While chatting with Tony Byrne and former Mississippi State and NBA great Bailey Howell at the Joe Fortunato Celebrity Golf Classic, I learned more about the story of Mississippi State’s journey into integrated athletics.

In those days (Howell was actually a couple of years behind Tony at State) college athletic teams simply were not allowed to play against black players in any sport. When Howell was a sophomore during the 1956-57 season, the Bulldog basketball team participated in a tournament in Denver.

After reaching the finals, it was discovered the team they would face for the championship had two black players on the roster. This fact mattered not to the State coaches and players, but the administration demanded the team get on the bus and return to Mississippi.

That move was very unpopular with the Denver folks, and they attacked the bus. The players and coaches barely escaped.

A season later, Mississippi State won the SEC championship, thereby qualifying for the NCAA Tournament. The NCAA Tournament was smaller in those years, and the team would have drawn a bye into the round of 16.

However, again the administration stepped in and refused to let the Bulldog team participate.

It wasn’t until three or four years later the State basketball team, having again qualified for the NCAA Tournament, actually snuck out of Starkville secretly, though the administration had threatened to have them all arrested, and went on to play against black players in the NCAA tournament.

There were no repercussions, and the barrier had been broken, forever.

Tony Byrne remembers that a couple of years before the Denver episode the Bulldogs had played in a tournament in North Carolina against a team with black players, and nobody made a fuss over it.

I promised some football. Several younger football officials have asked me about making the step up to college football officiating. Generally speaking, all of the major conferences require an official have at least four years officiating experience at the small-college level.

For those officials interested in moving to college officiating through the small-college level, I will list some of those conferences in the Southeast area.

The Big South Conference offices are at 7233 Pineville-Matthew Road, Suite 100, Charlotte, NC 28226. Southland Conference offices are at 1700 Alma Drive, Suite 550, Plano, TX 75075. The SWAC address is A. G. Gaston Building, 1577 5th Ave. N., Birmingham, AL 35204.

The Sun Belt Conference office is at 601 Poydras Street, Suite 2355, New Orleans 70130. Gulf South Conference has its office at 2101 Providence Place, Suite 200, Birmingham, AL 35242. The American Southwest Conference is at 1221 West Campbell Drive, Suite 245, Richardson, TX 75180.

I got an e-mail from Shawn with a baseball question, but I couldn’t get my reply through. If Shawn reads this, he might send me a full address.

Thanks, and that’s official.

Al Graning is a former SEC official and former Natchez resident. Reach him at

AlanWard39157@aol.com

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Al Graning 5-3-05