Ivy League Black History

Brown
Bernard Muir, 1990 The path that led to his current position -- as the athletic director at Georgetown University -- began before Bernard Muir played his first game for the Brown Bears' basketball team.		Basketball
Cory Gibbs, 2001 Twice in the last eight months he has had a dream delayed by injury, but former Brown soccer standout Cory Gibbs is far from done. Both the World Cup and Premiership await.		Soccer
Dawn Chuck, 2002 Her school knew about her before she knew about the school, but in the end, Olympian Dawn Chuck loved her experience and brought distinction to Brown University.		Swimming & Diving
Fritz Pollard, 1918 When this story was published in February 2004, Fritz Pollard of Brown University had been passed over for the Pro Football Hall of Fame more than 40 times. In August 2005, he finally found a home in Canton.		Football
J. Mayo Williams, 1921 He played in the NFL and recently was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Fame -- but not the one in Canton. Former Brown standout Ink Williams is now a member of the Blues Hall of Fame.		Football Track & Field
Steve Jordan, 1982 He had the kind of NFL career that should draw Hall of Fame consideration, but Brown graduate Steve Jordan -- now an engineer -- spends his time looking forward, not behind.		Football

Columbia
Alton Byrd, 1979 He might not have measured up well when he stood next to Wilt Chamberlain, but Columbia's Alton Byrd proved to be a basketball giant in the United Kingdom in the 1980s.		Basketball
Ben Johnson, 1937 A contemporary of track legend Jesse Owens, Columbia sprinter Ben Johnson had a stretch in the 1930s when he was "the world's fastest man," but injury and war did not allow for Olympic success.		Track & Field
Bob Cottingham, 1988 He twice led the Columbia Lions to the NCAA Fencing Championship. But Bob Cottingham's career didn't end there as he twice represented the United States at the Olympics.		Fencing
Jim McMillian, 1970 He spurned the nation's top programs, turned Columbia into a national power and replaced an NBA legend. But the most amazing thing was that his Lakers won their first 33 games with Jim McMillian in the lineup.		Basketball
Leslie Fitzpatrick, 2001 He left Trinidad & Tobago for Columbia University, which led to more globe-trotting as a professional soccer player. Now Leslie Fitzpatrick can see a future with a road that leads back to Morningside Heights.		Soccer
Lucy Diggs Slowe, 1915 She was the first African-American female to win a national championship in any sport, but Lucy Diggs Slowe's lasting legacy came as an educator in the nation's capital.		Tennis
Marcellus Wiley, 1997 He came cross country to get an Ivy League education in case a future in football failed to pan out. As it turned out, Marcellus Wiley became the catalyst in an increasing trend of Ivy Leaguers in the NFL.		Football

Cornell
Bo Roberson, 1958 If a list of the greatest athletes in Ivy League history were to ever be produced, its credibility would be in question if three-sport star Bo Roberson of Cornell wasn't near the very top.		Track & Field Football Basketball
Gregg Morris, 1968 After Adolph Rupp's Kentucky Wildcats lost a legendary final to Texas Western in 1966, Cornell's Gregg Morris helped deliver the message back to Lexington that times had definitely changed.		Basketball
Joe Holland, 1978 He followed the legend of his All-American father at Cornell University and, along the way, Joe Holland has become something of a legend himself.		Football
Melinda Vaughn, 1994 When we last checked in with Melinda Vaughn in 2004, she was coaching the nation's only lacrosse program sponsored by a Historically Black College or University.		Lacrosse
Stephen Machooka, 1964 He didn't follow the Kenyan running revolution, Stephen Machooka led it. The former League champion and Cornell standout also returned to Africa after graduating to share wisdom and improve conditions.		Cross Country Track & Field

