Later that afternoon, a beaming Davis, seeing Syracuse coach Ben Schwartzwalder, went floating toward him through a. Gary Fleder: Did you feel it from the players? t: 1.315.443.2093f: 1.315.443.4083 scrc@syr.edu Schwartzwalder had a knack for developing excellent running backs. Coach Ben Schwartzwalder had no interest in acknowledging race and how racism affects the experience of black athletes. A nice memory. He was a paratrooper in World War II, rose to the rank of major, and was awarded the Silver Star, Bronze Star, Purple . Syracuse leads the overall record of the series 31-27, however West Virginia has won the trophy 11 times to Syracuse's 7. It may not display this or other websites correctly. What did Disney actually lose from its Florida battle with DeSantis? You should know his story, because it's a Syracuse University story - one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future. As a paratrooper with the 82nd, he was among the first wave of soldiers that jumped on D-Day in 1944. One other thought on that. Even as a paratrooper, Schwartzwalder remained focused on his football career. Ben enrolled at West Virginia University and went out for football. He would then later imply he was joking or being sarcastic at the time these promises were made. In addition to Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis, he coached Jim Brown, Floyd Little, Jim Nance, and Larry Csonka through their college careers. Death 28 Apr 1993 (aged 83) . During the war, Schwartzwalder was a military hero, a paratrooper, part of the D-Day invasion in June 1944 fighting behind enemy lines. He recruited black players not . 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. Coach Ben Schwartzwalder and the SU football team were having a great season. Ben was clearly on his way to the top. Floyd Benjamin Ben Schwartzwalder was for 25 years a teacher, a mentor, and a coach at Syracuse University. She was 76 years old. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Schwartzwalder had a significant history of recruiting and developing black players during the 1950s and 1960s when many other major programs refused to do so. 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. All these years later, Easterly still recalls his teammate not only for his football prowess, but also for his warm, comical personality. As a captain in the 82nd Airborne (CO of Company G of the 507th), Schwartzwalder earned distinction during the invasion of Normandy and battles that followed in the last days of the war. They identify him as later coaching Syracuse University to the national championship in 1959. The coach is also remembered through the Ben Schwartzwalder Trophy which, goes to the winner of each game between West Virginia University (where he had played as a college student) and Syracuse University. Ben Schwartzwalder was a decent guy, but he was from another era. 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. December 23, 2014 Floyd Benjamin "Ben" Schwartzwalder was for 25 years a teacher, a mentor, and a coach at Syracuse University. He also watched Spike Lees documentary, Jim Brown All-American, which offered more insight into the era. Anyways, getting back to the rivalry, the trophy was introduced in 1993 after the death of Coach Ben Schwartzwalder. Reading your post, I flashed on "Band of Brothers", which detailed a company of the 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne. I know it well. 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. In 1969 a group of nine student-athletes boycotted Syracuse Universitys football program to demand change and promote racial equality. george w bush medal, us defense savings. 1LT Wagner was promoted to commander of the 3rd battalion's headquarters company. You can't be Black and be a . Neither believes "The Express" captures his personality, or accurately portrays his relationships with head coach Ben Schwartzwalder and teammates. He also wrestled and dodged a young coed who was just as fierce a competitor as he when it came to getting her man. As head coach from 1949-73, he mounted an impressive 153-91-3 record there. In fact, I never knew what being an alumnus was. West Virginia University - Monticola Yearbook (Morgantown, WV), Class of 1932, Page 231 of 392 | E-Yearbook.com has the largest online yearbook collection of college, university, high school, middle school, junior high school, military, naval cruise books and yearbooks. Floyd Burdette "Ben" Schwartzwalder Birth 2 Jun 1909. There is so much joy on the faces of the players and Ben. By 1941, he had earned a name for himself and was offered the head coaching job at Canton McKinley High School in Ohio, one of the top jobs in the Midwest. We might have to change and modify things Jim Brown: You can do a hell of a film if you can understand what it is to be a man in America. Shortly after Dec. 7, 1941, Canton McKinley lost a coach and the U.S. Army gained a soldier. 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 said, You have to realize, in the civil rights movement, there had to be radicals and peacemakers, radicals like Malcolm X and peacemakers like Martin Luther King. Even as a paratrooper, Schwartzwalder remained focused on his football career. The most pivotal character was Company Capt. Google Image Result for https://d3d4f9a2nwdz4m.cloudfront.net/images/2011/9/28/SchwartzwalderBenonshoulderscolor.jpg, The Penn State game looms down there in Jersey; not so long ago, it delivered Dome delirium. Schwartzwalder was born in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. But there was to be a delay. In 1959, he also won the national coach of the year award. He also developed some of the most impressive running backs the game has ever seen Jim Brown, Ernie Davis, Jim Nance, Floyd Little and Larry Csonka. 