field in 1953.
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A graduate of Excelsior High School and Florida A&M University, Irvin was drafted by the Eagles in the 15th round of the 1953 draft. He and teammate Jimmy Moore, drafted by the Chicago Bears in the 10th round, were the first FAMU players selected in an NFL Draft.
A two-sport star, Irvin also played for FAMU’s basketball team. According to the Historically Black College and University podcast docuseries “Their Game, Their Times,” Irvin took part in one of the most remarkable games in college basketball history.
During the 1952 SIAC tournament, the Rattlers played the final 13 minutes of regulation against Alabama State with only four players when they got into foul trouble. Multiple players fouled out of the game. Irvin led the way in scoring and helped Florida A&M beat Alabama State in overtime, 71-67.
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Irvin was inducted into FAMU’s Hall of Fame in 1995.
Irvin’s NFL career consisted of three games, in which he both lost and recovered one fumble. According to the Atlanta Daily World, the Eagles cut Irvin when their “coaching staff contended that he evinced an inferiority complex,” which was “vigorously denied by the player.”
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According to “Their Game, Their Times,” Irvin went into the military after his playing career ended, obtained his master’s degree, and spent much of his life working in education.
A February article by the Philadelphia Inquirer stated Joe Pagliei was “believed to be” the oldest living Eagle, but Irvin beat him to the planet by four years.
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