Schwartzwalder is portrayed by actor Dennis Quaid in the 2008 Universal Pictures film The Express: The Ernie Davis Story, a biographical film about Syracuse University Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis. "We football coaches are most fortunate," Ben said as he left office as the president of the American Football Coaches Association. She was 76 years old. While the regiment was stateside Capt. He coached the 507th PIR football team, leading them through a ten game season in which the 507th was never defeated and never even scored upon. Chuck Leavitt did a great page-one rewrite of the script. Ben Schwartzwalder. It was a scene he had repeated several hundred times but on this particular day, November 24, 1973, it was different. Syracuse passing More than Ever in Ben Schwartzwalder s 19 year career took holy Cross apart 41-7. A call for help went out and in the end it was that man who was to win more games than Knute Rockne, Frank Leahy, Bud Wilkinson or Earl Blaik that answered. The Black student-athletes first sent their grievances to Coach Schwartzwalder, though that document does not exist in the University Archives. Davis was the team's juggernaut running back, later the first African-American ever to win the Heisman Trophy. They believed this practice restricted their talents and abilities and decreased the teams likelihood of winning games. Director Gary Fleder uses Davis' football career to illustrate racial intolerance that Easterly and Whelan claim seldom existed for him. Yet forget wins and losses. So the story is like you said -- its a big story and a small story. Allen explained his position, but the coach refused to listen. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. He was captain of the football team in 1933. They identify him as later coaching Syracuse University to the national championship in 1959. Frank Giardina: Sports Legend Dinner, relationships, Ben Schwartzwalder and D-Day. Coach Ben Schwartzwalder and the SU football team were having a great season. I am not sure the assistant coach had the facts correct. His primary recommendation for every injury was ice and rest. Your donation is fully tax-deductible. I didnt know why people loved their university. Courtesy Syracuse Library Special Collections (Syracuse 8 Collection, John Lobon Box 1), African American History: Research Guides & Websites, Global African History: Research Guides & Websites, African American Scientists and Technicians of the Manhattan Project, Envoys, Diplomatic Ministers, & Ambassadors, Racial Conflict - Segregation/Integration, https://www.theplayerstribune.com/en-us/articles/syracuse-football-1960s-race-civil-rights, https://www.wbur.org/onlyagame/2017/11/17/syracuse-8-football-boycott-kaepernick, Foundation, Organization, and Corporate Supporters. Cemetery staff is on duty Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. Parkersburg, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ben_Schwartzwalder&oldid=1140633059, This page was last edited on 21 February 2023, at 00:55. If you look at the Underground Railroad, it wasnt just Harriet Tubman, it was all those white people who risked their lives to help these slaves get up north. As a paratrooper with the 82nd, he was among the first wave of soldiers that jumped on D-Day in 1944. Allen explained his position, but the coach refused to listen. He was personally decorated by Matthew Ridgeway who recalled Ben well. New York had the highest population of Schwartzwalder families in 1880. kids games foreign dolls asst. Quick Facts. Both taught and Ben began coaching in his home state. Davis' accomplishments and abbreviated life inspire the new movie, which Easterly saw at an Orangemen reunion recently. It doesnt break down in gender. The team he was coaching at the time was his favorite simply because of his great love of coaching. Before Kaepernick, The Syracuse 8 Were Blackballed By Pro Football, WBUR Radio, https://www.wbur.org/onlyagame/2017/11/17/syracuse-8-football-boycott-kaepernick. Schwartzwalder's teams went to seven bowl games and won four Lambert Trophies. He wore street clothes at the alumni game, serving as an honorary coach. During his 25 years as head coach Syracuse teams outrushed their opponents by more than 22,000 yards. The public Ben Schwartzwalder often appeared to be a cross between a wounded bear and a crossed bull. Coach Schwartzwalder led the SU team to an impressive record of 153 wins, 91 losses, and 3 ties, including seven bowl games, and the only National Championship in SUs history (1959 undefeated team). Today Ed is buried with many of his fallen comrades from the 507th PIR in the beautiful US Military Cemetery, which overlooks Omaha Beach in Normandy. This little-known episode of brutality has been documented by the History Channel in a video titled, "Secret Massacre at D-Day". Ben Schwartzwalder, Head Coach 1949-73. Walk Where They Fought: La Fire, 82d Airborne Division, D-Day 1944 | Armchair General Magazine - We Put YOU in Command! Davis still had no idea where he was going to attend, but what sealed the deal with Syracuse was when Jim Brown the former Syracuse . In the spring of 1970, he arranged