1974 Book: NFL Caste by Eye Color

[Truthteller]

This book came to my attention around 2019 or 2021? For various reasons, I did not post it until now. This topic was presented in front of a national TV audience, as the author, Morgan Worthy, appeared on the retro game show "To Tell The Truth". Quick net search shows the episode likely aired in the spring of 1974?

Basically, the author was an "eye-color expert" and found (data 1969) "Whites" at "White dominated positions" (QB, OL, LB) tended to have blue, green or grey eyes. Conversely, "Whites" at "black dominated positions" (the Speed Positions ) were more likely to have hazel, chestnut or darker eyes. I believe this was the spectrum of his eye-color breakdown?

I found it "stunning" that any form of a "Caste System" was attached to the NFL and acknowledged nationally all the way back in 1974! Don't forget, Dr. Worthy looked at the "Whiter positions" and the "blacker positions", then broke them down by eye-color.

When Morgan Worthy examined the eye color of white NFL players his big finding was that quarterbacks were much more likely to have blue eyes. But he also interestingly found that the blacker the NFL position, the darker eyed the whites who play it tend to be. In humans, he used archival records of athletic performance to show the theoretical pattern which has light-eyed athletes performing at their best on self-paced tasks and dark-eyed athletes, on average, performing at their best on reactive tasks.

The Jason Sehorn effect? In the last 30 (plus) years, there have only been 3 entrenched, white starting CB's in the NFL. Jason Sehorn has dark chocolate eyes. As are Eric Weddle's eyes, who is a Hall of Fame DB, that could've easily played CB in the NFL and excelled. Fast forward to today, it appears Cooper DeJean's eyes are dark Hazel, while Riley Moss' eyes are even darker? So, given this very small sample, was Dr. Worthy right, 51 years after the book came out? I'll put forth more modern day, NFL eye color info in subsequent posts.

Christian McCaffrey eyes?: Christian has blue eyes and he's the NFL most dynamic and prominent white tailback in over 40 years. But Dr. Worthy never wrote blue eyed whites can not excel at the "speed positions", he just noted (back in 1974) an increased percentage of whites at "speed positions" had darker eyes.

Blue Eyed Quarterbacks Dominate: Up until January of 2022, blue eyed quarterbacks dominated in Super Bowls. Here's an article (2014) that expounds on that topic. Steve Sailer's take on the topic.. Just click the link of this X post.

Sam Darnold effect: This is a bit off topic, but soon after Hall of Fame GM Bill Polian left the Colts (2011), he noted some NFL scouts tended to down-grade red haired quarterback's, because so few flaming red-head quarterback's had ever excelled in the NFL. He wasn't kidding! Polian claimed, as of 2011, the last prominent red-haired quarterback was Sonny Jurgensen, who starred for the Redskins way back in the 60's and 1970's. Not sure if any Super Bowl or Hall of Fame caliber quarterback's were true "gingers". Perhaps Brad Johnson (Super Bowl) of the Bucs, with "strawberry blond-ish" hair, was the closest? Maybe Sam Darnold can end that drought?

Again, I'll put forth more modern day, NFL eye color info in subsequent posts.

 

[Don Wassall]

Interesting topic. Andy Dalton was/is known as the Red Rifle and led the Bengals to the playoffs four straight seasons, all first round losses during the endless Marvin X era. He's also made the Pro Bowl three times. I wouldn't call Dalton Hall of Fame material though, and his Bengals playoff teams were a notch or two below that of a genuine Super Bowl contender.

 

[Truthteller]

Interesting topic. Andy Dalton was/is known as the Red Rifle and led the Bengals to the playoffs four straight seasons, all losses during the endless Marvin X era. He's also made the Pro Bowl three times. I wouldn't call Dalton Hall of Fame material though, and his Bengals playoff teams were a notch or two below that of a genuine Super Bowl contender.

Yes, I believe the reason Bill brought up the topic (around 2011 or 2012), was because Andy was going through the draft process, coming out of TCU. Polian wondered if his hair-color would (or had) affected his draft stock? And he was not joking. He meant it. At least that's how I took it.

Polian, well into his 70's, still has flaming red-hair. So it's a topic he cares about, I assume. NBA Hall of Fame center Bill Walton used to bring up this topic all the time during ESPN broadcasts. Pointing out red-haired college BB stars, cheer-leaders, ect. He was doing it more for humor, however.

