NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — There are many icons we think about when we discuss breaking color barriers.
This month, 60 years ago, marks what had never been done before. Willie Brown and Jesse Porter broke the color barrier and joined the basketball team at Father Ryan High School.
They joined the team in 1963 and Brown played in the historic 1965 game between Pearl High School and Father Ryan. That game is believed to be the first in the south between a predominantly white school and an African American school.
"He paved the pathway for many other players to do the same," said Cade Bennerman, a junior on the Father Ryan High School basketball team.
"Big moment for Nashville and for the state of Tennessee and for Father Ryan," said head coach Doug Bontrager. "Our tournament just tries to honor him."
Brown wasn't just a basketball player or a student athlete. More so, he was a young man who made a true difference in the world of sports.
"He's the first African American to play an integrated basketball game in the south," Bontrager said. "Father Ryan High School is a part of that."
"I did see dedication in what he did," said Don Craighead, a former teammate. "The work that he put in to be good."
Father Ryan hosts the Willie Brown Memorial Basketball Tournament. Brown died in a motorcycle crash in Connecticut in 1975. Still today, his story and legacy is being written and today's team is taking note.
"We just try to be good teammates to each other, like they were to Willie," Bennerman said. "During that time period, what he had to go through and him rising above that. That's what stands out to me."
Bontrager watched his young men learn about the historical roots at the school on Thursday during a luncheon. They heard stories of Brown's legacy, and Porter joined in via Zoom.
"These people are talking about 50 years ago, 60 years ago playing and these are friends you're going to have for the rest of your life," Bontrager said.
Father Ryan won Thursday afternoon's game 75-58.
Fostering Hope provides Christmas for kids in foster care. I'm delighted to see Fostering Hope expand this year to expand their reach to now include kids in Foster care in metro AND foster kids in East TN hard hit by Helene.
-Bree Smith
