Wilson Whitley was a consensus All-American defensive tackle at the University of Houston

University of Houston

The University of Houston is a state research university, and is the flagship institution of the University of Houston System. Founded in 1927, it is Texas's third-largest university with nearly 40,000 students. Its campus spans 667 acres in southeast Houston, and was known as University of...

 from 1972-1976 under defensive coordinator Don Todd

Don Todd

Don R. Todd was the Defensive Line Coach and Defensive Coordinator for the University of Houston from 1972 to 1985. He led the Cougars' "Mad Dog" defense to 4 top ten national ratings, while tutoring such talents as Lombardi Award winner, Wilson Whitley and Kodak All Americans Hosea Taylor,...

. He led the Cougars to the Southwest Conference championship in football during Houston's first season as a conference member and was won the 1976 Lombardi Award

Lombardi Award

The Rotary Lombardi Award is awarded annually to the best college football lineman or linebacker. The Lombardi Award program was approved by the Rotary Club in Houston in 1970 shortly after the death of Vince Lombardi. The committee outlined the criteria for eligibility for the award, which...

 as the nation's top lineman. Former President Gerald Ford

Gerald Ford

Gerald Rudolph "Jerry" Ford, Jr. was the 38th President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977, and the 40th Vice President of the United States serving from 1973 to 1974...

 presented him the award at a ceremony in Houston, Texas

Houston, Texas

Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...

.

Whitley was drafted in the first round by the Cincinnati Bengals

Cincinnati Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional football team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the AFC's North Division in the National Football League . The Bengals began play in 1968 as an expansion team in the American Football League , and joined the NFL in 1970 in the AFL-NFL...

 and started alongside another Lombardi Award

Lombardi Award

The Rotary Lombardi Award is awarded annually to the best college football lineman or linebacker. The Lombardi Award program was approved by the Rotary Club in Houston in 1970 shortly after the death of Vince Lombardi. The committee outlined the criteria for eligibility for the award, which...

 winner, Ross Browner

Ross Browner

Ross Browner is a former American football defensive end who played ten seasons in the NFL, mainly for the Cincinnati Bengals. He is the father of current Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Max Starks, and brother of Joey Browner and Keith Browner...

, for 6 seasons. He was later named to the Southwest Conference "All Decade Team" for the 70's.

Whitley died at the age of 37, due to a heart condition. He is a 1998 inductee into University of Houston's Hall of Honor and was a perennial candidate for the National College Football Hall of Fame

College Football Hall of Fame

The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...

 until his selection in 2007.