BleedGopher
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per the Spokesman-Recorder:
“I’m from [Shelby] North Carolina. I couldn’t go to the [predominately White] schools down there,” recalled Bell. “I had to leave [home], and by me leaving and going to Minnesota, it gave me the opportunity to play in Minnesota on the same level.”
He originally wanted to play quarterback, but Warmath instead had other plans:
“Coach Warmath wanted [his] best players…on the field. If I have to change positions, I’m going to change positions. They moved me from quarterback my freshman year — I was offensive tackle and defensive end [in] my sophomore year,” said Bell.
The Gophers as a result became one of college football’s few integrated teams in the late 1950s. Stephens “was the first Black All-American quarterback,” noted Bell. “We had an all-Black backfield — Bill Munsey and Judge Dickson.
“He [Warmath] didn’t care whether you’re Black or White. We ended up Big Ten champs, national champs, and Rose Bowl champs during that period. I couldn’t have asked for anything better.”
http://spokesman-recorder.com/trailblazers-like-bobby-bell-integrated-college-football/
Go Gophers!!
“I’m from [Shelby] North Carolina. I couldn’t go to the [predominately White] schools down there,” recalled Bell. “I had to leave [home], and by me leaving and going to Minnesota, it gave me the opportunity to play in Minnesota on the same level.”
He originally wanted to play quarterback, but Warmath instead had other plans:
“Coach Warmath wanted [his] best players…on the field. If I have to change positions, I’m going to change positions. They moved me from quarterback my freshman year — I was offensive tackle and defensive end [in] my sophomore year,” said Bell.
The Gophers as a result became one of college football’s few integrated teams in the late 1950s. Stephens “was the first Black All-American quarterback,” noted Bell. “We had an all-Black backfield — Bill Munsey and Judge Dickson.
“He [Warmath] didn’t care whether you’re Black or White. We ended up Big Ten champs, national champs, and Rose Bowl champs during that period. I couldn’t have asked for anything better.”
http://spokesman-recorder.com/trailblazers-like-bobby-bell-integrated-college-football/
Go Gophers!!