Pitt football pioneer Bobby Grier, 1st Black player in the Sugar Bowl, dies at 91 (2024)

Jul. 7—Robert "Bobby" Grier Sr., who was a fullback, linebacker and defensive back at Pitt but more significantly a civil rights pioneer in the 1950s, has died. Grier, who was 91, died June 30, according to a Pitt news release.

Grier was the first Black player in the Sugar Bowl after helping the Panthers finish the regular season 7-3, their best record in 17 years.

Pitt lost to Georgia Tech, 7-0, on Jan. 1, 1956, at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans. It was a game fraught with controversy on and off the field.

Grier's participation in the game was opposed by Georgia governor and segregationist Marvin Griffin. A month before the game, Griffin told the Georgia State Board of Regents, "The South stands at Armageddon. The battle is joined. We cannot make the slightest concession to the enemy."

Such an inflammatory remark sparked headlines and discussion across the nation. Grier was planning to travel into the Deep South to break the color barrier of one of college football's most important postseason games. At the same time, Rosa Parks was arrested in Montgomery, Ala., for refusing to surrender her bus seat to a white passenger.

Grier was backed by his teammates and Pitt officials, who vowed, "No Grier, no game."

Even Georgia Tech players and students supported Grier, protesting against Griffin and burning him in effigy outside the governor's mansion.

Grier played, rushing for a game-high 51 yards. He also was called for a disputed pass interference penalty that put the ball on the 1 and led to the game's only touchdown. Later, photographic evidence indicated the call was incorrect.

In the book "The Sugar Bowl: The First Fifty Years" by author Marty Mule, Grier said, "I was outside in what we called an 'Eagle' defense. I went back with the player (Georgia Tech tight end Don Ellis) and when I turned to look up and see where the ball was, I got pushed in the back. The ball was over his head and I was lying on the ground when the official threw a flag and said I pushed him, with me lying on the ground, looking up and the ball over both our heads."

After the game, players from both teams were invited to a banquet at the St. Charles Hotel, which served only white patrons. As Grier stepped off the team bus, several Georgia Tech players, all from the South, greeted Grier and told him, "You're eating with us."

Grier received the loudest ovation of any of the Sugar Bowl participants when he walked into the banquet hall.

"That made me feel good. Made me feel special," Grier said.

He was back at the Sugar Bowl in 2019 when he was introduced as a member of the Sugar Bowl Hall of Fame. Grier also is a member of the Pitt Athletics Hall of Fame, Western Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame and the "Wall of Champions" at Massillon (Ohio) High School, where he led the Tigers to two state championships.

Grier earned his Bachelor of Business Administration from Pitt in 1957 and served in the Air Force for 12 years, working primarily on radar and missiles and rising to the rank of captain. Later, he worked as a supervisor for US Steel and as an administrator at Community College of Allegheny County until his 1998 retirement.

"Bobby Grier is the epitome of the Pitt student-athlete," Pitt Chancellor Joan Gabel said in a statement. "Striving to compete alongside his teammates at the highest level possible, he played with courage, grace and conviction, and he helped drive the national conversation toward justice at a pivotal time in American history. The University of Pittsburgh is enormously proud to call Bobby an alum. We express our deepest condolences to his family and friends at the loss of a great man."

Added athletic director Heather Lyke: "Bobby Grier lived a truly remarkable and impactful life that inspires in so many ways. The courage and dignity he showed in desegregating the Sugar Bowl stands as one of the most important moments not only in the history of the University of Pittsburgh but also the game of college football. One of my most gratifying moments was having the opportunity to take part in his enshrinement in the Pitt Athletics Hall of Fame in 2021. His legacy, on and off the field, will always burn brightly at Pitt. We extend our deepest condolences to the Grier family and Bobby's many loved ones."

Pitt football coach Pat Narduzzi has a personal recollection of his moment with Grier.

"I had only been at Pitt a few weeks when I first met Bobby Grier," Narduzzi said in a statement. "He was visiting our practice facility, and I remember leaving a meeting so I could see him in person and shake his hand. Bobby is an absolute Pitt icon, and I was immediately struck by his humbleness and warmth. His pride in being a Pitt Man was on his sleeve, and that was so inspiring to me. We are so proud to continually tell Bobby's story to new generations of Pitt football players. He really represents the best of our program."

Jerry DiPaola is a TribLive reporter covering Pitt athletics since 2011. A Pittsburgh native, he joined the Trib in 1993, first as a copy editor and page designer in the sports department and later as the Pittsburgh Steelers reporter from 1994-2004. He can be reached at jdipaola@triblive.com.

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