As we mull over the annual, unjustified purging of white players from NFL rosters, we should realize that this has been going on for quite some time. What has been especially noticable is the way high profile white college RBs and WRs have been treated by the NFL, even as far back as the 1960s.
One of my first favorite football players was Notre Dame WR Jim Seymour. He was the most outstanding college WR in the late 1960s. He was drafted 10th overall, in the first round, by the Bears in 1969, but like his All-American college QB, Terry Hanratty, was simply never given a chance to play. The Bears WR corps, then as now, was pathetic, so there is no logical reason for this. Other outstanding white WRs who made All-American teams during the late 1960s-mid 1970s include Ron Sellers, Terry Beasley, Cotton Speyrer, Chuck Dicus, Dennis Homan, Barry Smith, Wayne Wheeler, Pat McInally and Larry Sievers. Only Sellers played much at all in the NFL, although McInally had a career as a punter with the Bengals. Somehow, all these outstanding college players never made their way into NFL starting lineups. Sound familiar?
There were fewer All-American white RBs even as far back as the mid- 1960s, but the ones who did stand out in college simply never made the transition to the pros. Nick Eddy was superb at Notre Dame, but was perpetually injured during his short career with the Lions. Notre Dame had other great college backs, as well, like Larry Conjar and Bob Gladieux, but they barely sniffed the NFL. Curiously, Rocky Bleier did have a long career with the Steelers, after playing second fiddle at Notre Dame to others who never made it.
Steve Worster at Texas and Johnny Musso at Alabama were two of the top college RBs of the early 1970s. Inexplicably, Worster wasn't drafted until the 4th round by the Rams and ended up in the Canadian Football League. Like Worster, Musso was drafted much later than he should have been (3rd round by the Bears) and also opted for Canada, before returning a few years later to the Bears, where he was given little chance to play. Ed Marinaro had a nice stint with the Vikings, but it was primarily as a third-down type of receiving back. He was never given a chance to be the main ball carrier.
John Cappeletti was the last white RB to win the Heisman Trophy (1973). He was a first round pick by the Rams (11th overall), and had a servicable career in the NFL, but never was given a chance to be a star. Other great white RBs in college, like Jim Otis and Steve Owens, struggled in the NFL at first but then had solid careers. Larry Smith, Walt Garrison and Jim Bertelsen all had their moments, but never were given the number of carries to produce big numbers. Donnie Anderson had some fine seasons with the Cardinals (after being traded by the Packers), but never became an elite back. Marv Hubbard and especially Mark Van Eegan came closest to having dominant careers, but still always had to share carries with a slew of others. Craig James had a great season with the Patriots, but didn't have a long career. John Riggins really has been the only star white RB in the NFL (excelling long enough to accumulate Hall of Fame-like stats) since Paul Hornung and Jim Taylor retired from the Packers.
From a historical perspective, we can see that, while the league was much whiter then overall, white RBs and WRs who were the best at their position in college often faced discrimination themselves, as long ago as the 1960s. Certainly, it's nothing as severe as what star college WRs now (such as John Standeford or Mike Hass) face, but there was clearly already a preference for black skill position players even then, by many teams in the NFL. Fromer Browns DB Bernie Parrish claimed, in his book "They Call It A Game," that it was known that certain teams even then preferred to select black players high in the draft, ostensibly because they thought they'd sign for less money. Regardless of the reason, the thought process was already there. For a long time, the NFL has considered race in some way, shape or form instead of pure merit when selecting its players.
One of my first favorite football players was Notre Dame WR Jim Seymour. He was the most outstanding college WR in the late 1960s. He was drafted 10th overall, in the first round, by the Bears in 1969, but like his All-American college QB, Terry Hanratty, was simply never given a chance to play. The Bears WR corps, then as now, was pathetic, so there is no logical reason for this. Other outstanding white WRs who made All-American teams during the late 1960s-mid 1970s include Ron Sellers, Terry Beasley, Cotton Speyrer, Chuck Dicus, Dennis Homan, Barry Smith, Wayne Wheeler, Pat McInally and Larry Sievers. Only Sellers played much at all in the NFL, although McInally had a career as a punter with the Bengals. Somehow, all these outstanding college players never made their way into NFL starting lineups. Sound familiar?
There were fewer All-American white RBs even as far back as the mid- 1960s, but the ones who did stand out in college simply never made the transition to the pros. Nick Eddy was superb at Notre Dame, but was perpetually injured during his short career with the Lions. Notre Dame had other great college backs, as well, like Larry Conjar and Bob Gladieux, but they barely sniffed the NFL. Curiously, Rocky Bleier did have a long career with the Steelers, after playing second fiddle at Notre Dame to others who never made it.
Steve Worster at Texas and Johnny Musso at Alabama were two of the top college RBs of the early 1970s. Inexplicably, Worster wasn't drafted until the 4th round by the Rams and ended up in the Canadian Football League. Like Worster, Musso was drafted much later than he should have been (3rd round by the Bears) and also opted for Canada, before returning a few years later to the Bears, where he was given little chance to play. Ed Marinaro had a nice stint with the Vikings, but it was primarily as a third-down type of receiving back. He was never given a chance to be the main ball carrier.
John Cappeletti was the last white RB to win the Heisman Trophy (1973). He was a first round pick by the Rams (11th overall), and had a servicable career in the NFL, but never was given a chance to be a star. Other great white RBs in college, like Jim Otis and Steve Owens, struggled in the NFL at first but then had solid careers. Larry Smith, Walt Garrison and Jim Bertelsen all had their moments, but never were given the number of carries to produce big numbers. Donnie Anderson had some fine seasons with the Cardinals (after being traded by the Packers), but never became an elite back. Marv Hubbard and especially Mark Van Eegan came closest to having dominant careers, but still always had to share carries with a slew of others. Craig James had a great season with the Patriots, but didn't have a long career. John Riggins really has been the only star white RB in the NFL (excelling long enough to accumulate Hall of Fame-like stats) since Paul Hornung and Jim Taylor retired from the Packers.
From a historical perspective, we can see that, while the league was much whiter then overall, white RBs and WRs who were the best at their position in college often faced discrimination themselves, as long ago as the 1960s. Certainly, it's nothing as severe as what star college WRs now (such as John Standeford or Mike Hass) face, but there was clearly already a preference for black skill position players even then, by many teams in the NFL. Fromer Browns DB Bernie Parrish claimed, in his book "They Call It A Game," that it was known that certain teams even then preferred to select black players high in the draft, ostensibly because they thought they'd sign for less money. Regardless of the reason, the thought process was already there. For a long time, the NFL has considered race in some way, shape or form instead of pure merit when selecting its players.
