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1956 Sugar Bowl
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1956 Sugar Bowl
The 1956 Sugar Bowl featured the 7th ranked Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, and the 11th ranked Pittsburgh Panthers. The game was played on January 2, since New Year's Day was a Sunday. Much controversy preceded the 1956 Sugar Bowl. Segregationists and Georgia governor Marvin Griffin used all his political power in an attempt to keep Pitt fullback/linebacker Bobby Grier from playing because he was black. Georgia Tech president Blake R. Van Leer resisted the governor’s pressure, insisting the Institute honor its commitment to the game. Ultimately, Bobby Grier played, making it the first integrated Sugar Bowl as well as becoming the first integrated bowl game in the Deep South.
This game occurred during segregation battles in the south, including Brown v. Board of Education (1954) and the murder of Emmett Till (1955). The Sugar Bowl had been racially segregated since its first inception in 1935. No black players had ever taken the field in it. There were even different sections of the stadium set aside for black and white attendees. In the past, most Southern colleges (including Georgia Tech) were all-white and had an unofficial "gentleman's agreement" with integrated Northern schools in which the teams would only play against each other if the African American players on the team were benched for the game. By the 1950s, this agreement was starting to break down, with some Northern schools refusing to honor it and some Southern schools agreeing to play against integrated teams so long as the game took place in the North. Many Southern schools responded to this shift by simply refusing to play Northern schools at all, resulting in a significant decline in inter-sectional gameplay. The Bowl games, most of which took place in the South, became a focal point of contention. The Cotton Bowl in Dallas held its first integrated game in 1948, and the Sun Bowl in El Paso held one in 1950. But up to 1956, most Southern games remained strictly segregated.
Georgia Tech had been involved in a previous racial incident in 1934, when the team refused to play a game against the University of Michigan unless the Wolverines benched their star end, a black player named Willis Ward. Michigan eventually complied with the demand, but only after Georgia Tech agreed to reciprocate by benching their own star end, Hoot Gibson. With both players out of the game, it proceeded on schedule, with Michigan winning 9-2 to earn what turned out to be their only victory of the season. By 1956, Georgia Tech had a progressive President, and they had played against integrated teams before, including a game against Notre Dame two years earlier (a 27-14 defeat that ended the Yellow Jackets' 31-game winning streak), but none of these games had taken place in the South.
Pittsburgh's linebacker and fullback, Bobby Grier, was black. Many segregationists in New Orleans fought to bar him from playing. This stood in stark contrast to the 1956 Rose Bowl, which featured two of the most racially integrated college football teams of the day with six African American players for the UCLA Bruins and seven for the Michigan State Spartans. Pitt's official stance was "No Grier, no game". The School announced Grier would "travel, eat, live, practice, and play with the team". After receiving the team invitation to the Sugar Bowl, Georgia Tech coach Bobby Dodd took a poll of his players to see if they were willing to play an integrated team. Every single player voted in favor of playing the game. Starting quarterback Wade Mitchell said "I personally have no objection to playing a team with a Negro member on it, and, as far as I know, the rest of the boys feel the same way." Georgia Tech president Blake R. Van Leer also played a decisive role, making clear that the Institute would honor its commitment to play, despite heavy political pressure. His leadership is widely credited with ensuring the game moved forward.
Georgia governor Marvin Griffin, who had a son attending Georgia Tech at the time, privately told Dodd and Georgia Tech's President Blake R Van Leer the game could proceed, but would later publicly oppose Georgia Tech's participation in the game. On December 2, 1955 (the day after the arrest of Rosa Parks, which led to the Montgomery bus boycott), Griffin publicly sent another telegram to his state's Board Of Regents imploring that teams from Georgia not engage in racially integrated events which had Blacks either as participants or in the stands. It read:
The South stands at Armageddon. The battle is joined. We cannot make the slightest concession to the enemy in this dark and lamentable hour of struggle. There is no more difference in compromising integrity of race on the playing field than in doing so in the classrooms. One break in the dike and the relentless enemy will rush in and destroy us.
Georgia Tech president Blake R. Van Leer played a pivotal role in ensuring the game proceeded, standing firm against political pressure to withdraw. Van Leer insisted that Georgia Tech honor its contract with the Sugar Bowl, reportedly telling state officials, ‘We're not backing out.’ Historians and contemporaries credit his stance as a decisive factor in allowing the game to be played, and as an early step in the integration of Southern college athletics.
That same night, a group of 2,000 Georgia Tech students held a protest against Griffin's stance, which soon turned into a riot. Holding signs saying "We play anybody" and "governor Griffin sits on his brains", the students broke windows, upturned parking meters, hung Griffin in effigy, and marched all the way to the governor's mansion, surrounding it until 3:30 a.m. and only agreeing to disperse when state representative Milton "Muggsy" Smith (himself a former Georgia Tech football player) addressed the crowd and assured them the game would be played. A few days later, students at the rival University of Georgia held their own protest against Griffin, stating "For once we are with Georgia Tech." Others all across America came out against Griffin, including labor leader Walter Reuther, who called Griffin's statement "un-American", and said "you couldn't help the communists more if you were on their payroll." Griffin publicly blamed Georgia Tech's President Van Leer for the "riots," directed Van Leer to determine what students were responsible for the demonstration and take immediate disciplinary action, but after Van Leer refused, Griffin then requested he be replaced. State representative John P Drinkard recommended that all of Georgia Tech's state funding be cut off if they proceed and later Griffin suggested anyone who adhered to the principles of integration should not be admitted to Tech. Van Leer's family also received violent threats in the mail. Following these events, Van Leer was summoned to the Board of Regents. While in front of the Board of Regents, Van Leer was publicly quoted on record:
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1956 Sugar Bowl
The 1956 Sugar Bowl featured the 7th ranked Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, and the 11th ranked Pittsburgh Panthers. The game was played on January 2, since New Year's Day was a Sunday. Much controversy preceded the 1956 Sugar Bowl. Segregationists and Georgia governor Marvin Griffin used all his political power in an attempt to keep Pitt fullback/linebacker Bobby Grier from playing because he was black. Georgia Tech president Blake R. Van Leer resisted the governor’s pressure, insisting the Institute honor its commitment to the game. Ultimately, Bobby Grier played, making it the first integrated Sugar Bowl as well as becoming the first integrated bowl game in the Deep South.