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. Chancellor John Corbally Records, University Archives. He coached the 507th PIR football team, leading them through a ten game season in which the 507th was never defeated and never even scored upon. They got a long-name coach. And while maybe the alumni didnt get the big name coach, Floyd Burdette Ben Schwartzwalder gave SU its finest hours in football, becoming the most successful football coach in the Universitys history. 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. You must log in or register to reply here. He was like a Marine, with a real army attitude. "I never expected to see you here to receive this award," said the commander of the 82nd. "He would never in a million years talk to Ben Schwartzwalder like that," Easterly said. As Dolan approached from the north, Captain Ben Schwartzwalder led more than 40 men of the 507th to the south side of the Manoir, where he was also stopped by machine-gun fire. Davis' accomplishments and abbreviated life inspire the new movie, which Easterly saw at an Orangemen reunion recently. SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) The year was 1959. All WW11. He also was a hero of World War II. In 1973, Schwartzwalder retired from coaching and moved to St. Petersburg, Florida. Dropped far behind enemy lines and miles off target, Ben organized his command immediately and a week later brought a bunch of prisoners to the Allied lines. No. Over that time he led Syracuse to its only football national title, in 1959. 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. Ben organized and coached the 507th's football team. Finally he called Brown, who lives here in L.A., and set up a meeting. Quite a story, but as an amateur historian, that kind of second or third hand quote, especially one delivered 50 years after it was shared, makes me very skeptical to its veracity. At West Virginia, he became a first-string center at only 148 pounds. Several units were simultaneously converging on the same objective in a piecemeal, uncoordinated manner. You should know his story, because its a Syracuse University story one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future. Between 1848 and 1867, the college operated as the Allentown Seminary, the Allentown Collegiate and Military Institute, and the Allentown Collegiate Institute. And according to the emailer, Schwartzwalder and Wagner served together as paratroopers in the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. 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 . Ben Schwartzwalder . Ben and Ed trained together and most likely socialized with each other at unit functions and the officers' club. 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. 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. After being labeled black dissidents, the Syracuse 8 were suspended from the team. And less than a handful of men who have entered the coaching profession since Princeton and Rutgers started the madness back in 1869 have recorded as many victories as did this crew-cut, bespectacled quiet little giant out of the hills of West Virginia. 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. During the D-Day invasion in 1944, Schwartzwalder parachuted into Normandy and was wounded. Los Angeles Times Staff Writer. Orange teams outrushed opponents by more than 22,000 yards under Ben. Capt. One of Buffalo's longest-tenured AFL players, Al Bemiller, passed away on Wednesday. Very similar to Ronald Spiers story in episode 2 of that series when he supposedly gave a handful of German soldiers a cigarette and then executed all but one. During his 25 years as head coach Syracuse teams outrushed their opponents by more than 22,000 yards. A report on Ben Schwartzwalder. Ben Schwartzwalder was a decent guy, but he was from another era. Almost immediately, Coach Ben Schwartzwalder enlisted in the United States Army, earning his paratrooper wings as part of the famous 82nd Airborne Division. And then we played Illinois, and I had to play. In 1941, he was coach of Canton McKinley High School in Ohio when, even though he was in his 30s, he commissioned in the US Army and fought in World War II. Reggie was the widow of legendary Syracuse University head football coach Floyd Ben Schwartzwalder, who died in 1993. "Miraculously, Ed and the majority of his "lost" group were able to reach the US lines and by 14 June he was reunited with the regiment outside of St. 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. Muhlenberg College was founded in 1848 in Allentown, Pennsylvania, as the Allentown Seminary by Samuel K. Brobst, a Reformed Lutheran minister. They included the battalion surgeon who had stayed behind to care for the wounded. And if you deal with my life, while Im dealing with all these bad people at Syracuse, I got all these good people out there helping [me]. Jim Brown. The war ended and football again became his life. He rose to the rank of major and in the process picked up the Silver Star, Bronze Star and Purple Heart, four battle stars and a Presidential Unit Citation. - Ben Schwartzwalder. ". He had many reasons for doing what he did, but he stood up against his own people. Those units were from the 17th Waffen-SS Panzer Grenadier Division "Gotz von Berlichingen". In "The Express," Schwartzwalder (Dennis Quaid) is initially depicted as reluctant to recruit Davis (Rob Brown) because he's "too old to butt heads with another Jim Brown," one of the first black. By the time the 507th reached the battle for Hill 95, they had suffered more than 65% casualties. Richard Winters (played by Damian Lewis), who also received a battlefield promotion to major and was also from West Virginia, like Ol' Ben. Because in my experience, I just wanted to get out of there and get moving. "By doing the best we can do with the job we have, wherever it is, we can serve our nation in its greatest task.". Played golf in an SU golf outing at Drrumliuns years back with Ben and an offensive lineman on the championship team (Yeager??). During his 25 years as head coach Syracuse teams outrushed their opponents by more than 22,000 yards. 