Preacher Pilot
James Isaac "Preacher" Pilot Jr. was an American professional football player.
Early years
Pilot was born in Kleberg County, Texas, in 1941. He grew up in Kingsville, Texas, and attended Kingsville High School.College career
Pilot enrolled at the University of Kansas on a basketball scholarship in 1959. After one year, he transferred to New Mexico State. He played for the New Mexico State Aggies football team from 1961 to 1963, playing tailback on offense and cornerback on defense.As a sophomore during the 1961 season, Pilot led the country's major colleges in both rushing yards and scoring. He was the third consecutive New Mexico State back to win the national rushing and scoring titles, following Pervis Atkins in 1959 and Bob Gaiters in 1960. He set a school record with 182 rushing yards against Texas Western on October 28 and then broke his own record three weeks later with 319 rushing yards on 40 carries against Hardin–Simmons. He also scored 30 points on three touchdowns and six two-point conversions against Hardin–Simmons. His six successful runs for two-point conversions set a major college record, and his 319 yards was the most in one game in 13 years.
As a junior in 1962, Pilot again led college football with 1,247 rushing yards. He was the first player since Tom Harmon to lead the country in rushing yardage in consecutive years. He was not able to defend his national scoring title, finishing in a tie for second place with 92 points on 15 touchdowns and a two-point conversion in 1962. Pilot's two-year tally of 2,525 rushing yards was the third most recorded to that point by a major college player.
As a senior in 1963, pulled a hamstring muscle 10 days before the opening game and missed several games. When he returned to the lineup, he lacked the "quick start" that was a feature of his game the prior two seasons. He finished the 1963 season with only 446 rushing yards and 12 points scored.