It was superficial and cloying and didnt give enough dimension to the story. With the aid of the local French people this small group, isolated behind the German lines, attempted to hold the village of Graignes until the US units moving inland from the invasion beaches could reach their position. The Schwartzwalder family name was found in the USA between 1880 and 1920. By Frank Giardina For the Gazette-Mail; Jun 10, 2017 Jun 10, 2017 Updated Nov 21, 2017; Comments; He became a company commander and earned the rank of major. 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. 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. Cemetery Policies Our goal is to provide and maintain a facility of respect and dignity for the men and women of the military and their families. The Orange had won but nine games in four years and everyone was unhappy. 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. By the time the 507th reached the battle for Hill 95, they had suffered more than 65% casualties. I gave him the transcript of my talk with Jim and based on that, he said, Im in. Hearing Jim talk about the times was all he needed to convince him., Two and a half years later, after Fleder had a completed film -- with Rob Brown playing Davis and Dennis Quaid as Schwartzwalder -- Fleder returned to Browns house with a DVD of the film in his hands. Is that in the book? Anyways, getting back to the rivalry, the trophy was introduced in 1993 after the death of Coach Ben Schwartzwalder. The Syracuse 8 continued their boycott through the 1969 football season. He was a member of the 1964 Sugar Bowl team. 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. You should know his story, because its a Syracuse University story one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future. Both sites mention that in addition to the Silver Star, Major Ben was also awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart, the latter indicating a combat wound.". Although in his thirties, Ben decided he was going to be a paratrooper. Oct 8, 2008 Dennis Quaid has played both a baseball and football star on the big screen but never a coach. 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. I remember all I was thinking was, Great, hes not gonna kill me. After it was over, Jim said, You got it right. That was the best compliment a filmmaker could ask for. How does one describe Ben Schwartzwalder? 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. BIO. This month marks 50 years since the Syracuse 8 began their peaceful protest. National Veterans Resource Center | Daniel & Gayle DAniello Building | 101 Waverly Ave, Syracuse, NY 13244. Military Wiki is a FANDOM Lifestyle Community. He was performing these new duties at the battalion headquarters on 28 June when the command post was struck by a direct artillery hit. He was 80 then and hit every drive down the middle. Coach Ben Schwartzwalder had no interest in acknowledging race and how racism affects the experience of black athletes. 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. Floyd "Ben" Schwartzwalder (Ben was a childhood nickname) had a major impact on the Syracuse University football program during his 25 years as head coach including winning a national championship in 1959. Because in my experience, I just wanted to get out of there and get moving. He remained with the 507th PIR when it was reassigned to the newly formed 17th Abn Div, and fought with this unit during the Battle of the Bulge and in the airborne drop across the Rhine River at Wessel in March 1945. "Ed Wagner, Class of '41, is the namesake of the ROTC Building at Penn State. 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 . And according to the emailer, Schwartzwalder and Wagner served together as paratroopers in the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment. More Local News to Love Start today for 50% off Expires 3/6/23. Floyd Benjamin 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. 2023 Syracuse University. Gary Fleder: You came before Ernie. You find it where you find it. They identify him as later coaching Syracuse University to the national championship in 1959. Schwartzwalder was born in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. December 23, 2014 Floyd Benjamin "Ben" Schwartzwalder was for 25 years a teacher, a mentor, and a coach at Syracuse University. In 1880 there were 6 Schwartzwalder families living in New York. "A lot of things in the movie didn't happen at that time at Syracuse but did happen in the country. He was also a military veteran. (2017, November 17). Orange teams outrushed opponents by more than 22,000 yards under Ben. During the West Virginia fracas, Davis snaps at his coach: "Maybe, just maybe, the rules down here are your rules too. 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. When Ben recruited Larry, he did all that and also drove Larry out to the beautiful Central NY countryside and showed him where he could hunt and fish. Mary ScofieldMary Scofield (born Mary Schwartzwalder) passed away on December 7, 2017 after battling ovarian cancer for three years. He was like a Marine, with a real army attitude. And enthusiasm!! 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. Qualities missing from Davis' portrayal in "The Express," opening Friday. 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. Then I played Colgate and had a great game and I just sort of broke the back of that whole discriminatory attitude. Schwartzwalder was also a hero of the D-Day invasion and several other important engagements of World War II. But what do you do when youve got these circumstances? But what was Coach Ben like? Floyd Benjamin Ben Schwartzwalder was for 25 years a teacher, a mentor, and a coach at Syracuse University. He is part of Syracuse University history, and a veteran of the U.S. military. The greatest part of Ernie Davis was that he could cross over lines. Starting in the fall of 1968, Black football players at Syracuse University expressed concerns about racial discrimination within the football program. 