Bill Layton is a legendary name among coaches in upstate New York. Coach Layton earned a two year degree in music at Ithaca Conservatory of Music, now Ithaca College, during the depression but found little demand for his skills as a concert pianist during those hard times. After a tour of duty in the Coast Guard, he began his coaching career in the 1930s at the Ithaca YMCA. His teams there competed against the best YMCA teams from other eastern cities and many top level collegiate teams, including Cornell College of Iowa (a national power), West Point, and Lehigh. In 1946, Coach Layton became the coach at Ithaca High School, a position he held until 1960. During that period, Ithaca won 13 consecutive Section 4 team championships. While coaching at Ithaca High School, Bill also found time to act as assistant coach at Cornell University. There he coached several national champions including Jimmy Miller, another 2002 inductee who became head coach at Cornell in 1948. Jimmy Miller and Bill Layton coached together for many years. Coach Layton was instrumental in the development of several highly successful wrestling programs besides Ithaca's, including Union Endicott, Binghamton, and Johnson City. He was known for his willingness to help young coaches develop programs and teach wrestling at all levels. From 1982 to 1989 he helped Johnson City produce two New York State championship teams. Olympian Dave Auble said, "I think he was the equal of any coach in the world." To maintain his eligibility to coach, Coach Layton returned to Ithaca College and completed his four year degree at age 57. His greatest legacy to wrestling is the dozens of collegiate and high school coaches who learned their sport from Bill Layton. There are four other inductees to the New York State Hall of Fame in 2002. Each of them has described Bill Layton as a mentor who influenced his wrestling career. Bill Layton coached until his death at age 81 in 1989.