Billy Hardee
Billy Hardee (William Abraham Hardee Jr.) was an American football defensive back born on August 12, 1954, in Lakeland, Florida. He was 6 feet tall and weighed 184 pounds.
He played college football at Virginia Tech from 1972 to 1975, starting as a wide receiver and moving to defensive back in 1974. In 1975 he had seven interceptions, finishing among the national leaders. He earned AP All-American honorable mention and National Independent All-Star honors, and was inducted into the Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 2005.
Hardee went undrafted in 1976 but played in the NFL for the Denver Broncos (1976) and New York Jets (1977). He continued his career in the Canadian Football League with the Calgary Stampeders (1978), Toronto Argonauts (1978–1981), and Ottawa Rough Riders (1981–1982). He finished his pro football career in the USFL with the Philadelphia/Baltimore Stars (1984–1985) and retired in 1985.
After football, he worked in the administration department at Lake Region High School in Eagle Lake, Florida. He and his wife Deborah had three children; their son Billy III played for Virginia Tech from 1999 to 2001.
Hardee died on July 4, 2011, in Phoenix, Arizona, from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident. He had been in a coma for two days before passing away at age 56.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 19:36 (CET).