American Football Player Ernie Davis - Essay Example

Ernie Davis was an American football player who was born in Pennsylvania, USA on 14 December 1939. In the year 1959, Ernie David earned the national championship to Syracuse and became the first-ever winner of the Heisman Trophy from the African American race just two years later. Just five years before, Jim Brown had rebuffed to have the honor of having this trophy because he was black as a result of this, Dick Schaap resolved to resign as the voter of the Heisman Trophy. In this context, Ernie Davis winning the Heisman Trophy marked a cultural shift. Ernie Davis also holds the honor of being the first athlete of the African American race to be selected in the NFL Draft.