Gold Rush Feature: The First of Many
9/20/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 20, 2010
This article was originally published in the Sept. 11 edition of Gold Rush.
By Jay Reddick
Bob Grant will be honored this fall for what he has meant to Wake Forest. But Grant hopes that Wake Forest is remembered for what it has meant in the history of college athletics.
Grant, a member of the first class of black athletes to play football for the Deacons, will be inducted into the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame this fall. But Grant, Kenneth Henry and William Smith didn't just integrate WFU football in 1964 -- they made Wake Forest the first major program in the Southeast to include blacks.
The players' actions required unbelievable guts, but Grant said those who helped them get to WFU deserve just as much praise.
"I have always been so grateful and appreciative to (WFU President) Dr. Harold Tribble, (Director of Athletics) Dr. Gene Hooks, and Coach (Bill) Tate, who had the courage enough to bring us here, and to Brian Piccolo and John Mackovic among the players. Some others are just as deserving (of the Hall of Fame) as I am. Four, five, six other names should go on that plaque, but I'll accept on behalf of them."
Henry, now deceased, spent four years at WFU with Grant. Smith, who left after his freshman year, will be Grant's presenter at this fall's ceremony.
Grant said that Wake Forest's place in the civil rights movement is too often forgotten, and he hopes that his Hall of Fame induction will help bring the school's involvement back to the forefront.
"I came through campus many years later and talked to a young black man, a track athlete, and he knew nothing at all about Wake Forest's role in the integration," Grant said. "My feelings were a little hurt, but not just for me. Their school did it. Our school did it. Today's black athletes should wear that honor very strongly."
Many of the top Southern black athletes of the time attended historically black colleges or traveled north for school, avoiding the cultural divisions that plagued the Deep South. Grant, who was raised in Onslow County, was planning to play for Michigan State, but then the opportunity at Wake Forest opened up.
"Pic, Mac and Tate went to Dr. Hooks and Dr. Tribble, and then they talked to the school's supporters and to the Reynolds family," Grant said. "It was an insane step for them. Some viewed it as an experiment, but I understood it was not an experiment. It was a commitment."
Walking onto the field that first time took courage, he said, especially in other stadiums across the Deep South.
"There were threats against us, other players, against coaches, and the AD if they brought us out to play," Grant said. "It's easy to forget now, but at the time, those threats were very, very real."
Grant answered the anger with his talent, starring as an offensive tackle and linebacker. He earned All-ACC honors as a senior in 1967, and was an honorable-mention All-American in some publications.
He went on to play four years in the NFL with the Baltimore Colts and Washington Redskins, and was on the roster for two Super Bowl teams.
Today, Grant is president of North Shore Traders Inc., an investment firm with offices in Southern California and Hawaii.
He also does work for the Retired NFL Players Litigation Fund, which is fighting the NFL players' union for medical benefits it says have been unfairly denied. The group recently won a $28 million lawsuit against the union, but Grant said more must be done, not only to protect the legacies of past players, but the health of current athletes.
"Our pension and benefits are embarrassingly low compared to basketball and baseball," Grant said. "So many cases are hidden from the public (retired players) with dementia, who have no idea who they are. Now, they're improving equipment and informing more people of the risks of concussion and injury, and that's a good thing. Football is a great game, but there's a way to play it safely."
Grant, who will be 64 in October, said he's thankfully healthy - and happy.
"I've been very lucky. I can't complain," Grant said. "Life has treated me very well."