View source for Eagle Day

{{Short description|American gridiron football player (1932–2008)}}
{{About|the football player|the first day of the Nazi operation to destroy Britain's air force|Adlertag|other uses}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox Canadian Football League biography
| name = Eagle Day
| image = Eagle Day 1961.jpg
| caption = Day in 1961
| birth_date = {{birth date|mf=yes|1932|10|2}}
| birth_place = [[Columbia, Mississippi]], U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|mf=yes|2008|2|22|1932|10|2}}
| death_place = [[Nashville, Tennessee]], U.S.
| number = 10, 19
| import = yes
| position1 = Quarterback
| position2 = Punter
| height_ft = 5
| height_in = 11
| weight_lb = 185
| college = [[Ole Miss Rebels football|Mississippi]]
| NFLDraftedYear = 1956
| NFLDraftedRound = 17
| NFLDraftedPick = 203
| NFLDraftedTeam = [[Washington Redskins]]
| playing_years1 = {{CFL Year|1956}}–{{CFL Year|1958}}
| playing_team1 = [[Winnipeg Blue Bombers]]
| playing_years2 = [[1959 Washington Redskins season|1959]]–[[1960 Washington Redskins season|1960]]
| playing_team2 = [[Washington Redskins]]
| playing_years3 = {{CFL Year|1961}}–{{CFL Year|1966}}
| playing_team3 = [[Calgary Stampeders]]
| playing_years4 = {{CFL Year|1967}}
| playing_team4 = [[Toronto Argonauts]]
| career_highlights = 
* 2× First-team [[List of All-SEC football teams|All-SEC]] ([[1954 All-SEC football team|1954]], [[1955 All-SEC football team|1955]])
* 1956 - [[Cotton Bowl Classic]] Most Valuable Player Award
* 1962 - CFL West - [[Jeff Nicklin Memorial Trophy]]
* 1981 - Inducted into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame.
* 1988 - Inducted into the Ole Miss Athletics Hall of Fame.
* 2003 - Inducted into the Cotton Bowl Classic Hall of Fame.
| CFLAllStar = {{CFL Year|1962}}
| CFLWestAllStar = {{CFL Year|1962}}
| NFL = DAY276860
}}
'''Herman Sidney "Eagle" Day''' (October 2, 1932 – February 22, 2008) was an American [[punter (American football)|punter]] in the [[National Football League]] (NFL) for the [[Washington Redskins]] and [[quarterback]] in the [[Canadian Football League]] (CFL) with the [[Winnipeg Blue Bombers]], [[Calgary Stampeders]] and the [[Toronto Argonauts]]. He played [[college football]] and [[college baseball|baseball]] at the [[University of Mississippi]].

==College career==
Day was a two-time All-[[Southeastern Conference]] quarterback for the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) [[Ole Miss Rebels football|Rebels]], leading Ole Miss to SEC titles in [[1954 college football season|1954]] and [[1955 college football season|1955]] with a combination of running and passing skills.

Day led Ole Miss to a 26–5–1 record in three seasons while playing for coach [[Johnny Vaught]].  He was the MVP of the 1956 [[Cotton Bowl Classic]] after leading Ole Miss to a 14–13 upset victory over [[TCU Horned Frogs football|Texas Christian]] in the Rebels first major bowl game. After a late-game 25-yard scramble during the 1956 Cotton Bowl Classic game against Texas Christian University, he was given the nickname "The Mississippi Gambler". Day completed 111 of 233 passes for 2,022 yards and 14 touchdowns during his Ole Miss career.  Not counting bowl statistics, he had 2,428 yards of total offense and was responsible for 21 touchdowns.  His first pass in college (vs. Chattanooga) in 1953 was a 63-yard touchdown.

As a pitcher, Day was with the Rebels baseball team in 1956 when it went to the [[College World Series]].<ref name=Obit>{{cite web |url=https://www.sportsnet.ca/football/cfl/obit-eagle-day/ |title=Former CFL player Eagle Day dead at 75 |date=15 September 2009 |agency=[[The Canadian Press]] |website=[[Sportsnet]] |access-date=6 January 2019}}</ref>

==Professional career==
Day played ten years in the [[Canadian Football League]] with the [[Winnipeg Blue Bombers]], [[Calgary Stampeders]] and [[Toronto Argonauts]] and two years in the NFL with the [[Washington Redskins]].  His time spent in the CFL was as a quarterback.  His two years spent in the NFL with the Redskins was as a punter.

Although Day was [[NFL draft|drafted]] by the Washington Redskins in the 17th round of the [[1956 NFL draft]], he did not join the Redskins until the 1959 and 1960 seasons, instead joining the Winnipeg Blue Bombers for three years first.

In 1961, Day left the NFL for the CFL, joining the Calgary Stampeders, with which team he remained through the 1965 season. In 1962, he was an all-star and won the [[Jeff Nicklin Memorial Trophy]]. When he left the Stampeders, he joined the Toronto Argonauts (the first of two Ole Miss stars to play quarterback for Toronto, the other being [[Kent Austin]] in 1995).

At the time of his death, Day's 226 playoff completions placed him fifth all-time, while his 3,132 playoff passing yards had him sixth for all-time.<ref name=Obit/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}
*[http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080222/SPORTS/80222037 Obituary]{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

{{Ole Miss Rebels quarterback navbox}}
{{BlueBombersQuarterback}}
{{Redskins1956DraftPicks}}
{{Washington Commanders starting quarterbacks}}
{{StampedersQuarterback}}
{{ArgosQuarterback}}
{{CFL passing yardage leaders}}
{{Jeff Nicklin pre 1973}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Day, Eagle}}
[[Category:1932 births]]
[[Category:2008 deaths]]
[[Category:American football quarterbacks]]
[[Category:American football punters]]
[[Category:Players of Canadian football from Mississippi]]
[[Category:Washington Redskins players]]
[[Category:Calgary Stampeders players]]
[[Category:Winnipeg Blue Bombers players]]
[[Category:Toronto Argonauts players]]
[[Category:Ole Miss Rebels baseball players]]
[[Category:Ole Miss Rebels football players]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Columbia, Mississippi]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Mississippi]]
[[Category:Baseball players from Mississippi]]
[[Category:Canadian football quarterbacks]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]