Something Old Nothing New (2/13/2022)

February is black history month. It is a time when news media and educational institutes will bring to attention the many contributions of African Americans throughout our history. While many names are easily recognized there are far too many who are not known as well but should be; especially amongst the younger generations. I have had a limited personal experience with a few.

One of my favorite places to visit in Philadelphia is a science museum founded in 1824 known as the Franklin Institute. I was fortunate to be hired by the Philadelphia School District in 1985 and would be working across the street from this famous museum allowing me to spend some of my break time exploring the exhibits. When touring the museum, one is likely to encounter the Chief Astronomer, an African American by the name of Derrick Pitts. He is also Director of the Fels Planetarium and has been a NASA Solar System Ambassador since 2009 and serves as the "Astrobiology Ambassador" for the NASA/MIRS/UNCF Special Program Corporation's Astrobiology Partnership Program. Pitts is also a frequent guest of the local media speaking on a wide array of subjects ranging from the solar eclipse to meatier sittings.

I met American playwriter Charles Fuller in Strawbridge and Clothier department store in 1982. Fuller is from Philadelphia and is best known for his play A Soldier's Play for which he received the 1982 Pulitzer Prize for drama. The play was made into a movie with a supporting role played by a new up and coming actor by the name of Denzel Washington.

When I was a student at Temple University, I attended a lecture by hall of fame baseball player Willie Mays. Many consider Mays to be the greatest all-around baseball player ever to play the game.

Several years ago, I crossed paths with Tony Dungy in center city Philadelphia. Dungy was in town to broadcast the Eagles vs Cowboys football game that would be played that night. Tony Dungy was a head football coach in the NFL for 13 seasons. He is best noted for being the first and black head coach to win a super bowl when he led the Colts to victory in Super Bowl XLI.

Considering the NFL's history regarding the hiring of black head coaches, Dungy is likely to be in small company for quite some time. Currently there are eight NFL franchises that have never hired a black head coach.* I am not including interim coaches who fill the spot temporarily when the previous coach has been fired before the end of the season. The ten teams cited include some of the more prestigious teams in the league's history such as the Patriots, Giants, Rams, and Americas team the Dallas Cowboys. There are also an additional nine teams that have only hired one black head coach.

This is not surprising considering that the record of NCAA college football teams is less than stellar in this regard. Many of the top programs have never hired a black head football coach. This list includes USC, Ohio State, Michigan, Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Oklahoma, Nebraska and Clemson to name a few.

After the 2020 NFL football season there were eight head coaching vacancies in the NFL. None were filled by African Americans. At the conclusion of the 2021 season nine positions were open.

For the last two decades the vast majority of NFL players have been African Americans. There are many black assistant coaches who are well qualified. They gain attention for their team's excellent performance during the playoffs. This has been magnified the past two seasons. Some of the highly mentioned are Eric Bieniemy (KC Chiefs OC), Byron Leftwich (Tampa Bay OC), Duce Staley (Eagles RBC), and Todd Bowles (Tampa Bay DC).

Some might point out that Bowles had his chance with the New York Jets. While that is correct consider that the Jets have been one of the NFL's lowliest franchises for a long time no matter who was their coach which includes Lou Hotz, Pete Caroll and Bill Parcells. This past season only two other teams lost more games than the Jets. Considering the outstanding job he has done the last few seasons, is it out of the question that he should not get another shot? After all the NFL "glass door" for recycled coaches is not a short list. The league has had no problem granting less than mediocre coaches' multiple opportunities in the past. Names like Rich Kotite, Pat Shurmur, Doug Marone, Rex Ryan, Dick Jauron, and Wade Phillips come to mind.

It seems the few times African Americans have been hired as head coaches it has been for traditionally bad teams like the Lions, Browns, and Jets. Some of the better franchises that have never hired an African American head coach had no problem hiring the likes of Ray Handley (Giants), Joe Judge (Giants), Rod Rust (Patriots), and Steve Spagnuola (Rams). Not to mention that the Dallas Cowboys kept Jason Garrett for ten years.

There is of course always an exception. I am referring of course to a specific NFL team that has only hired one black coach in their storied franchise history. However, they are arguably the most successful franchise in the league's history. In 2007 the Pittsburgh Steelers hired Viking defensive coordinator Mike Tomlin. How did that work out?

* Cowboys, Giants, Rams, Saints, Seahawks, Bills, Patriots
# Eagles, Redskins, Packers, Cardinals, Falcons, Bengals, Texans, Chargers, Broncos