for former Syracuse football great Floyd Little 67 to help with spring practice under the guise of an assistant football coach, but the Black athletes were upset to learn it was just for a few days. You should know his story. He had the same burning drive in 1973 as he did as a rookie coach back in West Virginia in 1933. On the right side of the photograph are several Black team members who boycotted the football program the following spring. Neither believes "The Express" captures his personality, or accurately portrays his relationships with head coach Ben Schwartzwalder and teammates. Schwartzwalder plays a prominent role in the battle. BEN SCHWARTZWALDER (1909-93) The game ended and Ben Schwartzwalder walked to the middle of the field, shook hands, exchanged a few words with his opposing coach, then turned and headed toward the dressing room. In 2006, thirty-six years after leaving the team, during a Syracuse University-University of Louisville halftime ceremony, the nine former players were recognized with their letterman jackets for the courageous stand they took against racism. One of Buffalo's longest-tenured AFL players, Al Bemiller, passed away on Wednesday. Quaid, who plays legendary Syracuse University coach Ben Schwartzwalder, described his character as "a hard-nosed, tough guy who stormed the beaches at Normandy. He was like a Marine, with a real army attitude. The funny part is that so many people have known this for years, including myself.". You should know his story. By Frank Giardina For the Gazette-Mail; Jun 10, 2017 Jun 10, 2017 Updated Nov 21, 2017; Comments; "I have a strange feeling that in the years to come, officials, alumni and fans might finally realize what a tremendous asset Ben was. Schwartzwalder played center at West Virginia University, despite weighing only 146 pounds, and was an all-campus wrestler in 1930 in the 155 pound weight class. This was about 67% of all the recorded Schwartzwalder's in USA. Scoop: Fans want The Ben Schwartzwalder Trophy to be awarded to the winner of the 2012 New Era Pinstripe Bowl, which features old Big East rivals Syracuse and West Virginia. Jim Brown: The coaches. Ben always refused to pick a favorite team or make comparisons. How does one describe Ben Schwartzwalder? Burials may be scheduled by calling the cemetery staff at (315) 484-1564. The most pivotal character was Company Capt. The coach is also remembered through the Ben Schwartzwalder Trophy which, goes to the winner of each game between West Virginia University (where he had played as a college student) and Syracuse University. In 1941, Ben found himself a 33 year old high school football coach, working in Canton, Ohio, on the day that the Japanese attached Pearl Harbor. You should know his story, because it's a Syracuse University story - one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future. During the summer, the black players filed a complaint against Syracuse University and the coaching staff with the Syracuse and Onondaga Human Rights Commission. In 1959, he also won the national coach of the year award. Forego a bottle of soda and donate its cost to us for the information you just learned, and feel good about helping to make it available to everyone. Then I played Colgate and had a great game and I just sort of broke the back of that whole discriminatory attitude. During World War II, Schwartzwalder enlisted and served as a paratrooper in the United States Army. In 1959, he also won the national coach of the year award. Floyd Burdette Schwartzwalder (June 2, 1909 April 28, 1993) was a Hall of Fame football coach at Syracuse University, where he trained future National Football League stars such as Jim Brown, Larry Csonka, Floyd Little and Ernie Davis, the first African American to win the Heisman Trophy. He brought the school it's one and only national championship and undefeated season in 1959, but as his career progressed, it seemed to produce more and more cracks in a once so respected man. He played center at West Virginia University, despite weighing only 146 pounds, and was an all-campus wrestler in 1930 in the 155-pound weight class. Notably, he coached the first African-American to win a Heisman trophy and maintained team unity and cohesiveness in a racially charged environment to defeat the all-white University of Texas team in the Cotton Bowl while winning the 1959 national championship. Schwartzwalder continued his campaign all the way into Germany and acted as military governor of the town of Essen for a period of six months. I'm guessing it's after beating WVU to claim the Schwartzwalder Trophy. He was awarded a Silver Star, a Bronze Star, a Purple Heart, four battle stars, Presidential Unit Citation and was promoted to the rank of Major for his actions during the invasion. In 1941, Ben found himself a 33 year old high school football coach, working in Canton, Ohio, on the day that the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Gary Fleder: Did you feel it from the players? And if you deal with my life, while Im dealing with all these bad people at Syracuse, I got all these good people out there helping [me]. Please disable your ad blocker to view the