It took 50 years, but the 1958 Buffalo Bulls football team finally made its first bowl game appearance.
As the 2008 squad prepared for its International Bowl matchup against the Connecticut Huskies on Jan. 3 in Toronto, Ont., 25 members of the 1958 team were invited to be a part of the festivities of the school's first bowl appearance. The 1958 team was honored for their decision to reject the school's first bowl game invitation in the face of racial intolerance half a century ago.
"It's taken a long time for [the story] to come around because of the fact football was dropped for awhile," said Paul Szymendera, a sophomore halfback on the '58 team. "I never thought I'd see the day or live long enough to see the day where they'd be invited to another bowl game."
The Bulls finished the 1958 regular season with a record of 8-1, averaging 33.6 points per game and defeated national powerhouse Harvard in the season opener. The team was awarded the Lambert Cup at the end of the season, given to the best small college in the east, and subsequently received an invitation to play in the Tangerine Bowl in Orlando, Fla.
However, the university was informed of a clause in the stadium's rental contract that prohibited the mixing of races on the playing field. This meant that star junior halfback Willie Evans and senior defensive end Michael Wilson, the two black players on the Bulls roster, would not be allowed to participate in the game. The players held a meeting in the basement of Clark Gym and decided unanimously to reject the invitation to the Tangerine Bowl.
"Some of the reporters that we've dealt with, one used the term heroism. And that really grates me," said Jack Dempsey, a junior tackle on the '58 team. "We made a decision, never looked back on it. Yeah it was disappointing, but mostly anger - that we would be deprived of this, not because of Willie or Mike, but by this board of education."
Civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson served as the keynote speaker at the 2009 International Bowl Kickoff Luncheon and praised the 1958 team for the bravery displayed in their decision.
"We celebrate more than a bowl game. We celebrate the greatest game never played," Jackson said. "...We are a better nation today because [they] stood up."
Each surviving member of the '58 team was given a customized Bulls jersey with his name and number at the team practice the day prior to the game. The 2008 Bulls also wore a special Lambert Cup patch on their jerseys.
"The focus should on [the 2008 team]. It's their game. They brought these accolades to us, we didn't do the reverse," said Phillip Bamford, a sophomore guard for the '58 team. "For 50 years, we were like a snail in the ground and they uncovered us. Their results are the reason we're here and I am so excited about it. It's changed my life. It really has."
Some members of the team were still humbled by the media attention their decision received. In the weeks leading up to the International Bowl, several features have aired on national programs such as ABC World News with Charles Gibson and ESPN's Outside the Lines. Their story has also been told in the book Brothers Tonight, We Sing the Chorus Free by Rocco L. Versace.
"It's a really a super recognition for our team, something that we never expected," said Eugene Zinni, a sophomore guard on the '58 team. "We figured we did what we did and it was just part of being a team player. But the way they're treating us now and the recognition we're getting now is really super."
The '58 team was also honored on the field of the Rogers Centre before kickoff to commemorate the opening coin toss. Fans on each sideline rose from their seats in applause as the players arrived at midfield.
Current Bulls head coach Turner Gill sees the legacy of the 1958 team as something that the program can learn from and build around.
"They started the tradition, basically," Gill said. "To ask people to come back for this game and to give them the opportunity to be a part of a bowl game, it's an honor and a privilege. It's exciting."
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