 

[white is right]

Yes, I believe the reason Bill brought up the topic (around 2011 or 2012), was because Andy was going through the draft process, coming out of TCU. Polian wondered if his hair-color would (or had) affected his draft stock? And he was not joking. He meant it. At least that's how I took it.

Polian, well into his 70's, still has flaming red-hair. So it's a topic he cares about, I assume. NBA Hall of Fame center Bill Walton used to bring up this topic all the time during ESPN broadcasts. Pointing out red-haired college BB stars, cheer-leaders, ect. He was doing it more for humor, however.

I remember around this time period the NFL had a significant amount of Italian-American players in the speed positions ie Tommy Casanova or Ed Marinaro so maybe the numbers skewered towards these stereotypes because of this. Also O-lines had more German-Americans and that would skewer towards blue or lighter eyes in these positions.

Until Brady the possible GOAT qb could be Joe Montana and he probably had brown eyes but I could be wrong about that.

 

[Don Wassall]

Montana has blue eyes.

 

[Don Wassall]

Part of Joe Namath's sex appeal was undoubtedly his eyes, a very light blue that made girls and women swoon, ala those of Mel Gibson and Paul Newman.

 

[white is right]

Part of Joe Namath's sex appeal was undoubtedly his eyes, a very light blue that made girls and women swoon, ala those of Mel Gibson and Paul Newman.

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I knew he had light colored eyes but I always thought they were green it was quite a contrast from his usually darkly tanned skinned.

I assumed Montana had brown eyes because his dad was Italian- American and blue eyes are considered recessive genes where if one parent has darker eyes the children usually inherit the brown eyes. I think hair color is similar.

 

[Truthteller]

I remember around this time period the NFL had a significant amount of Italian-American players in the speed positions ie Tommy Casanova or Ed Marinaro so maybe the numbers skewered towards these stereotypes because of this.

Montana, Marino and Flacco all have blue-eyes. Marino never won a Super Bowl. Via retro Topps cards, Vince Ferragamo has dark cards, I think? I know Jimmy Garoppolo, who totally choked in the 4th quarter of the 2020 Super Bowl, has dark eyes.

Back in 2015, when I looked up all the White running backs with 100 yard games from 1970's and 1980's for CF, I used Deanscards.com for reference. Here's a look at the players from the 1972 Topps set. You can look up all years Topps issued Cards from the 1950's to today?

How much has the NFL changed? Greek Defensive backs, from the Giants and Jets, are among the top 48 players listed in the 1972 set! I had no idea who these players were, until I checked Deanscards, for reference. The Giants Greek player is a CB. While the Jets' Greek speedster is from BYU, surprisingly.

Also, I remember knowing a Jets "superfan" a while back (2009?), via the Net. He was/is jewish and used to brag the Jets #1 draft pick in the early 70's, was a jewish CB named Steve Tannen. This shows how quickly the NFL changed. By the mid 1980's, it's very possible none of these players would've ever played a game in the NFL? By the 2000's it's almost certain none of the players would've played a single NFL game.

 

[white is right]

Montana, Marino and Flacco all have blue-eyes. Marino never won a Super Bowl. Via retro Topps cards, Vince Ferragamo has dark cards, I think? I know Jimmy Garoppolo, who totally choked in the 4th quarter of the 2020 Super Bowl, has dark eyes.

Back in 2015, when I looked up all the White running backs with 100 yard games from 1970's and 1980's for CF, I used Deanscards.com for reference. Here's a look at the players from the 1972 Topps set. You can look up all years Topps issued Cards from the 1950's to today?

How much has the NFL changed? Greek Defensive backs, from the Giants and Jets, are among the top 48 players listed in the 1972 set! I had no idea who these players were, until I checked Deanscards, for reference. The Giants Greek player is a CB. While the Jets' Greek speedster is from BYU, surprisingly.

Also, I remember knowing a Jets "superfan" a while back (2009?), via the Net. He was/is jewish and used to brag the Jets #1 draft pick in the early 70's, was a jewish CB named Steve Tannen. This shows how quickly the NFL changed. By the mid 1980's, it's very possible none of these players would've ever played a game in the NFL?

All are half another ethnicity I think Montana and Marino are half Polish-American and I think Flacco is half Irish-American. Grappolo as swarthy as he is half German-American and isn't nearly as dark as he is when he is in the public eye as he must hit the tanning booth or one drop of sun and he turns golden similar to how I tan.