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. They boycotted knowing that their actions threatened their scholarships as well as potential careers in professional football. Doesn't the story go that when Larry was recruited by all the Big Ten schools and Notre Dame, they only showed him around the football facilities, stadiums and campuses? The 1987 Orangemen electrified a crowd of more than 50,000 up there on their campus while routing these Nittany Lions' ancestors behind Don McPherson & Co. Find high-quality images, photos, and animated GIFS with Bing Images. Capt. Last edited on 21 February 2023, at 00:55, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "'The Express' and the movie's connections to Parkersburg", by Jody Murphy. It doesnt break down in color. You can't be Black and be a . No portion of this site may be reproduced or duplicated without the express written permission of Syracuse University. The basics. "Nor would Ben ever talk to Ernie like that.". He earned a Purple Heart, Bronze Star, Silver Star, and Presidential Unit Citation. Ben Schwartzwalder. What did Jim Brown say that made such a difference? This remains Syracuse's only football national championship to date. They wanted me to change positions, all kinds of stuff. During the spring season, the players attempted to nudge coach Schwartzwalder one more time. You should know his story, because its a Syracuse University story one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future. Frank Giardina: Sports Legend Dinner, relationships, Ben Schwartzwalder and D-Day. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. If Jim Brown was happy, I was happy., Still, what fascinated me was that first conversation between Fleder and Brown. 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. Significance: The Ben . 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. After the war, Ben came back to coaching, and eventually found his way to Syracuse University. Syracuse 8: Tom Smith, Walker, Muhammad, McGill, Lobon, Harrell, Allen, and Godbolt, Spring 1969. After the war, Ben came back to coaching, and eventually found his way to Syracuse University. 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. He was captain of the football team in 1933. Some white teammates stood in solidarity and threatened to boycott if the black players were not allowed back, but they were overpowered by the alumni who wanted all the black players off the team and their scholarships revoked. Yet forget wins and losses. 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. About coming to Syracuse, Schwartzwalder famously said: The alumni wanted a big-name coach. Schwartzwalder plays a prominent role in the battle. When he was personally decorated by General Matthew Ridgway, the General said "Ben, I never expected to see you here to receive this award.". He later joined teammate Patrick Whelan, 71, of Safety Harbor, at a Tampa screening. After returning home, Schwartzwalder began his college coaching career at Muhlenberg College, where he went 25-5. Gary Fleders The Express, which hits theaters next month, is really two compelling movies in one. These SS troopers also executed the twenty plus wounded US paratroopers who had been too injured to evacuate with the others. Ben Schwartzwalder College Coaching Records, Awards and Leaderboards | College Football at Sports-Reference.com Ben Schwartzwalder Career Record: 25 Years, 153-91-3, .626 Win% (at major schools) Bowl Record: 7 Games, 2-5, .286 Win% (at major schools) College Football Coaches Ben Schwartzwalder Overview More Other SR Sites Hell, the movie's more about him than Ernie. A good starting place is his home state of West Virginia. He was personally decorated by the commander of the 82nd, the legendary General Matthew Ridgeway, who recalled saying to Ben I never expected to see you here to receive this award.. Even if you go to Syracuse now, there is a constant battle that goes on. Lots of midgets. In fact, I never knew what being an alumnus was. I just want to know -- what did you feel on a day-to-day, week-to-week basis? Those units were from the 17th Waffen-SS Panzer Grenadier Division "Gotz von Berlichingen". The student-athletes four demands were access to the same academic tutoring as their white teammates; better medical care for all team members; starting assignments based on merit; and racially integrating the coaching staff, which had been all white since 1898. By any definition, during the war Ben distinguished himself in service to the nation, and to his men. It is very likely that Lt. Wagner assisted him with this extracurricular athletic program in view of the fact that Ed had been an assistant manager for the Penn State football team in 1939, and as the 3rd Battalion's personnel officer, or S-1, he would have been able to identify unit personnel with football experience and "facilitate" their assignment to "extra duties". Gary Fleder: Did you feel it from the players? [continued on next page] Pages: 1 2 3 4 But for the guards to be enough men to make a difference in a pitched battle, there must have been a lot of German prisoners for Badass Ben to mow down - if that actually happened. Played golf in an SU golf outing at Drrumliuns years back with Ben and an offensive lineman on the championship team (Yeager??). The story of Jackie Robinson is also the story of Branch Rickey. 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. Heres a clip from a recent Bob Costas interview talking with Brown about Ernie Davis: Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Desperate mountain residents trapped by snow beg for help; We are coming, sheriff says, Newsom, IRS give Californians until October to file tax returns, 15 arrested across L.A. County in crackdown on fraudulent benefit cards, Hidden, illegal casinos are booming in L.A., with organized crime reaping big profits, Look up: The 32 most spectacular ceilings in Los Angeles. Chancellor John Corbally Records, University Archives. Their demand was based on their awareness of how their academic potential exceeded the universitys expectations. He overcame those . 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 Longhorns in the 1960 Cotton Bowl. Neither believes "The Express" captures his personality, or accurately portrays his relationships with head coach Ben Schwartzwalder and teammates. In 1973, Schwartzwalder retired from coaching and moved to St. Petersburg, Florida. Over 25 season, he compiled a 153-91-3 record and led the team an undefeated season in 1959 that included the National Championship. You know, the funny thing about cinema is, usually when they do a story that has African Americans in it, there always has to be a white guy whos the savior. 