I thought a great way to start the new year off with this blog was to reflect on a college football team about to play in a bowl game. This team is the Buffalo Bulls. Their story is one that has been shared recently on ESPN but I thought I'd chime in a little on it.
The University of Buffalo (in Buffalo, NY) is "playing" in their second ever bowl game today against the University of Connecticut. The reason why playing is in quotation marks is because they didn't play in their first bowl game some fifty years ago. The Tangerine Bowl officials at the time didn't want an integrated team to play in their bowl and the Bulls had two African-American players on their team. The coaches left the decision up to the players and the players unamiously voted to not play in the game as a show of support for their teammates.
This season's team, lead by Coach Turner Gill, won the MAC championship (which included beating once undefeated Ball State) to secure a bowl opportunity. In a show of respect, this year's squad invited the 1958 squad to come with them to their bowl game since they were not able to go to their game.
I think this is a tremendous story and one that reflects the good work that went on. It was ahead of its time and showed that even in an era of racism, there was progress that was ahead of its time. I hope the Bulls do well today and as they take the field, they remember the past and the team that came before them.
ESPN did a great piece on the 1958 team. Here's a clip of it from their Outside the Lines piece they did a few months back:
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