Western Colorado University Athletics

The “Red Grange of the Rockies”, who scored six touchdowns in his first career start against Adams State in 1957, was one of four individual inductees during the 16th Annual Mountaineer Sports Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony Oct. 8 at the Fred Field Western Heritage Center in Gunnison.

“Western State has a new football hero Monday – halfback Bill Schmaltz (sic) who scored six touchdowns in his team’s 48-6 romp over Adams State in their Rocky Mountain Conference game at Gunnison”, reported the Associated Press in just one of the many articles from his record-setting performance.

For three seasons, Bill Schmalz bounced between guard, end and finally settled on fullback during his sophomore season, but never saw any time on the field because of a knee injury during the season. He had to convince Head Coach Pete Pederson to let him stay on the team for his junior and senior seasons.

“Bill asked me if he could play and I told him, ‘No,’” said Pederson in an interview with the Chicago Sun Times. “I didn’t want him to re-injure that knee and be hampered for life. He came out again (in 1957) and I relented. But I told him, ‘Bill, the minute you hurt that knee again, you’re finished.’”

Bill went out for his senior year of 1957, still never seeing any playing time until an injury to Don Miller before the Adams State game Oct. 19 gave Bill the opportunity for his first career start.

Bill carried the ball only four times, but scored on runs of 13, 20, 36 and 58 yards. He added a 10-yard touchdown pass and returned a punt for 80 yards for a sixth touchdown. His seventh touchdown, a 67-yard punt return, was called back because of clipping.

The six touchdowns came 33 years to the day after Red Grange scored five touchdowns for Illinois against Michigan, earning Bill the nickname “Red Grange of the Rockies”. A new collegiate record at the time, the performance earning Bill and Western State College nationwide attention, including:

“WSC Sub Outdoes Grange 33 Years Later to the Day” – Pueblo Chieftain
“Sub’s Dream Game: He Scores 6 TDs in Seven Carries” – St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“Cowboy Scores 6 TDs in First Starting Role – Long Beach (Calif.) Press-Telegram
“Mountaineers Give 48-6 Lesson to Indians, How to Make Touchdowns” – Newspaper unknown

With his starting spot solidified for the rest of the season, Bill added three touchdowns in each of the next games against Nevada and Colorado College. He finished with the RMAC lead with 90 points, and came within two points of tying the program record set by Bill Rhodes two years earlier.

The six touchdowns remains a Mountaineer record and was matched in 1993 by Jason Davis.

Bill received heavy interest from the Chicago Bears, but ended up signing a $7,500 contract with the Ottawa Rough Riders of the Canadian Professional League in 1959.

“Bill is what a hero is,” said John Fulham in his nomination letter. “To know him is indeed a privilege. Bill is the ‘stuff’ that people think about when you think about strength, character, what’s important. He is virtually that fiber young men need when growing to be a man.”