Jesse Harold "Sonny" Wade (born April 1, 1947) is a former All-American football player at Emory & Henry College in Virginia.
While at Emory and Henry, Wade started at quarterback where he also assumed the role of punter, placekicker, and offensive coordinator by calling his own plays.
With his athletic ability and astute play calling, Wade also led the team to a national record in total offense with an average of 553.3 yards per game during the 1968 season.
Coached by former Alouettes great Sam Etcheverry and starting in the 1973 season the famed Marv Levy, Wade became one of the most clutch players in Grey Cup history.
After diving for an interception and dropping it upon hitting the ground, Wade started the next offensive series as quarterback and it is from that position and as punter where he achieved his lasting fame.
Known for his cool headed play in the post season, Wade led the team to a 4-0 record in the playoffs including the 1970 Grey Cup victory where they Alouettes defeated the Calgary Stampeders 23-10.
The Als fared well during this season with the dual QB lineup and made it to the Grey Cup where they faced the favoured Edmonton Eskimos.
The following year the Als again met the Eskimos in the Grey Cup and Wade again reprised his role as relief for an ineffective Jimmy Jones and led the team on a late fourth-quarter drive deep into Edmonton territory before falling 9-8 on a missed field goal attempt.
[1] After football, Wade entered the textile industry in his hometown of Martinsville, Virginia which during the 1980s and early 1990s was known as the "sweatshirt capital of the world".
After a 20-year career in sweatshirt sales, Wade retired in 1999 and lives out his golden years farming, hunting, gardening, trapping, and fishing.