Howard Payne University Athletics

Dr. Bennie B. Williams of Putnam was a standout center on the Howard Payne football team who later served as Yellow Jacket football and basketball coach and athletic director. Williams played football for four years at Howard Payne and was All-Texas Conference in 1947. He attended Howard Payne before joining the Marines during World War II, serving in the Pacific Theater. He returned to school after the war and graduated in 1948. He was co-captain of the football team in 1947. After graduation, he served as Howard Payne assistant football coach for eight years before being named head coach in 1956, serving until 1961. He was head basketball coach from 1951-1953 and 1954-55 and athletic director from 1956-61. Williams left Howard Payne 1961 to pursue a doctorate in mathematics at the University of Texas. He was a math professor at the University of Texas at Arlington for 24 years. He died in 2007.