This game occurred during segregation battles in the south, including Brown v. Board of Education (1954) and the murder of Emmett Till (1955). The Sugar Bowl had been racially segregated since its first inception in 1935. No black players had ever taken the field in it. There were even different sections of the stadium set aside for black and white attendees. In the past, most Southern colleges (including Georgia Tech) were all-white and had an unofficial "gentleman's agreement" with integrated Northern schools in which the teams would only play against each other if the African American players on the team were benched for the game. By the 1950s, this agreement was starting to break down, with some Northern schools refusing to honor it and some Southern schools agreeing to play against integrated teams so long as the game took place in the North. Many Southern schools responded to this shift by simply refusing to play Northern schools at all, resulting in a significant decline in inter-sectional gameplay. The Bowl games, most of which took place in the South, became a focal point of contention. The Cotton Bowl in Dallas held its first integrated game in 1948, and the Sun Bowl in El Paso held one in 1950. But up to 1956, most Southern games remained strictly segregated.
Georgia Tech had been involved in a previous racial incident in 1934, when the team refused to play a game against the University of Michigan unless the Wolverines benched their star end, a black player named Willis Ward. Michigan eventually complied with the demand, but only after Georgia Tech agreed to reciprocate by benching their own star end, Hoot Gibson. With both players out of the game, it proceeded on schedule, with Michigan winning 9-2 to earn what turned out to be their only victory of the season. By 1956, Georgia Tech had a progressive President, and they had played against integrated teams before, including a game against Notre Dame two years earlier (a 27-14 defeat that ended the Yellow Jackets' 31-game winning streak), but none of these games had taken place in the South.
Pittsburgh's linebacker and fullback, Bobby Grier, was black. Many segregationists in New Orleans fought to bar him from playing. This stood in stark contrast to the 1956 Rose Bowl, which featured two of the most racially integrated college football teams of the day with six African American players for the UCLA Bruins and seven for the Michigan State Spartans. Pitt's official stance was "No Grier, no game". The School announced Grier would "travel, eat, live, practice, and play with the team". After receiving the team invitation to the Sugar Bowl, Georgia Tech coach Bobby Dodd took a poll of his players to see if they were willing to play an integrated team. Every single player voted in favor of playing the game. Starting quarterback Wade Mitchell said "I personally have no objection to playing a team with a Negro member on it, and, as far as I know, the rest of the boys feel the same way." Georgia Tech president Blake R. Van Leer also played a decisive role, making clear that the Institute would honor its commitment to play, despite heavy political pressure. His leadership is widely credited with ensuring the game moved forward.
Georgia governor Marvin Griffin, who had a son attending Georgia Tech at the time, privately told Dodd and Georgia Tech's President Blake R Van Leer the game could proceed, but would later publicly oppose Georgia Tech's participation in the game. On December 2, 1955 (the day after the arrest of Rosa Parks, which led to the Montgomery bus boycott), Griffin publicly sent another telegram to his state's Board Of Regents imploring that teams from Georgia not engage in racially integrated events which had Blacks either as participants or in the stands. It read:
The South stands at Armageddon. The battle is joined. We cannot make the slightest concession to the enemy in this dark and lamentable hour of struggle. There is no more difference in compromising integrity of race on the playing field than in doing so in the classrooms. One break in the dike and the relentless enemy will rush in and destroy us.
Georgia Tech president Blake R. Van Leer played a pivotal role in ensuring the game proceeded, standing firm against political pressure to withdraw. Van Leer insisted that Georgia Tech honor its contract with the Sugar Bowl, reportedly telling state officials, ‘We're not backing out.’ Historians and contemporaries credit his stance as a decisive factor in allowing the game to be played, and as an early step in the integration of Southern college athletics.
That same night, a group of 2,000 Georgia Tech students held a protest against Griffin's stance, which soon turned into a riot. Holding signs saying "We play anybody" and "governor Griffin sits on his brains", the students broke windows, upturned parking meters, hung Griffin in effigy, and marched all the way to the governor's mansion, surrounding it until 3:30 a.m. and only agreeing to disperse when state representative Milton "Muggsy" Smith (himself a former Georgia Tech football player) addressed the crowd and assured them the game would be played. A few days later, students at the rival University of Georgia held their own protest against Griffin, stating "For once we are with Georgia Tech." Others all across America came out against Griffin, including labor leader Walter Reuther, who called Griffin's statement "un-American", and said "you couldn't help the communists more if you were on their payroll." Griffin publicly blamed Georgia Tech's President Van Leer for the "riots," directed Van Leer to determine what students were responsible for the demonstration and take immediate disciplinary action, but after Van Leer refused, Griffin then requested he be replaced. State representative John P Drinkard recommended that all of Georgia Tech's state funding be cut off if they proceed and later Griffin suggested anyone who adhered to the principles of integration should not be admitted to Tech. Van Leer's family also received violent threats in the mail. Following these events, Van Leer was summoned to the Board of Regents. While in front of the Board of Regents, Van Leer was publicly quoted on record:
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