Ralph wiley saul bellow biography

American sports journalist (1952–2004)

Ralph Heygood Wiley Jr. (April 12, 1952 – June 13, 2004)^[1] was an American sports journalist who wrote for Sports Illustrated and ESPN's Page 2. He was well known for his distinctive literary tone and his writings on race in America.^[2]

Early life

Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Wiley attended Knoxville College from 1972 to 1975, where he played college football.^[3] After suffering an injury, he landed his first professional journalism job at the Knoxville Spectrum. He was a member of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.

Career

Upon graduation, Wiley earned a position at the Oakland Tribune, where he quickly climbed up the ranks from copy boy to beat writer and eventually became a regular columnist. In 1980, he coined the famous phrase "Billy Ball" to describe the managerial style of Billy Martin.^[3] In 1982, he was hired by Sports Illustrated, where he wrote 28 cover st