WASHINGTON, D.C. - On a day of reflection of the life and works of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., there isn't much anyone can add to his legacy that hasn't already been written. But, shortly before Dr. King was born, an African-American named
Charles Fremont "Pruner" West, in Washington, Pennsylvania was laying the foundation for the advancement of African-Americans in collegiate sports.
As the story goes, West was an outstanding student and athlete who played halfback and backup quarterback on the football team, and threw the javelin for the track and field teams at Washington & Jefferson College in 1920-24. But his impact goes way beyond sports, the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame, and his legacy is a cornerstone of this highly acclaimed private liberal arts college.
Now the rest of the story...
The college football teams at Oregon and Wisconsin recently played in the 98th Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. While the tradition-rich game seems worlds away from Washington, this was not so 90 years ago when Washington & Jefferson College played the University of California in the 8th Rose Bowl, then called the Tournament of Roses game.
Prior to the start of its 120th football season last year, Washington & Jefferson commemorated the 90th anniversary of their only appearance in the Rose Bowl and honored the quarterback who led the 1922 team.
In 1922, the Presidents - the only team to play a Rose Bowl without using a substitute - held the California Golden Bears to the only scoreless tie in the game's history.
CHARLES FREMONT "PRUNER" WEST
1922 ROSE BOWL QUARTERBACK
WASHINGTON & JEFFERSON COLLEGE
HOWARD UNIVERSITY MEDICAL SCHOOL GRAD.
ALEXANDRIA (Va.) FAMILY PHYSICIAN - 50 YEARS
(1/25/1899 - 1979)
" A Life of Integrity for which there is No Compromise"
(Photo Courtesy: W&J U. Grant Miller Library Digital Archives)
REMEMBERING A ROSE BOWL LEGEND: CHARLES 'PRUNER' WEST
WASHINGTON, Pennsylvania - Nearly 90 years ago, Charles Pruner West made history, but even the most well-informed sport historian still probably doesn’t recognize his name. That’s certainly not the case at Washington & Jefferson College in Washington, Pa., where West’s iconic status was recently recognized during a ceremony.
West is believed to be the first African-American quarterback to play in the Rose Bowl when in 1922 W&J travelled across the country to play the University of California in college football’s oldest bowl game.
Dana Brooks, co-editor of
Racism in College Athletics and
Diversity and Social Justice in College Sports, and dean of the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences at West Virginia University, put together a collection of images from his research archives to create a poster that was presented to Washington & Jefferson to be displayed in its U. Grant Miller Library.
Fitness Information Technology also donated to the library a copy of
Racism in College Athletics as well as the
Leaders in Sport collection of books authored by
Richard Lapchick. West’s daughter, Linda West Nickens, was among the dignitaries who attended the presentation.
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W&J honors early black football star
WASHINGTON, Pennsylvania (9/8/2011) - Washington & Jefferson College on Saturday kicked off its 120th football season by defeating Juanita in a lopsided 40-0 contest. As W&J fans got their first taste of a new gridiron season, they also looked back to honor one of the college's most distinguished African-American football players and students -- Charles West, a 1924 graduate who became a family doctor in Alexandria, Virginia.
In 1922, Dr. West led the Presidents football team to its only appearance in the Rose Bowl in California. He is believed to be the first African-American quarterback to play in the nation's oldest bowl game. The rainy, muddy game ended in a scoreless tie with the University of California.
Last week, Dana Brooks, dean and professor of physical education at West Virginia University, presented W&J officials with a poster collage of Dr. West's accomplishments to display in the U. Grant Miller Library on campus. Mr. Brooks co-wrote the book
"Racism in College Athletics: The African-American Experience" and is writing a paper on Dr. West. He co-wrote the book with Ronald Althouse, a West Virginia University sociology professor, in 2000.
"He was a pioneer," Mr. Brooks said. "Back then, in the 1920s, there were very few African-American players in private colleges, but there were some in the Midwest and East." Paul Robeson, the concert singer, was one. He was playing football at Rutgers in New Jersey in the early 1920s.
Charles West grew up in Washington, Pa., where his father owned a general store. He was a very good high school student and also excelled at track.
"Early African-American athletes faced prejudice and discrimination, especially when their college teams played teams from the South, where very few blacks were playing," Mr. Brooks said.
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