Show Notes

If you don’t recognize the name Fritz Pollard, you’re not alone. Pollard was the first Black player in the NFL, the first Black quarterback in the NFL and the first Black head coach of an NFL team. And yet, in 2020 – the NFL’s 100th birthday – the league referred to Pollard as “A Forgotten Man.” Pollard weathered racism, rejection, death threats and violence every night he stepped onto the field. But he persevered through it all.

Today, we tell Pollard’s incredible story – from forgotten man to legendary trailblazer.

Major sources for this episode include:
1) Breaking the Color Barrier: The Story of the First African American NFL Head Coach, Frederick Douglass “Fritz” Pollard by Frank Foster
2) WBUR – “Fritz Pollard: The Small Running Back Who Broke Big Barriers”
3) Pro Football Hall of Fame – “Hall of Famer Fritz Pollard helped sports, world change for better”
4) NFL – Fritz Pollard: A Forgotten Man (Documentary, 2020)
5) BELT Mag – “Fritz Pollard: Football’s Unsung Trailblazer”

From the creators of Under the Influence:
Writer & Host: Sidney O’Reilly
Executive Producer & Co-Host: Terry O’Reilly
Research: Allison Pinches
Director: Callie O’Reilly
Supervising Producer: Debbie O’Reilly
Engineer: Geoff Devine
Theme music: Ian Lefeuvre & Ari Posner

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