Class of 2017
Pinpointing a single hall of fame item on Bill Legg’s resume is not easy. There are too many significant accomplishments to list.
In Limestone County, Bill Legg large and successful legacy. Legg was a football star in high school and college.
He served in the military and flew 23 combat missions during World War II.
Then he came home, started a family and became a local rodeo star — while continuing his public service as an elected official on the Limestone County commission.
“My dad was a great man,” said Ardmore football coach Clint Legg, who is Bill’s youngest son.
“He was involved in a lot of positive things here in the community. If I could just accomplish just a fraction of the things my dad did, then I would feel pretty good about myself.”
Legg is being inducted into the Limestone County Sports Hall of Fame with the 2017 class. His oldest son, Will Legg, was inducted in 2016.
Legg starred on the football field at Athens High, where he was an all- state selection in 1939 by the Birmingham News. He went on to continue
his football career at Columbia Military Academy.
After serving in the military during World War II, Legg attended Athens State, where he also played football. “From the stories I’ve heard, my dad was a pretty good football player,” Clint said. “When I was a kid, remember hearing him talk about playing ball and how different things were back then. He loved football. He loved to talk about those days. It was special to him.”
When Legg finished high school, he immediately began a life of public service. He enlisted in the military and became a pilot.
During World War II, he flew 23 combat missions in the European Theatre.
After graduating from Athens State, Legg’s football days were over, so he found another avenue to display his athletic skills: Rodeo.
In a rodeo career that spanned across more than three decades, Legg established a reputation as one of the region’s most fierce competitors. Legg actively participated in rodeo events until he was in his 70s.
While competing in rodeo, Legg also became an ambassador for the sport. For 25 years, Legg served as the Alabama spokesperson for the International Professional Rodeo Association.
“Mr. Legg loved rodeo,” said Limestone County sheriff Mike Blakely, who was a family friend. “He helped establish some of the events we have today. But that’s just the type of person Mr. Legg was. He would give you the shirt off his back if he thought it would help the community. He was a good man.”
Clint agreed, he said “they don’t make them like that anymore, and I remember watching him compete and thinking, ‘Wow.’
Even when he got a little age on him, he could still hold his own.
“The things my dad accomplished throughout his life is pretty amazing. He lived a great life.”