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. In fact, he didnt even look at the original script. 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. Starting in the fall of 1968, Black football players at Syracuse University expressed concerns about racial discrimination within the football program. Syracuse University did not strip the players of their scholarships, but. It was superficial and cloying and didnt give enough dimension to the story. Schwartzwalder is portrayed by actor Dennis Quaid in the 2008 Universal Pictures film The Express, a biography about Syracuse University Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis. Parkersburg. Jim was very quiet in the early part of the film, Fleder recalls. 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. 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. He is part of Syracuse University history, and a veteran of the U.S. military. The military also named Schwartzwalder governor of Essen, Germany, for about six months following the fall of Nazi Germany. During practices a limit was placed on the number of black players who could be on the field at the same time. Mostly, we remember Floyd "Ben" Schwartzwalder as Syracuse University's successful head football coach, 1949 to 1973. Ben Schwartzwalder. Their demand was based on their awareness of how their academic potential exceeded the universitys expectations. 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? He was awarded a Silver Star, a Bronze Star, a Purple Heart . 1 after winning their first seven games. Dropped far behind enemy lines and miles off target, Ben, a Captain in Company G of the 507th, organized his men, established command, and a week later delivered a large group of prisoners to the Allied lines. 5 in our series looking at the coaches and players who have made the biggest impact in Syracuse University sports. He was also a military veteran. These SS troopers also executed the twenty plus wounded US paratroopers who had been too injured to evacuate with the others. He also developed some of the most impressive running backs the game has ever seen Jim Brown, Ernie Davis, Jim Nance, Floyd Little and Larry Csonka. JavaScript is disabled. 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. !8 holes of golf and Ben never said a word about football. Collapse. Ben led G Company during the D-Day operation and was decorated with the Silver Star for conspicuous gallantry in his first combat action. I don't know what the ratio of prisoners to guards would have been. The Syracuse 8 continued their boycott through the 1969 football season. It is where the seeds of the fierce competitor were nurtured and matured. Syracuse Chancellor John Corbally, prompted by faculty sympathetic to the 8, allowed the players to keep their scholarships and to graduate, which they did. When their request was not met, Greg Allen, Richard Bulls, John Godbolt, Robin Griffin (who only boycotted in the spring), Dana D.J. Harrell, John Lobon, Clarence Bucky McGill, A. Alif Muhammad (then known as Al Newton), and Duane Walker began their boycott of spring football practice. Its also a genuine comeback for Fleder, who hasnt made a feature in five years (hes been directing TV pilots), and he finally seems poised to recapture the promise of his early career work on such films as Things To Do in Denver When Youre Dead and Kiss the Girls. Before Fleder began work on the film, he knew he had to have one key figure on board -- Jim Brown, who was a star running back at Syracuse in the 1950s, helped recruit Davis (after Brown left to play in the NFL) and later become an action film star and civil rights activist. "We football coaches are most fortunate," Ben said as he left office as the president of the American Football Coaches Association. It was a scene he had repeated several hundred times but on this particular day, November 24, 1973, it was different. Schwartzwalder's teams went to seven bowl games and won four Lambert Trophies. 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. Military Wiki is a FANDOM Lifestyle Community. The Black student-athletes first sent their grievances to Coach Schwartzwalder, though that document does not exist in the University Archives. Corbally and Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Jim Carleton met with the boycotting players that spring and committed to hiring a Black assistant football coach before fall practice. Less than a dozen men rank in this category. Quot gosh Quot moaned the hard bitten sex paratrooper Quot All we Are is one deep. Biography Edit Early life and career Edit. He was a real comedian too. Under Bens leadership, SU produced 22 straight years of non-losing football. They wanted me to change positions, all kinds of stuff. Ben Schwartzwalder grew up in West Virginia, and developed into a superb athlete (a standout wrestler and football player, both in high school and college). 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. Qualities missing from Davis' portrayal in "The Express," opening Friday.
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