PHOTO: Pete Newell coached at Michigan State four seasons, including the Spartans’ Big Ten debut, 1950-51. He was hired as MSU’s 35-year-old head coach after four seasons as the University of San Francisco’s head coach, Kneeling with Newell: L-R Dick Wesling and Ricky Ayala. Back row L-R: Keith Stackhouse, Bob Armstrong, Erik Furseth.

By TOM SHANAHAN

Two Michigan State football coaches won national titles, Biggie Munn and Duffy Daugherty.

Two Michigan State basketball coaches won national championships, Jud Heathcote and Tom Izzo.

But if not for Midwest winters, the first MSU basketball coach to win a national title might have been Pete Newell.

The Californian loved his time at Michigan State except for the winter weather. He stayed four seasons, 1950-51 to 1953-54, before he accepted a job to return to the Golden State as Cal’s head coach.

He took the Bears to four straight NCAA tournaments — back when only the conference champion qualified — and back-to-back Final Fours. The 1958-59 team won the national title, and the 1959-60 team lost in the final to Ohio State.

I was reminded of all this when I opened my email and received a note from Pete Newell Jr., a long-time teacher and high school basketball coach who won a California state title at Santa Cruz High.

Pete Jr. was a kid in East Lansing when his father coached the Spartans. He thanked me for my efforts to set the record straight that Duffy Daugherty and Michigan State led college football integration — not the myths about Bear Bryant and the 1970 USC-Alabama game.

But Pete also wrote an anecdote about his father and Duffy as good friends. I asked Pete if I could share his email with Michigan State fans. Read on:

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Hi Tom

I just read Your detailed story about Duffy.

My Father coached basketball at Michigan State from 1950-1954.

He and Duffy were Good Friends, born 8 days apart and of Irish ancestry.

In 1953, they would have lunch together on campus across from Jenison Fieldhouse.

There was an Irish Setter hanging around looking for scraps of food.

On the 2nd or 3rd day, Duffy convinced my Father to take the Setter home because there were 3 boys (9, 6, 3) who would love a dog over my Mother’s objections.

Dad named the dog ‘Duffy.’

In 1956, Michigan State played at Stanford.

I remember my Father taking me across the Bay to visit Duffy at Ricky’s Hyatt House before the Game.

As usual, he was funny and engaging.

Likely you know how much of an Offensive Innovator he was with his Multiple Formations.

As to black players playing at MSC while we were there, I distinctly remember LeRoy Bolden, who along with Billy Wells made up the ‘Pony Backfield.’

Bolden had a Great Career as a Spartan.

I appreciate the Research and Emphasis on Facts for the book You have written.

Best

Pete Newell Jr.

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The Spartans won the 1954 Rose Bowl in Biggie Munn’s final year as a head coach. Bolden and Ellis Duckett — two Black All-Americans playing for the Spartans — both scored touchdowns.

This was the beginning of Daugherty’s Underground Railroad. Southern Blach high school coaches saw Michigan State as a North Star and began steering their players to play for Daugherty.

Duffy was promoted to head coach for the 1954 season. Duffy’s Spartans won the January 1, 1956 Rose Bowl, and Time Magazine wrote a cover story on Daugherty that appeared after the Spartans opened the 1956 regular season with a 21-7 win at Stanford.

Clifton Roaf, of segregated Pine Bluff, Arkansas, was the first player to board Daugherty’s Underground Railroad, in 1959. His high school coach and principal reached out to Duffy.

There were 44 passengers in all, from 1959 to 1972, including College Football Hall of Famers George Webster (Anderson, S.C.), Bubba Smith (Beaumont, Texas) and Gene Washington, La Porte, Texas).

I know Pete Newell Sr. loved his time at Michigan State from an interview for a story I wrote in Spartanmag, in 2004 (Note to Spartanmag publisher Jim Comparoni: Can you dig that up that story from your print archives?)

Newell and his MSU players had a tradition of meeting for reunions at Michigan State’s campus. But with Newell aging — he died in 2008 at age 93 — the players came to his home near in Rancho Santa Fe, near San Diego.

Pete, knowing my Michigan State background, invited me to attend. I wrote about Pete’s time and his affection for Michigan State.

I also remember his players, well into their 70s by then, telling me how much they enjoyed the reunion when MSU coach Tom Izzo invited the players to a practice. Izzo made a point to his current players to walk around and introduce themselves to the old Spartans.

One year Steve Smith, by then an NBA veteran, also was at a practice. One old Spartan chuckled at the irony of the NBA All-Star introducing to himself to an otherwise anonymous alumnus: “Steve Smith came up to me, stuck out his hand, and said, “Hi, I’m Steve Smith.”

Everybody knew that, of course, but it says so much about Smith and the Michigan State basketball program under Izzo and Heathcote — not to mention all the way back to Pete Newell. 

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Click here to purchase The Right Thing To Do

THE RIGHT THING TO DO

The True Pioneers of College Football Integration in the 1960s

Foreword by Ruffin McNeill

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Click here to purchase Raye of Light.

RAYE OF LIGHT

Jimmy Raye, Duffy Daugherty, the 1ntegration of College Football and the 1965-66 Michigan State Spartans

Foreword by Tony Dungy

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Click here to purchase my children’s book, Bubba’s Dad, Duffy and College Football’s Underground Railroad

The book for now is only a Kindle version on Amazon. Print and audio platforms available soon.

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My next children’s book coming soon: How Duffy Put Hawaii on the Football Map