The Legend of Willie "Satellite" Totten

For the past few years, a college football legend had been roaming the sidelines on "The Hill." As a player, Willie "The Satellite" Totten was a genius at the quarterback position during his days at Mississippi Valley State. But in order to understand how great willie totten was, you have to go back 30 plus years and hop on the "Satellite Express."
In the 1980s, the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils football team was trying to find a make a splash, not only in the Southwestern athletic Conference, but also on the national scene. So then Valley Head Coach Archie Cooley aka the Gunslinger came up with the perfect idea for an unstoppable offense. One that he drew up in the dirt.
"I said so what if i put four on this side and stack them," said Archie Cooley. "One on this side and no back. How would you handle that?"
Cooley envisioned a no-huddle offense with 5 wide receivers and no backs. Something that's common in today game of football, but wasn't even thought of in 1980s.
The Gunslinger knew he had the athletes at wide receiver to run the routes, but he needed a quarterback to conduct the offense. So he turned to an athlete who had signed with Delta Devils as a punter: Willie Totten
"I was averaging 45 yards a punt and really that's how I got to Mississippi Valley," said Willie Totten."
"I said to myself, he got the potential because when he shook my hand, he swallowed my hand," says Cooley. "This boy got some big hands, so he should be able to throw this football."
So Coach Cooley gave Willie Totten and his BIG HANDS a shot at playing quarterback. Totten and his guys worked with the offense during camp, but honestly they never thought. it would be used in a game.
"Actually at the time, we thought he was crazy because we never of anything like that," says Totten. "We tried it and it worked the first couple of times we ran the play."
" That's how it started, little by little, piece by piece and it all started from there," said Cooley.
And thus the Satellite Express was born. Totten and his crew were put up video game like numbers during the 1984 season. In three of their first four games, the Delta Devils scored 86, 77 and 63. Mostly because teams had a hard time matching up..
"That was the first time they had seen that. We didn't have any film on that."
The Gunslinger's offense created mismatches all over the field. Especially when they put four wide receivers on one side and a single wide receiver at the bottom.That single wide receiver at the bottom was a guy that was all world, but you may know him as:
"Jerry the World Rice. They felt that I could catch anything in the world. It was really nice."
"Once we connected, it started snowballing from there."
Mississippi Valley's exposure was growing slightly, but on October 13, 1984, knowledge of the Delta Devils and satellite express would be taken to new heights. On that evening, Totten led his his squad into action against the Grambling State Tigers and their legendary head coach Eddie Robinson in the Innagural Circle City in Indianapolis..
"When we stepped on that field, we didn't look at Grambling as being Grambling State University, we looked at them like they were the next opponent.
Totten eclipsed the 500 yard mark again while tossing 4 touchdowns in a 48-36 victory over Grambling. His favorite target that night was none other than Jerry Rice. He caught two of those t-d passes.
"Jerry Rice, 62 yards touchdown!"
"That's when we started getting the national attention from around the country and made them say evidently they have something special going on down there, so let's go see what they're doing.
"People from all over the world were coming to see this in action."
And by the time he left Mississippi Valley, Willie Totten had set 50 Division 1-AA passing records, some of them still stand today.
"What those guys did at Mississippi Valley was innovative enough that it is changing college football today."

[@Hamptonlantavegas]

These hbcu football stories should be in a documentary

[@dwightlove3704]

RIP TO ARCHIE COOLEY

[@jamesharris7556]

The best quarterback from the swac in the last 40 years

[@commissaryarrick9670]

Steve mcnair was the best swac quarterback ever . Totten is the second best . Totten was great but mcnair was one of the best college quarterbacks of all time , not just the swac but in all of college football

[@terryharris367]

@@commissaryarrick9670 your opinion

[@woodsoncircle]

Got a chance to see Willie vs Southern Jaguars as a kid. I think he put up 60 points through the air. Every time he dropped back, it was either a 1st down or 6. I'll never forget that night of football. Jerry wasn't bad either (lol). Willie is a LEGEND.

[@jamesharris7556]

@@commissaryarrick9670 it took McNair 4 years to put up the numbers totten put up in 2 and half years

[@darzeilhall3346]

Steve "Air" McNair.......enough said

[@darylstewart4536]

Much love for my offense coordinator.96-99

[@yadaben-yisrael8703]

A member of the Mean Green Marching Machine under Tramiel,Daddy Rich and Fungus..Gunslinger Era…..Can’t get those days back😢

[@kendrickjones3115]

NEVER EVER heard of Jerry Rice until after I had heard of WILLIE TOTTEN!!! He was "Just Before His Time?!" ...as we're SOOOOO MANY!

[@dwightlove3704]

I just recently purchased the college uniforms of Totten&Rice

[@gavanmitchell9516]

The Circle City Classic is the game where Hall of Famer Bill Walsh discovered Jerry Rice.

[@randquadrozzi5850]

I know the feeling causeI don't function well in cold weather either

[@gbrooks2k9]

This is awesome. Where did you get that footage!?

[@coreyoden2866]

Willie 'SATELLITE' Totten!!📡🛰

[@defrocker6792]

The game against Grambling may have been an exciting, considering how close the score was.

[@kevinbell3841]

Should have given a chance to play in the NFL

[@brianlightbourne3751]

The receivers were call BB catchers (at night)

[@gavanmitchell9516]

Varsity Blues brought me here 😂

[@steviesly7908]

I THE CHANCE TO MEET WILLIE AFTER HIS MSV DAYS WITH JERRY RICE)

[@dwightlove3704]

Ed Too Tall Jones said Dallas gave him a shot