Banks completed his career with a .839 win-loss percentage, and led the nation in total defense twice. There were numerous lofty accomplishments in his 14 years at Morgan State. Three unbeaten seasons, a 31 game win streak, three unbeaten regular seasons, five CIAA conference championships and four bowl games. He was the CIAA Coach of the Year - 1962, 1965, and 1966.
Barney finished his college career at Jackson State University with three all Southwestern conference honors and 26 career interceptions. He was drafted in 1967 in the second round by the Detroit Lions and named 1967's defensive rookie of the year. He finished his career by being selected to seven Pro Bowls, and finished his career with 56 career interceptions. He also gained over 1,000 yards returning kickoffs and punts. In Barney's first pro start, he intercepted the first pass in his direction from Green Bay's Bart Starr and ran for a touchdown.
Playing for Southern University, Blount made the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) all-conference team twice and was selected SWAC Most Valuable Player (MVP) his junior year. He was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1970 as the fifty-third overall pick. He led the NFL in interceptions in 1975 with eleven and was named NFL Defensive MVP for that year. He helped the Steelers win four Super Bowls and played in five Pro Bowls, earning MVP honors in the 1976 game. He played in 200 games and missed only one over the course of 14 seasons.
At Morgan State University, Brown revolutionized the game with his 6'3", 255-pound frame, and being very agile and quick on his feet which is very unusual for his era. After being drafted in 1953 in the 27th round of the NFL Draft, Brown was named to the Pro Bowl a total of nine times and helped the Giants win the NFL Championship in 1956. For eight straight years, he was a virtually unanimous All-NFL choice and was named to nine Pro Bowls. In 1975, “Rosey” Brown became only the second player to be elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on the merits of his offensive line play alone.
After his playing days at Grambling State, Davis never missed a game out of a possible 162 games in his 12-year professional tenure. He was known for dropping opposing ball carriers or quarterbacks for losses and or causing them to lose possession of the football. He recovered 21 opponents' fumbles during his career, just one shy of the record when he retired. An All-NFL selection five times in six years from 1962 to 1967 and selected to play in five consecutive Pro Bowls his time with the Packers included five NFL championships and six divisional titles in eight
Hayes is the only man to win both a Super Bowl ring and an Olympic Gold medal. His blazing speed helped catapult him as one of the top wide receivers in the nation when he played at Florida A&M University. Drafted in 1964 in the eighth round by the Dallas Cowboys he became the second player in the history of the Cowboys franchise to surpass 1,000 yards receiving in a single season, and he did that in his rookie year. He finished his 11-year career with an impressive 20 yards per catch average, and holding franchise records for both his career touchdowns and yards per catch average.
Jeffries was able to record three Black National Championships, seven Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) championships, and a record of 179-132-6 in his 29-year career. He coached 19 years at his alma mater South Carolina State University (SCSU) in two stints, five years at Wichita State University, and five years at Howard University. Jeffries won almost 60 percent of the college games he coached, which made him the "winningest coach" in the 107-year history of SCSU and owner of more MEAC victories than any other coach. Jeffries was the first African American head coach of a NCAA Division I-A football program.
Kendall dominated black college football in the 1930s while leading Kentucky State to a national championship in 1934. A three-time First Team All-America selection from 1934-36 by the Pittsburgh Courier, he was inducted into the Kentucky State Athletics Hall of Fame in 1975. He had an impressive 29-7-3 overall record during his years at KYSU. Kendall is the first person from Kentucky State University to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Nicholson was best known as the man with the “Golden Pen.” In his 30 year career as the Sports Information Director, Nicholson brought national attention to Grambling State University’s football program. He found ways for his football teams to travel around the nation. His accomplishments include selling 64,000 seats at Yankee Stadium in 1968 for a game against Morgan State. In 1974, he moved the annual game between Grambling and Southern University, to New Orleans, named it the Bayou Classic and sold it out year after year. He was also responsible for Grambling playing games in Japan in 1976 and 1977. His marketing of the University’s athletic programs was trend setting.
Shell starred on both offense and defense at Maryland Eastern Shore. He was named All-Conference three years, All-America two years by the Pittsburgh Courier and Ebony Magazine. Drafted by the Oakland Raiders in 1968, Shell was a first- or second-team All-Pro choice six straight years from 1973 through 1978. He also played in eight Pro Bowl games and the Raiders victories in Super Bowl XI and XV.
Williams finished his college career with an impressive record of 36-7 as a starter at Grambling State University. He was a first team All-American and finished fourth in the 1978 Heisman Trophy voting in 1978. That same year, Williams was drafted in the first round (17th overall) by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He is most famous for his time with Redskins where he led the team to victory in Super Bowl XXII, becoming the first black quarterback to win a Super Bowl. Williams completed 18 of 29 passes for 340 yards, with four touchdown passes, and was named Super Bowl XXII MVP.
