There's a train a-coming: the recruiting class that changed college football



I was on the faculty at Texas A&M for 27 years and taught sociology of sports. Now my son and I are writing a book about the 1972 recruiting class and the fascinating story of the integration of Aggie sports.

That recruiting class - Bubba Bean, Ed Simonini, Pat Thomas, Jackie Williams, Carl Roaches, Garth Ten Napel, Skip Walker, Alvin Bowers, Richard Osborne, Edgar Fields, Bucky Sams, and other Aggie legends - was arguably Texas A&M's best ever. It was also one of the most important in college football history, and it accelerated desegregation in the sport across the South.

We've interviewed many of the players and coaches. We've watched the games and read the press reports.

Now we need to hear from you - the students and fans who saw it all happen.

• Were you at the game against Texas in 1975?
• Did you go to bonfire?
• Where did you celebrate afterward?
• Did you go to the airport to celebrate the big win in Baton Rouge in 1974?
• How about the near brawl with the band at Rice in 1973? Or the melee at the basketball game in Waco in 1972?

Any other interesting stories about great games, campus life or the social scene?

Drop your stories in the thread below, and let us know if you'd be happy for us to reach out for a quick interview and possibly a quote in the book.

Don Albrecht
Mathew Albrecht '03

- My Dad took me to a Football Camp for youth and I ended up in Ed Simonini's group. He was really good with us kids and my favorite player of all time. I remember Bubba Bean being there too.

- I remember for some games like Rice, you could get a ticket to the game at Dairy Queen if you bought an Ice Cream. They had them sitting on the counter. It was the Dairy Queen on 29th Street near BHS.