Black 14: The Rise, Fall and Rebirth of Wyoming Football

by Ryan Thorburn

In the 1960s one of the strongest voices was that of the black athlete. Not at the University of Wyoming. The only colors that mattered here in '69 were brown and gold, and the only issue worth paying attention to was Cowboy football. Wyoming's 14 black players wanted to wear black armbands during the upcoming game against Brigham Young University to protest the policies of the Mormon Church, which did not allow blacks to enter into the priesthood. The head coach Lloyd Eaton gave them the boot. And everything about Cowboys football changed forever.

Genres: Nonfiction

153 pages, Paperback

First published June 17, 2009

Reviews

[Jennifer]

This is a super quick read, but nonetheless has some interesting information about this dark incident in Cowboys history. It reads more like a senior thesis than a book, and could have used some more depth in several sections.

[Anna Elizabeth]

Reads like a college informational essay. It's an important event to learn about but this book is limited in the story that could be told, including more of the emotional/career toll it took on the impacted young men.

[James]

Really interesting book about an incident with which I was not familiar. Sometimes the book was a bit difficult to follow as it jumped back and forth through time, but still a fascinating quick read.

[Tracy McCollum]

Good read

An informative outline of the history of Wyoming football. A very interesting story from the civil rights movement. Not a bad read.

[Kristy P.]

So far, the content is good; but the author has poor writing skills. The poor writing makes it hard to follow.

[Nicholle]

There's a good story in there, and it's extremely relevant even today, but not the best writing or organization.
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