1 after winning their first seven games. Almost immediately, Coach Ben Schwartzwalder enlisted in the United States Army, earning his paratrooper wings as part of the famous 82nd Airborne Division. 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. No. 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. Ben Schwartzwalder began his football career as a 95-pound high school freshman quarterback. 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. In 1946, Ben came east and guided Muhlenberg to a 25-5 slate in three years. With the score Reading 13-6, North Carolina state drove All the Way to the Lions goal but Pound it Over. The war ended and football again became his life. This is where that appetite of desire was whetted and the burning determination to succeed was honed. They claim key events on screen never occurred, like the team being showered with garbage and racial epithets during a game at West Virginia. Floyd Burdette "Ben" Schwartzwalder Birth 2 Jun 1909. The Syracuse 8 demand for equal access as white players to tutors and academic advisors was based on their being relegated to general reading and education classes predicated on notions of their limited academic ability. Adversity and Ben were old combatants and Ben usually won. About Ben Schwartzwalder is a member of the following lists: 1993 deaths , American military personnel of World War II and United States Army officers . As head coach from 1949-73, he mounted an impressive 153-91-3 record there. After returning home, Schwartzwalder began his college coaching career at Muhlenberg College, where he went 255. 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. Intro: American football player and coach: Was: Sports coach American football player: From: United States of America: Field: Sports: Gender: male: Birth: 2 June 1909: Death: 28 April 1993 (aged 83 years) "He would never in a million years talk to Ben Schwartzwalder like that," Easterly said. Mere Eglise. After the United States entered World War II, Schwartzwalder joined the U.S. Army and served with the 507th Parachute Infantry of the famed Eighty-second Airborne Division. Syracuse leads the overall record of the series 31-27, however West Virginia has won the trophy 11 times to Syracuse's 7. Schwartzwalder's teams went to seven bowl games and won four Lambert Trophies. 3 pair military pants 36s 38s 36xs shirt. For his actions during the invasion, Ben was awarded a Silver Star, a Bronze Star, a Purple Heart, four battle stars, the Presidential Unit Citation, and was promoted to the rank of Major. In the spring of 1970, he arranged for former Syracuse football great Floyd . Before the summer of 1970, Coach Schwartzwalder agreed but failed to hire a Black assistant coach more than once. 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. About coming to Syracuse, Schwartzwalder famously said: The alumni wanted a big-name coach. Popularized erroneously in 1970 by the media as the Syracuse 8, the nine students behind the boycott were Gregory Allen, Richard Bulls, Dana Harrell, John Godbolt, John Lobon, Clarence Bucky McGill, A. Alif Muhammad, Duane Walker, and Ron Womack. Coach Schwartzwalder's Decision A Black assistant football coach, Carlmon Jones, was finally hired in the summer of 1970, but neither the administration nor the football coaching staff took any other steps to address the boycotting athletes' other grievances. Shortly after Dec. 7, 1941, Canton McKinley lost a coach and the U.S. Army gained a soldier. Death 28 Apr 1993 (aged 83) . Floyd Benjamin Ben Schwartzwalder was for 25 years a teacher, a mentor, and a coach at Syracuse University. By the time the 507th reached the battle for Hill 95, they had suffered more than 65% casualties. Reading your post, I flashed on "Band of Brothers", which detailed a company of the 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne. 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 . Here are some excerpts from a 2005 conversation between Fleder and Brown that paved the way for the making of The Express.. The team he was coaching at the time was his favorite simply because of his great love of coaching. Ron Womack had been removed from the roster due to an injury, a coaching decision he and his Black teammates viewed with suspicion, but he supported them through the whole boycott and is counted with them. He would then later imply he was joking or being sarcastic at the time these promises were made. Penn state then killed the clock and Tom Cherry took a deliberate safety with eight seconds to play to preserve the Victory. The demand for better medical care was rooted in the fact that the medical doctor for the team was a gynecologist by training and was hesitant to touch black bodies. 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. 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. Ben gave Syracuse its finest hours in football. 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. The student-athletes stated they would not return until the University hired a Black coach and addressed racial discrimination in starting assignments, the use of racist language by the coaching staff, racial disparities in disciplinary action, lack of academic support, and substandard medical care for all players. The priest, his friar and two elderly women who had been caring for the wounded in the local church, a structure dating back to the 12th Century, were summarily shot, and the village then set aflame. In addition to Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis, he coached Jim Brown, Floyd Little, Jim Nance, and Larry Csonka through their college careers. Director Gary Fleder uses Davis' football career to illustrate racial intolerance that Easterly and Whelan claim seldom existed for him. 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. But you needed both of us to make real changes. , Fleder shakes his head. You had an amazing four years, breaking records and you make it easier for Ernie to come to school. Despite promising to do so, Schwartzwalder failed to follow through. 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.

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