Yes the Jewish corner was Florida high school legend who played for Florida and had a brief NFL career but in this era with semi pro money he might have quit the game due to poor pay for the risk of life and limb as his stats were decent for a short career.

 

[footballenthusiast]

Nothing conclusive, just putting these guys up for research purposes seeing as how they are some of the last White corners to start in the league. If you can think of any other ones that I missed, feel free to add them or let me know of them.

Roger Wehrli, played from 1969-1982, HoFer = Blue

Steve Foley, played from 1976-1986, but was moved to FS in 1980. He is the last outside White corner to start in a SB = Blue

Tim Foley, played from 1970-1980, but was moved to SS in 1977. He was a starting CB on the Dolphins' legendary no-name defense = Blue

Brian Davis, played from 1987-1994, but only listed as CB in 1988 and 1989, last player to tackle Walter Payton = Probably blue based on his complexion

Scott Case, played from 1984-1995, but listed as CB from 1986-1989 = Appears to have dark eyes

You might be wondering, didn't Brian Davis intercept John Elway as an outside corner in SB 22? Yes, but he didn't start the game, so I still count Steve Foley as the last outside White corner to actually be listed as a starter in the SB.

 

[footballenthusiast]

All are half another ethnicity I think Montana and Marino are half Polish-American and I think Flacco is half Irish-American. Grappolo as swarthy as he is half German-American and isn't nearly as dark as he is when he is in the public eye as he must hit the tanning booth or one drop of sun and he turns golden similar to how I tan.

Yes the Jewish corner was Florida high school legend who played for Florida and had a brief NFL career but in this era with semi pro money he might have quit the game due to poor pay for the risk of life and limb as his stats were decent for a short career.

Montana is 75% Italian with the rest being a 25% Irish/English mix.

Marino is 50% Polish, 25% Italian, and 25% Slovak.

Flacco is predominantly Italian, with some English and Irish ancestry mixed in, possibly other.

 

[Truthteller]

footballenthusiast, good points. Dr. Worthy never wrote blue eyed whites can not excel at the "speed positions", he just noted (back in 1974) an increased percentage of whites at "speed positions" had darker eyes. I've been looking at the current NFL crop and he might be right. For example, there are a greater percentage of blue/light eyed TE's in the NFL (today) than blue/light eyed WR's? According to Dr. Worthy's theory, TE would be considered a "Whiter position", compared to wide receiver. I'll put forth the numbers in coming days. Have already crunched most of them.

Let's bring this to modern day football, half century after Dr. Worthy wrote his book. 5 star college players ran 4.4's (40) at the 2024 NFL Combine. Cooper DeJean and Will Shipley were invited, but had to rehab from fairly serious injuries. They ran blazing/explosive times at Pro Day's.

Only Luke McCaffrey has blue eyes. Dejean and Bishop have hazel eyes and the others have even darker eyes. Wilson and Shipley have very dark eyes. This is a very small sample, but....

Payton Wilson (NC State): 40 (4.44), 10S (1.54), Vert (34.5"), Broad (9'11")
Cole Bishop (Utah): 40 (4.45), 10S (1.52), Vert (39.00"), Broad (10'4")
Ladd McConkey (Georgia): 40 (4.39), 10S (1.52), Vert (36.0"), Broad (10'4")
Ricky Pearsall (Florida): 40 (4.41), 10S (1.57), Vert (42.0"), Broad (10'9")
Luke McCaffrey (Rice): 40 (4.46), 10S (1.52), Vert (36.0"), Broad (10'1")
Will Shipley (Clemson): Injured/Ran 4:38 at Pro Day
Cooper DeJean: Injured/Ran a 4.42, 4.43, and 4.45 40 @Pro Day


Dylan Laube (4.54 Combine) has blue/grey eyes. Cody Schrader, injured running the 40 at the Combine, has very dark eyes. These two are the only "other" "speed position" players currently in the NFL from the 2024 Draft.

 

[footballenthusiast]

Trying to think up some fast White guys over the years and their 40 times. Again, not trying to make any definitive claims at this point, just putting these guys here so we have them on hand.

WR/KR Don Beebe ran a 4.21 40. A football card claims he ran a 4.32. Regardless, his eyes are blue.

CB Dustin Fox ran a 4.43 40. His eyes are dark.

CB Donny Lisowski ran a 4.38 40. His eyes are blue.

RB Travis Jervey ran a 4.3 40. His eyes are quite dark.

