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We had a very positive reception to the release The Right Thing to Do: The True Pioneers of College Football IntegrationSo we thought we’d share the good news with you.

Jerry Levias, Warren McVea and Leon Burton are iconic figures in college football history, but their accomplishments are not widely celebrated these days, even at their alma mater. The story of college football’s integration in the 1960s was ignored by sportswriters of the era, and schools saw few positives to tout their racial accomplishments.

The stories of these pioneering college football pioneers and the coaches who fought for integration — led by Michigan State’s Duffy Daugherty and his coaching tree, which included the likes of Dan Devine, Chuck Fairbanks and Bill Yeoman — are compiled for the first time in The Right Thing to Do: The True Pioneers of College Football Integration. From award-winning journalist Tom Shanahan, The right thing to do It addresses the informal racial quotas in the world of college football in the 1960s and the “conspiracy of silence” in sports journalism, avoiding any mention of racial politics. He also addresses carefully crafted but completely false myths from that era, including the role of Alabama’s Paul “Bear” Bryant in the integration of college football—a role in which Bryant was a laggard rather than a leader.

“Tom Shanahan has always been at the forefront when it comes to writing about race relations in sports – dating back to Duffy Daugherty’s great, integrated teams of the 1960s. The right thing to do It is another example of his unique ability to delve deeply into stories that need to be told in rich detail. “—John Feinstein, best-selling author of 44 books, most recently Raise your fist and get down on your knee

Tom Shanahan The right thing to do It is an important, timely, and well-researched contribution to the study of sports and race in America. In breaking the “conspiracy of silence” that has existed since the days of segregation, Shanahan elevates the stories of the players and coaches who changed the face of college sports to their rightful place in history. -Andrew Maraniss, The New York Times-Best-selling author, Strong on the Inside: Perry Wallace and the Collision of Race and Sports in the South

“One of the great beauties The right thing to do Author Tom Shanahan names names without hesitation. It shows us the good people and hidden figures who have done the important work of integrating college football and calls out the disabled who have been on the wrong side of history. The glory and shame of it all are here, examined in painstaking detail. -Jonette Howard, author Competitors And co-author L All in: a biography By Billie Jean King

This is technically a 2024 release, and is scheduled to become more widely available on January 1, but you’re offered an exclusive preview. Now until the end of the year The right thing to do He is Only available from the August Publications website. We’ll be tracking paperback book sales on Amazon and Ingram on January 1, 2024, as well as e-book releases from the August Publications site, Amazon, Apple, and B&N.

The Right Thing to Do: The True Pioneers of College Football Integration It focuses on three big stories:

• Michigan State’s Duffy Daugherty was considered a pioneer by his peers, but the true extent of his impact on the integration of college football remains unknown. Michigan State players represent an overwhelming 41 percent of black players nationwide to win a national championship ring in the 1960s, according to titles voted on by the Associated Press and United Press International. The Daugherty coaching tree has greatly influenced the game of college football, going back to Dan Devine who took the reins at Arizona State, and the mentorship of Duffy’s disciples, such as Jimmy Ray and Sherman Lewis, resonates today with subsequent generations of college and professional coaches. The photo above shows Dougherty with five returning All-American players in 1966 (LR): Clinton Jones, Bob Abesa, Bubba Smith, Gene Washington and George Webster. (Courtesy of Michigan State University.)
• Student activism was key to progress in the civil rights era, and that trend was reflected on the college football front — even when coaches did not respond well to activism. Sportswriters were unwilling to report on such efforts, such as when the 1961 Big Eight champions Colorado declined an invitation to the Orange Bowl, wanting assurances that every player — black and white alike — would stay in the same hotels and eat at the same restaurants. Practices that do not occur in the segregated South. Student uprisings also halted Bear Bryant’s back-office efforts to place the segregated Alabama Crimson Tide team in the 1962 Rose Bowl, an effort advocated by UCLA’s players and football team. Los Angeles TimesJim Murray – the only sportswriter in the country to cover the ill-fated effort.
• Pioneering players who challenged the prejudice and abuse of the era: SMU’s Jerry Levias, the first black scholarship player in the Southwest Conference; Houston’s Warren McVea, the first black player to sign with a major Texas university; Wake Forest’s Bob Grant and Kenneth “Butch” Henry, the first black scholarship players in a Big Southern Conference; and Gary Steele, the first black football letterman at West Point.

Award-winning author Tom Shanahan He is a veteran sportswriter specializing in college football and, specifically, the integration of college football in the 1960s. He has also written for NFL.com, Chargers.com, MLB.com, Rivals.comthe San Diego Union-Tribune and Football Matters of the National Football Association. writing Ray of Light: Jimmy Ray, Duffy Dougherty, the Integration of College Football and the 1965-66 Michigan State Spartans Explains Duffy Daugherty’s pioneering role and debunks the myths that kept recognition from him to Bear Bryant. His dedication to raising awareness of the true pioneers of college football integration in the 1960s earned him the 2022 First Place Award in Institutional Writing from the Football Writers Association of America. His deeply researched article covered the 1962 Rose Bowl, when UCLA had eight black players and Los Angeles Times Sportswriter Jim Murray stood up to Alabama’s segregationist coach, Bear Bryant, who was seeking a back-door entry into the Rose Bowl rather than a traditional Big Ten entry.

The Right Thing to Do: The True Pioneers of College Football Integration
Introduction by Reuven MacNeill
400 pages
Trade paperback, $22.95
ISBN: 978-1-938532-73-3

In the history of college football, there were trailblazers who made significant contributions to the integration of the sport. These true pioneers took a stand and pushed for progress, paving the way for future generations of athletes. Their courage and determination not only broke down racial barriers, but also helped to redefine the landscape of college football. It is important to recognize and celebrate their pivotal role in the sport’s history and their enduring impact on the game.