Bobby Williams, a 1988 College Football Hall of Fame inductee and a quarterback at Notre Dame from 1948-50, passed away May 26 in Timonium, Md. Born on Jan. 2, 1930 in Cumberland, Md., he was 86.

Williams was only 19 years old when he quarterbacked the 1949 undefeated Notre Dame team to ten straight victories and the national championship. He completed 56 percent of his passes, setting a Notre Dame season record that lasted 19 years. His Hall of Fame coach, Frank Leahy, said, "This was as great a year as any Notre Dame quarterback has ever had."

His best game was against Michigan State where he completed 13 of 16 passes, had a 50 yard punt that went out of bounds at the four, and ran 40 yards for a touchdown on a bootleg play. He was the youngest man on the team, but Williams had always exhibited exceptional leadership skills. Before playing in South Bend, he captained the football, basketball and baseball teams at Loyola High School in Towson, Md.

His career totals included 80 carries for 189 yards and five TDs; 190 completions on 371 attempts for 2,519 yards and 28 TDs; one kickoff return for 12 yards; and 86 punts with a 39.12-yard average. His 161.4 passing efficiency rating from 1949 still ranks as Notre Dame's best in a season.

United Press named him Back of the Year, and he was given consensus All-America recognition in 1949 by UP, the Sporting News, the All-America Board and the Football Writers Association. Notre Dame dropped to a .500 season in 1950, but Bob Williams repeated his All-America honors. He finished fifth in Heisman Trophy voting as junior in 1949 and sixth as senior in 1950. The Boston Touchdown Club gave him the Swede Nelson Award for sportsmanship in 1950.

A first round selection of the Chicago Bears, he played three seasons for the team from 1951-52 and 1955, taking a break to serve in the Navy during the Korean War. After playing in the NFL, he returned home to Baltimore to go into business as a banker and the owner of a construction company.