video content. They show Ben in his Service today for Ben A Memorial Day service will be held at 10:30 a.m. today at Onondaga County Veterans Memorial Cemetery, 4069 Howlett Hill Rd. Dec. 15, 1991 12 AM PT. In 1967, Schwartzwalder was elected president of the American Football Coaches Association. Over that time he led Syracuse to its only football national title, in 1959. "Ernie knew everybody's name and went out of his way to say hello. They basically tried to take all my self-esteem away. Schwartzwalder was the head football coach of the Syracuse Orange from 1949 to 1973. Ben Schwartzwalder began his football career as a 95-pound high school freshman quarterback. And according to the emailer, Schwartzwalder and Wagner served together as paratroopers in the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment. Significance: The Ben . In 1946 he rotated back to the States and was honorably discharged. But what do you do when youve got these circumstances? As a captain in the 82nd Airborne (CO of Company G of the 507th), Schwartzwalder earned distinction during the invasion of Normandy and battles that followed in the last days of the war. The student-athletes also repeatedly requested that head football coach Ben Schwartzwalder hire a Black assistant coach, with whom they felt they could talk more easily about problems relating to race. Ben Schwartzwalder, a pre-war high school coach in West Virginia who served as a major with the army paratroopers during the war, returned home and took over the program as its new coach. Almost immediately, Coach Ben Schwartzwalder enlisted in the United States Army, earning his paratrooper wings as part of the famous 82nd Airborne Division. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1982. Ben was just an old fashioned guy who thought you were privileged to play. Born the second daughter to Floyd ("Ben") and If Jim Brown was happy, I was happy., Still, what fascinated me was that first conversation between Fleder and Brown. He served with the 82nd Airborne and was in the first wave of troops that jumped on D-Day in 1944. Syracuse Chancellor John Corbally, prompted by faculty sympathetic to the 8, allowed the players to keep their scholarships and to graduate, which they did. Despite promising to do so, Schwartzwalder failed to follow through. Reggie was the widow of legendary Syracuse University head football coach Floyd Ben Schwartzwalder, who died in 1993. When he was personally decorated by General Matthew Ridgway, the General said "Ben, I never expected to see you here to receive this award.". Carolina a amp to 0 a Murray state 21 Livingston 0 j. C. Smith 15 William amp Mary 7 a West Liberty 20 Virginia military 9 appalachian 0 Austin play 6 Gonso. List of battleships of the United States Navy, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, West Virginia Mountaineers football players, High school football coaches in the United States, United States Army personnel of World War II, People from Point Pleasant, West Virginia, Players of American football from West Virginia, "'The Express' and the movie's connections to Parkersburg", by Jody Murphy. He also developed some of the most impressive running backs the game has ever seen Jim Brown, Ernie Davis, Jim Nance, Floyd Little and Larry Csonka. The three major forces in the dispute have been the eight black athletes, and their spokesman George Moody, director of King-on-campus School; Chancellor John E. Corbally and the administration; and Coach Schwartzwalder, supported by his coaching staff and football squad. As a captain in the 82nd Airborne (CO of Company G of the 507th), Schwartzwalder earned distinction during the invasion of Normandy and battles that followed in the last days of the war. Muhlenberg College was founded in 1848 in Allentown, Pennsylvania, as the Allentown Seminary by Samuel K. Brobst, a Reformed Lutheran minister. The 1959 team was an unprecedented powerhouse with both the toughest offense (313.6 yards rushing, 451.5 yard total and 39 points per game on average) and the toughest defense (giving only 19.3 yards rushing, 96.2 yards total per game on average) in the country. Gary Fleder: I just want to make a film that has the essence of Ernie Davis. Ben organized and coached the 507th's football team. Death 28 Apr 1993 (aged 83) . He produced 22 straight years of non-losing football, took the Orange to seven bowls, and won the national championship in 1959. ". Several units were simultaneously converging on the same objective in a piecemeal, uncoordinated manner. At West Virginia, he became a first-string center at only 148 pounds. This month marks 50 years since the Syracuse 8 began their peaceful protest. 44 on it, back to Ben Schwartzwalder, saying Im not Jim Brown. And Ben says to him, God I hope not and God I hope so. And Jim started laughing out loud, watching that, and I finally relaxed. The Story of the Syracuse 8, The Players Tribune, October 25, 2015, https://www.theplayerstribune.com/en-us/articles/syracuse-football-1960s-race-civil-rights; WBUR. Years after Davis' death, Syracuse coach Ben Schwartzwalder called him "the best kid I ever had anything to do with." "Ernie was just like a puppy dog, friendly and warm and kind," he told. