First Triumph Books, 2023. Paperback. New softcover in matte printed wraps. Text is clean and free of marks or underlining. 8vo. (6 x .7 x 9 inches) Includes photo plates. 256 pp.

Fast shipping in a secure book box mailer with tracking. New. Item #203139
ISBN: 9781637274644

An essential story of understated courage, the lasting power of a name, and the battle to honor a pioneering legacy.

On the eve of his second varsity football game for the Iowa State Cyclones, Jack Trice, staying alone in a separate hotel from his teammates because of the color of his skin, sad down and wrote himself a letter, "The honor of my race, family and self are at stake. Everyone is expecting me to do big things. I will!"

I will! The introspective 21-year-old was ever aware of his status in 1923 as the college's first Black football player. His time on the field represented more than just himself. Unfortunately, Trice would die tragically days later after sustaining injuries on the field during that very same game.

The Idealist is a complete portrait of Trice, the son of a former Buffalo Soldier who became a high school football standout in Ohio and embarked on his college career hoping to emulate fellow Iowa State alum George Washington Carver. It is also the story of those who fought for his legacy across generations as decades of students sought to honor Jack by naming the Iowa State football stadium after him. The discovery of a small, dusty plaque honoring Trice spawned a decades long campus movement to honor a forgotten football hero who helped break racial boundaries and may have died because of them.

Jack Trice's memory led to a namesake stadium—the first and still the only major football stadium named for an African-American individual.

Price: $14.95