W.E. "Bill" Stages

Ft. Worth Masonic Home

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Inducted in 1986

Few of Masonic Home's legendary Mighty Mites could match the stature of the 6-foot-3 Stages, a four-year letterman (1929-32) who never played a losing game for the Fort Worth school. Stages was an all-state end in 1932, when the Mighty Mites' 13-man roster -- playing their first season in the state's largest classification -- faced powerful Corsicana for the Class A championship. The game turned into a punting duel between Stages and the Tigers' Bob Finley and ended in a 0-0 tie, giving 'The Home' a share of the state title, a miracle finish chronicled by Jim Dent in the best-selling TWELVE MIGHTY ORPHANS. Stages was a three-year starter at Texas A&M (1934-36) before entering the coaching ranks. In a 27-year career with stops at Hull-Daisetta, Gladewater and Corpus Christi Ray, Stages had a 177-78-3 record that included trips to the state semifinals in 1951-52, a finals appearance in '56 and a state championship in 1959, all at Ray. He was inducted into the Texas High School Coaches Hall of Honor in 1969. Stages died in 1981 at age 67.