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. Parkersburg. He thought there was only one way to play football and that was the rough way. Quite a story, but as an amateur historian, that kind of second or third hand quote, especially one delivered 50 years after it was shared, makes me very skeptical to its veracity. All Rights Reserved Worldwide. I loved the genre and I thought Ernie was an intriguing character, but it didnt have any real conflict. Fleder started doing his own research, reading a lengthy Sports Illustrated article by William Nack that dealt with Davis, Brown and racism in college sports in the 60s. And that was the first time I ever felt like an alumni. After holding off the vastly superior German forc es for four days, the senior officer in command ordered the paratroopers to withdraw under the cover of darkness and attempt to reach Allied lines by exfilling in small bands through the flooded marshes and swollen streams. 20072023 Blackpast.org. In addition to Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis, he coached Jim Brown, Floyd Little, Jim Nance, and Larry Csonka through their college careers. Jim told me something really amazing that put things in perspective. SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) The year was 1959. But its also a great drama about how both the athletes and coaches of that era were profoundly transformed by the civil rights movement, which initially had a far greater impact on society than on the football field. According to an email sent to SU's office of athletics communication and passed along to me, Schwartzwalder served in the same World War II unit and fought together during the D-Day invasion of Normandy with Penn State's Harry Edward Wagner, a Phi Betta Kappa graduate. Schwartzwalder, a decorated paratrooper during World War II in the 82nd Airborne Division who was among the first wave of soldiers that jumped at D-Day in 1944, coached the Orange from 1949 through 1973. - Ben Schwartzwalder. All Rights Reserved. He thought the first script was a little thin. "What the director tried to accomplish is showing the conditions of those times," Easterly said. They cited instances of unfair treatment, ranging from differences in disciplinary action to the coaching staffs intolerance of their civil rights activism elsewhere on campus. BIO. Ernie Davis was only weeks from dying the last time Dick Easterly saw his Heisman Trophy-winning teammate. He coached the first African-American to win a Heisman Trophy and maintained team unity and cohesiveness in a racially charged environment to defeat the all-white Texas Longhorns in the 1960 Cotton Bowl Classic and win a national championship. Mere Eglise. He finally gets his chance in The Express, playing legendary Syracuse coach Ben. ", Easterly scoffs at that dramatic license. More Local News to Love Start today for 50% off Expires 3/6/23. Ben Schwartzwalder was a decent guy, but he was from another era. Google Image Result for https://d3d4f9a2nwdz4m.cloudfront.net/images/2011/9/28/SchwartzwalderBenonshoulderscolor.jpg, The Penn State game looms down there in Jersey; not so long ago, it delivered Dome delirium. Hall of Fame football coach at Syracuse University, where he trained future National Football League stars such as Jim Brown, Larry Csonka, Floyd Little and Ernie Davis, the first African American to win the Heisman Trophy. Former Syracuse head coach Floyd "Ben" Schwartzwalder (center with his arm around SU's Ger Schwedes, 16) was no stranger to a good fight including this one involving the Orange and Texas. He said, You have to realize, in the civil rights movement, there had to be radicals and peacemakers, radicals like Malcolm X and peacemakers like Martin Luther King. One other thought on that. 1 after winning their first seven games. Both websites for the West Virginia University, where he played center for the Mountaineers and graduated in 1935, and Syracuse University having disappointingly little information on this period of the coach's life. Almost immediately, Coach Ben Schwartzwalder enlisted in the United States Army, earning his paratrooper wings as part of the famous 82nd Airborne Division. In 1969 a group of nine student-athletes boycotted Syracuse Universitys football program to demand change and promote racial equality. In 1973, Schwartzwalder retired from coaching and moved to St. Petersburg, Florida. Syracuse University Football Collection, University Archives. Truth is sometimes rearranged in screen biographies, when facts aren't dramatic enough for the filmmaker's vision. Richard Winters (played by Damian Lewis), who also received a battlefield promotion to major and was also from West Virginia, like Ol' Ben. But when he started talking about his own experiences, especially his conflicts with Schwartzwalder and how he was told he couldnt date white girls, I started to see a lot more drama there. Later that afternoon, a beaming Davis, seeing Syracuse coach Ben Schwartzwalder, went floating toward him through a. Bemiller was quite literally at the center of Buffalo's American Football League back-to-back