Bill Bates William Frederick Bates ( born June 6 , 1961 ) is a former American football safety in the National Football League who spent his entire career with the Dallas Cowboys . Early years . Bates attended Farragut High School in Knoxville , helping lead the Farragut Admirals to the state semi - finals in 1978 , in which the Admirals lost to Red Bank by one point . He was all state in football and basketball . He also practiced track and field . College career . Bates played college football at the University of Tennessee , where he was a four year starter , the first two at free safety and the last two at strong safety . At the end of 1979 he was honored by being named to the Freshman All - America team and was the number one punt returner on the team . On September 6 , 1980 Herschel Walker and Bates met on the 5 yard line in a play that still lives in many college football highlights . Walker ran over Bates to score his first touchdown in his college career . The two would become teammates for three - plus seasons with the Cowboys . He was named to the second team All - SEC as a junior and senior . At the University of Tennessee he was known as the team ' s hardest hitter . On August 18 , 2005 Bates was inducted into the Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame . He was also named to the 100 Year All Tennessee Team . Professional career . He wasn ' t considered big or fast enough to play in the NFL so he went undrafted in the 1983 NFL Draft . Although he was selected by the USFL ' s New Jersey Generals in their territorial draft , he decided to sign as an undrafted free agent with the Dallas Cowboys , which was his favorite team growing up . Bates was a long shot to make the team but his heart and hustle earned him a roster spot on the team and a place in the hearts of all Cowboy fans . From the start he excelled playing special teams , being named “ NFC special teams Player of the Year ” as a rookie . In 1984 he was selected to the Pro Bowl in just his second year — forcing the NFL to create a first - time roster spot for “ special teams ” players , becoming the first such player to receive that election , which is now a roster spot on all Pro Bowl teams . He was also elected All - Pro that season . Tom Landry once said , “ If we had 11 players on the field who played as hard as Bill Bates does and did their homework like he does , we ’ d be almost impossible to beat ” . In 1986 he became a starter at strong safety and remained there until 1988 , after that he was used only in the Nickel defense packages . Per John Madden , Bill made a high percentage of his tackles using his head ; a practice that is now frowned upon by the NFL . At the end of the 1989 season , Jimmy Johnson informed Bates that he was going to be left unprotected on the team ’ s Plan B free agency list . And although the Minnesota Vikings were interested in him , just before the deadline , the Cowboys decided to protect him . He received the team ’ s Bob Lilly Award four consecutive seasons from 1990 to 1994 . This award is selected by a vote of the fans and annually goes to the Cowboy player who displays leadership and character on and off the field . In 1992 he was lost for the season with a knee injury and after the 1993 season , he was selected by his teammates to receive the Ed Block Courage Award for successfully overcoming his injury . Bates is tied with Ed " Too Tall " Jones and Mark Tuinei for the most seasons playing in a Cowboys uniform — with 15 . He played for the Cowboys for 15 seasons , earning 3 Super Bowl rings . Upon his retirement after the 1997 season , he was one of the most beloved Cowboys of all time . Over his 15 year career , Bill had 14 interceptions and 122 return yards . Bates played in Super Bowl XXVIII and XXX ( Bates injured his knee early in 1992 season when the Cowboys played in Super Bowl XXVII ) . Personal life . His autobiography is entitled " Shoot for the Star " . Bates spent one year with the Jacksonville Jaguars as Special Teams Coach in 2001 . He was an assistant coach for Nease High School ' s football team , which won the 2005 Florida State Championship . He is currently an assistant coach for Ponte Vedra High School . Bates is also a motivational speaker and runs a cattle ranch in North Dallas . He and his wife Denise have five children : Dillon , Tanner , Graham , Brianna , and Hunter . Graham , Brianna , and Hunter are triplets , and Graham and Hunter are currently playing college football at Arkansas State University and Northwestern University , respectively . In 2011 he won Tom Landry Legend Award .