CB Mark Mueller ran a 6.96 in the 60m. Can't find any info on his 40. His eyes are blue.

CB Pete Ittersagen ran a 4.47 40. His eyes are blue.

CB Jordan Peterson was "clocked in the 4.3s" in the 40. Also of note is his 42" vertical. His eyes are blue.

CB Anthony Cioffi ran a 4.37 40. His eyes are quite dark.

WR Ethan Kilmer's 40 is reported as being 4.45, but a 4.3 has also been claimed. Likewise, his vertical was recorded as 40.5", but "a near-50 inch vertical leap" was claimed in the same article as the 4.3 40 claim. Regardless, his eyes are blue.

 

[Truthteller]

Good list. Beebe seems to have green or very light hazel eyes, but I'll include him on the light-eyed list. Ethan K. and Jervey are relevant because they had NFL careers. Fox is very relevant, as he was a 3rd round pick from Ohio State, but horribly screwed over by cuck Mike Tice and injuries. Dark-eyed Fox and Case, a former Pro Bowl cornerback, help prove Dr. Worthy's findings. They were actually highly valued by NFL types. Not longshots.

Right now, I want to focus on current NFL players or recent high NFL draft picks.

**** As of tonight, there are 20 White NFL wide receivers on 53 man rosters: 11 have darker eyes; 9 have blue or light eyes.

Among the 11 dark eyed WR's are Ladd McConkey, Ricky Pearsall, Jack Bech, Alec Pierce, Adam Thielen and Hunter Renfrow. Top two white return specialists (Giants, Bengals) are also dark eyed.

Among the 9 Light-eyed (Blue) WR's are Cooper Kupp, Luke McCaffrey and Isaac TeSlaa. The others are very fringe types, currently.

**** Speaking of "fringe types". I count 16 white wide receivers on Practice Squads tonight. 10 blue-eyed; 6 darker eyed.

**** In contrast, at least 63 white Tight ends* have registered a reception this NFL season. The breakdown is 39-24 in favor of the blue eyes. Most of the top ones (high impact) are blue eyed.

So, it's clear the darker-eyed WR's that are actually on 53 man rosters have a slight edge by the numbers. They also have a wide edge, as far as NFL production. Meanwhile, blue eyed TE's are much more dominate and productive, currently.


*Note: I could not figure out the eye-color of a 2 or 3 TE's. Most notably George Kittle. Not sure if he's light hazel or greenish. Left him off.

 

[Truthteller]

When Morgan Worthy examined the eye color of white NFL players his big finding was that quarterbacks were much more likely to have blue eyes. But he also interestingly found that the blacker the NFL position, the darker eyed the whites who play it tend to be. In humans, he used archival records of athletic performance to show the theoretical pattern which has light-eyed athletes performing at their best on self-paced tasks and dark-eyed athletes, on average, performing at their best on reactive tasks.

Here's some data for current players on 53 man NFL rosters. Does seem like Lighter-eyed athletes are more prevalent at "Whiter Positions" (TE, QB, P, PK)**. Linebacker, which used to be a "Whiter Position", is the only significant exception?


20 White Quarterbacks have started at least 1 game this season: 6 have darker eyes; 14 have blue or light eyes.

12 White Backup Quarterbacks have played at least 1 game this season: 3 have darker eyes; 9 have blue or light eyes.

At least 63 White Tight ends have registered a reception this NFL season: 24 have darker eyes; 39 have blue or light eyes.

As of tonight, there are 20 White Wide Receivers on 53 man rosters: 11 have darker eyes; 9 have blue or light eyes.

As of tonight, there are 8 White NFL fullbacks on 53 man rosters: 7 have darker eyes; 1 has blue or light eyes.

As of tonight, there are 5 White NFL Tailbacks on 53 man rosters: 2 have darker eyes; 3 have blue or light eyes.

At least 49 White Linebackers have registered a tackle this NFL season: 17 have darker eyes; 32 have blue or light eyes.

As of tonight, there are 7 White NFL Safeties on 53 man rosters: 3 have darker eyes; 4 have blue or light eyes.

At least 27 White Kickers have attempted a kick this NFL season: 6 have darker eyes; 21 have blue or light eyes.

At least 30 White Punters have attempted a punt this NFL season: 11 have darker eyes; 19 have blue or light eyes.


** Did not do O-Line and D-Line, yet, but I'd expect similar results. More light eyed Whites on O-Lines; than D-Lines.