In 1970, USC and sophomore fullback Sam “Bam” Cunningham traveled across the country to play Alabama at Legion Field.
This was much more than a game between good teams.
It was a pivotal moment for Cunningham and civil rights.
The Civil Rights movement of the 60s ended and a new decade began with hope, resentment, promise, and unsurety.
Yet the country was only two years removed from one of its most tumultuous, emotional, and profoundly impactful years.
Especially for Black America.
1968 bore the start of the Vietnam War, the murder of Robert Kennedy, the Mexico City Olympic protest of John Carlos and Tommie Smith, student protests, clashes at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, and of course, the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King.
“Something died in America in 1968, and we haven’t been able to bring it back,” said the late, great Georgia congressman John Lewis to Tom Brokaw in his book “Boom! Talking About The Sixties” (page 54).
Two years after that turbulent year, the USC Trojans entered the deep south to play the Crimson Tide.
It wasn’t just a game.
It was a statement.
USC vs Alabama
Legion Field was not a welcome home for Black fans and the South was not a place for Black players.
“In some ways, slavery never ended,” said John Giggie, an African American history professor at the University of Alabama. “It just simply was transformed into a program of white supremacy.”
So for many Black people in the South, the Trojans represented a vision of the previous decade’s movement.
In some ways, it was a new version of the March in Selma.
Another symbol representing the fight for civil rights and equality.
USC’s integrated team featured an all-Black backfield of Sam “Bam” Cunningham at fullback, Jimmy Jones at quarterback, and Clarence Davis at running back.
Opposing them was Paul “Bear” Bryant and the traditions of the Alabama Crimson Tide and the South, which I discussed in my story, “The College Football Playoff Is College Sports’ Ultimate Quasi-Caste System”.
“Cloaked thoroughly in Southern, confederate history, Bryant’s Tide not only refused to recruit Black players, but they also refused to allow Black fans to enter Legion Field.”
On September 12th, 1970, USC was John Lewis and the marchers, Bryant Alabama Governor George Wallace, the Tide the state police, and Legion Field Edmund Pettus Bridge.
And five years removed from “Bloody Sunday” in Selma, the outcome was different.
Cunningham punished the Crimson Tide, rushing for 135 yards and 2 TDs, leading USC to a 42-21 obliteration of Alabama.
While Cunningham might not have realized it at the time, his performance established him as a triumphant symbol and catalyst for the integration of college football in the South.
“Sam Cunningham did more to integrate Alabama in 60 minutes than Martin Luther King did in 20 years,” said former Tide assistant Jerry Claiborne.
The following year, halfback Wilbur Jackson (who was a freshman on the team in 1970 but freshmen were ineligible to play at the time) and defensive end John Mitchell, a junior-college transfer, became the first Black players in Alabama football history. Ironically, they beat the Trojans in LA, 17-10, to start the 1971 season.
But Cunningham secured his place in both sports and civil rights history.
Cunningham the Man
Sam Cunningham became a college football and USC Trojan legend.
He was a three-year letterman and captained the team to the 1972 National Championship.
In his career, according to usctrojans.com, the 1972 All-American amassed 1,579 yards and 23 touchdowns (13 alone in 1972) and added 34 receptions for 293 yards and 2 scores.
His college accolades earned him induction into the USC Athletic Hall of Fame in 2001 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2010.
In 1973, New England selected Cunningham with the 11th pick in the NFL Draft.
He played with the Patriots for 9 seasons (1973-79, 81-82) and became the team’s all-time leading rusher with 5,453 yards.
After his playing career, Cunningham, a California native and older brother of former NFL QB Randall Cunningham, became a landscape contractor in Southern California.
On Tuesday, September 7th, Sam Cunningham passed away, a great loss to all.
His loss was greatly felt by the Patriots, who inducted him into their Hall of Fame in 2010.
Sam “Bam” Cunningham will be remembered as a football player and a man loved by all. One who will be greatly missed.
But he was also a symbol of power and reinvigoration of a movement.
During a week where voting rights and women’s rights are under attack in Texas, and a confederate statue of Robert E. Lee was removed in Virginia, it’s crucial to remember the impact of his performance on the field and how it delivered change and hope to people in an area struggling with those very things.
RIP Sam “Bam” Cunningham.