Dartmouth
David Dawley, 1963 It is doubtful that an Ivy League rower has had a more unusual path. That's because David Dawley went from the serenity of New Hampshire to join a street gang in Chicago.		Rowing
Granger Brothers, 1915 The family legacy started with a cabin boy from Barbados abandoning ship and continues with a long line of doctors, lawyers and difference makers, including the former head of the National Urban League.		Track & Field
Jesse Spikes, 1972 His trip from Georgia to Hanover, N.H., happened well before he was to enroll at the local college. And once Jesse Spikes was a student at Dartmouth, he was a solid contributor to the track team and an absolute star in the classroom.		Track & Field Football
Kim Selmore, 1983 Her transition to college was anything but easy, but Dartmouth's Kim Selmore found a home on a basketball team that dominated Ivy League play and helped prepare her for a career after college.		Golf Basketball
Peter Roby, 1979 Entering Dartmouth as an 18-year-old basketball player, Peter Roby had some challenges to overcome. But now he is a respected voice for social justice within college athletics.		Basketball
Reggie Williams, 1976 The Dartmouth football coaching staff discovered him in Flint, Mich., because of his academic record. But Reggie Williams built a long and distinguished career as a linebacker for the Cincinnati Bengals.		Football Wrestling
Sherryta Freeman, 2001 Just five years ago, she was trying to lead Dartmouth to another Ivy title. Now Sherryta Freeman has quickly risen to a position to make a difference for student-athletes at Temple University.		Basketball
Willie Bogan, 1971 No one could run with an opportunity quite like Willie Bogan. He was a star football player at Dartmouth who turned his classroom work into a Rhodes Scholarship and the Academic All-America Hall of Fame.		Football

Harvard
Albert Bigelow, 1929 The 1961 Freedom Riders — an oft-overlooked expedition — ushered in a new era of the Civil Rights Movement and one of its original participants — Albert Bigelow — once toted a hockey stick for the Harvard Crimson.		Ice Hockey
Allison Feaster-Strong, 1998 It was the biggest upset in the history of the NCAA Basketball Tournament, the only time a No. 1 seed was knocked off by a No. 16. And without the huge performance from Allison Feaster of Harvard, it never could have happened.		Basketball
Chris Ohiri, 1964 Sometimes the story is better when it isn't accompanied with video. In the case of former Harvard soccer star Chris Ohiri, the imagery of frightened and broken goalies is enough to tell the tale.		Soccer Track & Field
Dr. George Grant, 1870 It took a long while for Dr. George Grant to get credit for his invention... in fact nearly a century. But he was definitely the first person to patent the golf tee.		Golf
Ed Bordley, 1979 A state high school wrestling champion in Delaware, Harvard graduate Ed Bordley refused to allow any obstacle slow down his careers... academically, athletically or professionally.		Wrestling
James Blake, 2001 His trip to the top 10 in the world has not been without adversity and difficulty, but the experience has given James Blake a perspective that has prepared him for a future beyond tennis (and a return to Harvard).		Tennis
Meredith Rainey Valmon, 1990 Walkons usually don't even dream of winning individual national titles, but Meredith Rainey Valmon was hardly the usual walk-on. Her track career at Harvard took her even further than two NCAA Championships		Track & Field
Neil DeGrasse Tyson, 1980 Wrestling was his outlet while he was in college, but it was the stars and the planets that led Neil DeGrasse Tyson to Harvard. And following them has led to his extraordinary success.		Wrestling Rowing
Theodora Boyd, 1924 Every now and then, a great story can appear right in front of you, staring you in the face. That's what happened with Theodora Roosevelt Boyd, who played sports at Radcliffe in the 1920s.		Basketball Field Hockey
Theresa Moore, 1986 If you think she had to be fast to be an Ivy champion sprinter at Harvard, Theresa Moore's career has been moving at light speed since she moved into the sports industry a decade ago.		Track & Field

Ivy League
Black Quarterbacks, 1973 In the early 1970s, there weren't many black quarterbacks in college football, except for the Ivy League. For some it was easier than others, but together they blazed a trail.		Football
Ivy Blackball, 1947 The relationship between African-Americans and Ivy League baseball is not as extensive as it is with some other sports, but the League has had a number of remarkable men who were connected to the Negro Leagues.		Baseball
The Taylor Twins, 2001 They were state high school champions together, but twins Brenda and Lindsay Taylor took different paths to different colleges. Yet together they won 23 individual Heps titles.		Track & Field

