Leveling the Playing Field tells the story of the African American
members of the 1969-70 Syracuse University football team who
petitioned for racial equality on their team. The petition had four
demands: access to the same academic tutoring made available to
their white teammates; better medical care for all team members;
starting assignments based on merit rather than race; and a
discernible effort to racially integrate the coaching staff, which
had been all white since 1898. The players' charges of racial
disparity were fiercely contested by many of the white players on
the team, and the debate spilled into the newspapers and drew
protests from around the country. Mistakenly called the "Syracuse
8" by media reports in the 1970s, the nine players who signed the
petition did not receive a response allowing or even acknowledging
their demands. They boycotted the spring 1970 practice and Coach
Ben Schwartzwalder, a deeply beloved figure on campus and a Hall of
Fame football coach nearing retirement banned seven of the players
from the team. As tensions escalated white players staged a
day-long walkout in support of the coaching staff, and an enhanced
police presence was required at home games. Extensive interviews
with each player offer a first-hand account of their decision to
stand their ground while knowing it would jeopardize their
professional football career. They discuss with candor the ways in
which the boycott profoundly changed the course of their lives. In
Leveling the Playing Field, Marc chronicles this contentious moment
in Syracuse University's history and tells the story through the
eyes of the players who demanded change for themselves and for
those who would follow them.
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