{"id":70041,"date":"2024-09-14T02:51:14","date_gmt":"2024-09-14T07:51:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/champions-for-all-to-follow-65-and-66-football-teams-inducted-into-michigan-state-hall-of-fame\/"},"modified":"2024-09-14T02:51:14","modified_gmt":"2024-09-14T07:51:14","slug":"champions-for-all-to-follow-65-and-66-football-teams-inducted-into-michigan-state-hall-of-fame","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/champions-for-all-to-follow-65-and-66-football-teams-inducted-into-michigan-state-hall-of-fame\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Champions for all to follow\u2019: \u201965 and \u201966 football teams inducted into Michigan State Hall of Fame"},"content":{"rendered":"

EAST LANSING, Mich. \u2013 The scene at the Michigan State<\/a><\/strong> Athletics Hall of Fame ceremonies Friday at Breslin Center summed up Michigan State football as a singular story under College Football Hall of Fame coach Duffy Daugherty, and the impact his most famous teams had on the lives of its players, and \u2013 through word, example, athletic achievement and social relevance \u2013 a nation and the world. <\/p>\n

This was all evident before Michigan State<\/a><\/strong> athletic director Alan Haller<\/a><\/strong> spoke to the audience. Hundreds attended as Michigan State enshrined its 1965 and 1966 national championship football teams for titles won on the field and social barriers broken off it.<\/p>\n

The number of Black and White faces \u2013 not to mention Bob Apisa<\/a><\/strong> as the first Samoan All-American player \u2013 in their late 70s, dining together can\u2019t be duplicated by 1960s rosters at other schools. Daugherty ignored the unwritten quota of the era which customarily limited Black athletes to a half-dozen or so for teams which chose to partially integrate. His 1960s teams were college football\u2019s first fully integrated rosters. \u00a0<\/p>\n

USC numbered only five Black players on its 1962 National Championship team and only seven on its 1967 National Championship roster. USC was seen as a forerunner for integration, but their numbers pale in comparison to Michigan State.<\/p>\n

Alabama and Texas fielded all-White rosters when Alabama shared national titles in 1961, 1964 and 1965 and Texas won national crowns in 1963 and 1969.<\/p>\n

These are numbers that have to be repeated to understand how far ahead of the nation was Daugherty with his teams.<\/p>\n

\u201cTonight is a special night,\u201d Haller said. \u201cWe have the opportunity to celebrate two iconic teams in Spartans history. Yes, you were great on the field. But that\u2019s not why we\u2019re here tonight. We\u2019re here for your transcendent impact on your sport, your university and our society.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think enough credit has gone to you for what you have done for Michigan State University. You were young men from different states and races. You were the very fabric of who we are and who we strive to be. Your legacy will be your impact. Your success paved the way for athletes of color. By any measure you are champions in life and champion for all to follow.\u201d<\/p>\n

A tipping point to college football was the 1966 Game of the Century when Michigan State lined up 20 Black players, 11 Black starters, two Black team captains, College Football Hall of Famers George Webster <\/a><\/strong>and Clinton Jones<\/a><\/strong>, and the South\u2019s first Black quarterback to win a national title, Jimmy Raye<\/a><\/strong> of segregated Fayetteville, N.C.<\/p>\n

Notre Dame lined up one Black player, Alan Page.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Page wanted to attend Michigan State. On his recruiting trip to Michigan State, his host was Jim Proebstle, a White player who was a year older than Page as high school teammates at Canton (Ohio) Central Catholic. He told Proebstle he wanted to play for the Spartans.<\/p>\n

But Page\u2019s parents wanted him to attend a Catholic school, and he went to Notre Dame.<\/p>\n

When the Spartans and Irish took the field on November 19, 1966 at Spartan Stadium, a record TV audience of 33 million saw the contrast of rosters. Michigan State was the future. Notre Dame and USC the past. Alabama and Texas, the far past.<\/p>\n

