William Berry Acker Jr. (born November 7, 1956) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle for six seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals, Kansas City Chiefs, and Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Longhorns.
College Career
Acker played college football at The University of Texas between 1975 and 1979, but missed the 1976 season. In 1975, he helped the Longhorns win a share of the Southwest Conference Championship and defeat Colorado in the 1975 Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl to finish ranked #6/#7. In 1977, he helped the Longhorns win the Southwest Conference Championship, spend the last 6 weeks of the season ranked #1 and play for the National Championship in the 1978 Cotton Bowl Classic which they lost to Notre Dame. He helped the team win the 1978 Sun Bowl and finish ranked #9 while he was named Second-team (All-Southwest Conference. That season he tied the then-school record for sacks in a season with 14 and led the team in forced fumbles.[1] He captained the 1979 team that finished the season ranked #12/#13 after losing the 1979 Sun Bowl to Washington.[2]
In the four seasons he played for Texas, the Longhorns were never unranked. Acker left the school having gotten more sacks in his career than any other Longhorn prior to him and topped only by teammate Tim Campbell. He also had the 2nd most forced fumbles.[1]
Pro Career
Acker was drafted by the Cardinals in the 6th Round of the 1980 NFL Draft, #142 overall.
Personal Life
His brother Jim is a former MLB pitcher.[3]
References
- ^ a b "Texas Football Record Book" (PDF). Retrieved February 14, 2025.
- ^ "Texas Football History Honors" (PDF). Retrieved February 14, 2025.
- ^ "1987 Topps baseball card # 407".
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