championship teams. After associate coaches ignored the players request to hire a black assistant for a year, one of the Syracuse 8, Greg Allen, met with head coach Schwartzwalder in spring 1969. Floyd Little was raised in poverty in New Haven, Connecticut. No. Floyd Benjamin Ben Schwartzwalder was for 25 years a teacher, a mentor, and a coach at Syracuse University. "Miraculously, Ed and the majority of his "lost" group were able to reach the US lines and by 14 June he was reunited with the regiment outside of St. He was awarded a Silver Star, a Bronze Star, a Purple Heart, four battle stars, Presidential Unit Citation and was promoted to the rank of Major for his actions during the invasion. Played golf in an SU golf outing at Drrumliuns years back with Ben and an offensive lineman on the championship team (Yeager??). And enthusiasm!! Schwartzwalder was born in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. He would lead the program for more than 20 years, a period that would reach its crescendo with a national championship, in 1959. Syracuse football was coached at the time by Ben Schwartzwalder, a beloved figure on campus, who led the Orange to. He organized an athletic league from among the soldiers being assembled in England in preparation for D-Day in order to keep the troops motivated and fit. He is buried in the Onondaga County Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Syracuse, NY. Meanwhile, up in central New York, Syracuse was struggling for survival. Over 25 season, he compiled a 153-91-3 record and led the team an undefeated season in 1959 that included the National Championship. Prijevodi fraza TOP THEMSELVES s engleskog na hrvatski i primjeri upotrebe rijei "TOP THEMSELVES" u reenici s njihovim prijevodima: Top themselves . He was like a Marine, with a real army attitude. Adversity and Ben were old combatants and Ben usually won. He didn't starve as a boy growing up but he knew what it was to want. He overcame those . About coming to Syracuse, Schwartzwalder famously said: The alumni wanted a big-name coach. 5 in our series looking at the coaches and players who have made the biggest impact in Syracuse University sports. During the West Virginia fracas, Davis snaps at his coach: "Maybe, just maybe, the rules down here are your rules too. I didnt know why people gave them money -- I didnt know any of that. It was 1963 at Syracuse University's alumni football game, where teammates celebrated the Orangemen's 1959 national championship. Qualities missing from Davis' portrayal in "The Express," opening Friday. After the war, Ben came back to coaching, and eventually found his way to Syracuse University. Even as a paratrooper, Schwartzwalder remained focused on his football career. [1] He coached high school football for six years in West Virginia a year at Sistersville High School, followed by the Parkersburg High School Big Reds football from 1936 to 1940[1] and Ohio a year at Canton McKinley High School[1] and won two state championships. (2017, November 17). After returning home, Schwartzwalder began his college coaching career at Muhlenberg College, where he went 255. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. "He would never in a million years talk to Ben Schwartzwalder like that," Easterly said. Dropped far behind enemy lines and miles off target, Ben, a Captain in Company G of the 507th, organized his men, established command, and a week later delivered a large group of prisoners to the Allied lines. You had an amazing four years, breaking records and you make it easier for Ernie to come to school. 2023 Syracuse University. Here's more about their relationship (all from the unknown emailer): On April 17, 1970, Black members of the football team sent Chancellor John Corbally a letter asking that he address their grievances within two days. He is buried in the Onondaga County Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Syracuse, NY. The coach is also remembered through the Ben Schwartzwalder Trophy which, goes to the winner of each game between West Virginia University (where he had played as a college student) and Syracuse University. Syracuse, NY -- Syracuse football players all heard first-hand stories of hand-to-hand combat involving the head coach of the Orangemen, Floyd "Ben" Schwartzwalder, from his service as a paratrooper in World War II. map this locationGoogle map location Christian Rudolph Kessler was the school's first teacher and administrator. I will probably buy this book too. I remember some story like that and Larry committed to SYR because of Ben doing that. . Ben was clearly on his way to the top. He graduated from Syracuse University in January 1966 with a bachelor's degree in Economics. He earned a Purple Heart, Bronze Star, Silver Star, and Presidential Unit Citation. As a member of the famed 82nd Airborne, he parachuted onto Normandy Beach on D-Day in 1944. Gary Fleder: You came before Ernie. You find it where you find it. National Veterans Resource Center | Daniel & Gayle DAniello Building | 101 Waverly Ave, Syracuse, NY 13244, Notable Veteran Alumni: Floyd Benjamin Ben Schwartzwalder.
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