A total of 58 players from the \u201965 and \u201966 teams attended Friday\u2019s Hall of Fame ceremonies. Among those who have passed away were College Football Hall of Famers George Webster in 2007 and Bubba Smith in 2010. Charlie Thornhill, who led the team in tackles at linebacker when he cleaned up plays as opponents ran away from Smith and Webster, passed in 2006.<\/p>\n

There were six widows who attended, which also was a statement on the bond among the 1965 and 1966 players.<\/p>\n

The evening began at the Clara B. Smith Center for the unveiling of the Hall of Fame plaque.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis may be the last time we get together like this,\u201d said Jimmy Raye, 78.<\/p>\n

Once the players were assembled for a team photo, Katie Souder, the MSU S Club director, asked for a \u201cGo Green! Go White!\u201d cheer as the staff photographer clicked away.<\/p>\n

Michigan State president Kevin Guskiewicz, who took over his post in March, also spoke.<\/p>\n

\u201cTonight is about celebrating our history,\u201d he said. \u201cAn athletic program is the front porch to a university.\u201d<\/p>\n

By the end of the night, 1965 team captain Steve Juday and 1966 team captain Clinton Jones spoke to the audience. The late Don Japinga had been Juday\u2019s co-captain and Webster shared the role with Jones.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d like to have a moment of silence for those who are not with us,\u201d said Juday, who was enshrined in the MSU Hall of Fame in 2016.<\/p>\n

Jones, who was enshrined in MSU\u2019s Hall in 2012, read from a poem written by the team\u2019s unofficial poet laurate, Pat Gallinagh, an Academic All-American in 1966. Gallinagh was unable to attend while caring for his ill wife.<\/p>\n

Jones\u2019 voice cracked as he got to the final two lines about the Spartans breaking ground as leaders of college football integration.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut perhaps our most significant accomplishment was not the final score<\/em><\/p>\n

But in helping make America a better place and helping our ideals to restore<\/em><\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

In addition to the 1965 and 1966 teams enshrined, six individuals also were inducted into the MSU Hall of Fame on Friday:<\/p>\n

\u2014 Laura (Kueny) Smith women\u2019s golf.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Anson Carter, hockey.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Jessica (Beech) Bograkos, softball.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Beth (Rohl) Saylors, women\u2019s track and field.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Darqueze Dennard, Football.<\/p>\n

During Dennard\u2019s<\/a><\/strong> remarks to the crowd at the ceremonies, he referenced the segregation his grandparents endured while growing up and living in rural Georgia. He took a moment to congratulate the 1965 and 1966 teams.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought about my grandparents sharing your journey,\u201d Dennard said.<\/p>\n

Their journey will continue for years to come, within those who learn about their accomplishments and contributions when they see the \u201965 and \u201966 teams\u2019 plaques at the Michigan State Athletics Hall of Fame.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Tom Shanahan<\/a><\/strong> is an author and freelance writer. He has authored \u201cRay of Light:<\/a><\/strong> Jimmy Raye, Duffy Daugherty, The Intigration of College Football, and the 1965-66 Michigan State Spartans\u201d; \u201cThe Right Thing To Do<\/a><\/strong>: The True Pioneers of College Football Integration in the 1960s; and \u201cBubba\u2019s Dad, Duffy and College Football\u2019s Underground Railroad.\u201d<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Tom Shanahan (far left) and MSU play-by-play broadcaster George Blaha with MSU 1965 and 1966 Hall of Famers. L-R: Jimmy Raye, Regis Cavendar (back), Eric Marshall (front), Chuck Bailey (back), Clinton Jones and Don Moore.<\/p>\n\n

The post \u2018Champions for all to follow\u2019: \u201965 and \u201966 football teams inducted into Michigan State Hall of Fame<\/a> appeared first on On3<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

EAST LANSING, Mich. \u2013 The scene at the Michigan State Athletics Hall of Fame ceremonies…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-70041","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70041","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70041"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70041\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70041"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70041"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70041"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}