William James Wade Jr. (October 4, 1930 – March 9, 2016), often referred to during his playing career as Billy Wade, was an American professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles Rams (1954–1960) and Chicago Bears (1961–1966).

A native of Nashville, Tennessee, Wade played college football for Vanderbilt from 1948 to 1951 and was selected as the most valuable player in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) in 1951.

[2] Wade attended Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville where he starred in tennis, football, baseball, and basketball.

In December 1946, at age 16, he tallied 964 passing yards and was chosen by The Nashville Banner as the most valuable football player in the Interscholastic League.

[8] On September 30, 1950, he led Vanderbilt to a 41–0 victory over Auburn and set a new SEC single-game record with five touchdown passes.

[12][13] He received multiple awards and honors after the 1951 season: In January 1952, the Los Angeles Rams selected Wade as the first overall pick in the 1952 NFL draft.

[20] Wade was traded to the Bears in January 1961 in exchange for Erich Barnes and a player or draft pick to be named later.

[24] Wade scored both Chicago touchdowns on quarterback sneaks in a 14–10 victory over the New York Giants in the 1963 NFL Championship Game played in freezing weather conditions at Wrigley Field.

[27][29] At the end of the 1966 season, Wade applied for the vacant head coaching position at Vanderbilt,[30] but the job went to Bill Pace.

Prior to the 1967 season, the Bears dropped Wade from the active roster, ending his NFL playing career at age 36.

[32] Wade remained with the Bears during the 1967 season as an assistant quarterback coach responsible for tutoring Jack Concannon.

[34] In May 1968, Wade left the Bears to return to Nashville as public relations and trust official with Third National Bank.