Penn
Corky Calhoun, 1972 His individual numbers as a basketball player at Penn do not rival those of many other legends of the game, but the only stats you need to know about Corky Calhoun? Try 99 wins... and six losses.		Basketball
D. Elton Cochran-Fikes, 1974 He was an accidental athlete who became a world-class runner. Along the way, Denis Elton Cochran-Fikes unknowingly served as an inspiration to future world-class runners who remember watching him run for Penn.		Cross Country Track & Field
Doug Glanville, 1993 After collecting more than 1,000 hits as a major league ballplayer, Penn graduate Doug Glanville is now staring down a new venture -- building homes with an eye on the environment.		Baseball
John Baxter Taylor, 1908 In 1908, he became the first African-American to claim an Olympic gold medal. But just four months later, the life of Penn's John Baxter Taylor came to a sudden end.		Track & Field
Karen Saah, 1991 Three sports. Dual degrees. When she was at the University of Pennsylvania, Karen Saah kept a schedule that few could have maintained. And she would have had it no other way.		Field Hockey Lacrosse Track & Field
Katina Banks, 1995 When she arrived on campus the basketball coach at Penn didn't even know who she was. But just months later, Katina Banks had broken into the starting lineup en route to a record-breaking career.		Basketball Lacrosse

Princeton
Art Wilson, 1947 He was among Princeton's very first black graduates, but Art Wilson also made an impression on the hardwood -- becoming the Tigers' team captain in the 1940s.		Basketball
Deborah Saint Phard, 1987 From Haiti to Kansas and from Princeton to the Olympics. And then to a career as a doctor. Deborah Saint Phard's journey has been an unusual one, but unusually robust one as well.		Track & Field
Ilvy Friebe, 2003 One of the greatest distance runners in League history is teaching at the University of Minnesota Medical School, where among his students is one of the League's greatest field hockey players — Princeton's Ilvy Friebe.		Field Hockey
John Doar, 1944 Pushing 40 years old, John Doar interrupted a normal family life in northwestern Wisconsin to become one of the most important figures in the Civil Rights Movement during the turbulent 1960s.		Basketball
Maya Lawrence, 2002 Her sport has taken her around the world and now former Princeton fencing champion Maya Lawrence is now living and working in Paris in preparation for a run for an Olympic medal in Beijing in 2008.		Fencing
Will Venable, 2005 He picked Princeton because of a single sport and wound up excelling in two. But in the end, Will Venable is now working his way to the big leagues in the sport of his father -- baseball.		Baseball Basketball

Yale
Calvin Hill, 1969 He thought it was a joke when he heard he'd been selected as a first-round NFL pick, but just weeks into his rookie season he was being compared to Jim Brown. Yale's Calvin Hill has yet to be stopped.		Football Track & Field
Earl Martin Phalen, 1989 By the time he was two years old, the odds of Earl Martin Phalen becoming a successful adult were already stacked against him. But now Phalen is proof that long shots make the best stories.		Basketball
Kurt Schmoke, 1971 For those who saw how he impacted Yale's campus as an undergraduate, it could not have been a surprise to see how much success and acclaim former football and lacrosse player Kurt Schmoke has attracted in his life of service.		Football Lacrosse
Kwaku Ohene-Frempong, 1971 When he left Ghana for Yale, he did so with the goal of making a difference for his homeland. Former Eli standout athlete Kwaku Ohene-Frempong has certainly achieved that goal and so much more.		Track & Field Soccer
Levi Jackson, 1950 When the first Black History Month celebration of the Ivy League did not include reference to Yale's Levi Jackson, New York Times sportswriter William Wallace decided to clear the air.		Football
Patricia Melton, 1982 The NCAA doesn't hand out very many Silver Anniversary Awards, but former Yale standout Patricia Melton received one in January. And then again, the NCAA doesn't find many former athletes like Melton.		Track & Field
Roosevelt Thompson, 1984 He didn't leave much of an impression as a football player at Yale, but Roosevelt Thompson's legacy as a student and a person remains both in New Haven and his hometown of Little Rock.		Football
Wendell Mottley, 1964 After he was accepted to the only college he applied, Wendell Mottley became the fastest man in Yale University and Ivy League history. In fact, his single-lap best of 45.2 seconds still sits atop the Ivy rankings more than 40 years later.		Track & Field