Carpenter, "Bill" (William S. Jr.)
Football
b. Sept. 30, 1937, Woodbury, NJ
Carpenter became famous as the "lonely end" at the U. S. Military Academy in 1958 and 1959. Army Coach "Red" Blaik devised the lonely end formation, in which Carpenter was split wide and never entered the huddle. Instead, plays were conveyed to him through hand signals from the quarterback.
As a junior in 1958, Carpenter caught 22 passes for 453 yards and 2 touchdowns. He was named an All-American in 1959, when he had 43 receptions for 591 yards and 4 touchdowns.
Although he had to enter military service after graduation, the 6-foot-2, 210-pound Carpenter was drafted by the Oakland Raiders of the AFL and the Baltimore Colts of the NFL, but he elected to became a career military officer, eventually rising to the rank of general.