Must-Listen Podcast: GMGcast w/Abner Haynes & Leon King

[MeanGreenTexan]

Do yourselves a favor and listen to these legends be interviewed by Zac Babb & Hank Dickenson.   I don't know that I've ever heard an interview with Dr. King before.   If you call yourself a North Texas fan, you need to know these guys' stories.

https://meangreensports.com/podcasts/-gmgcast-abner-haynes-and-dr-leon-king/89?fbclid=IwAR2AXRy3e7IqXtdvEgz7We8mipUDrhN2wPH4etfJpR8pmQZyLTknZHb7XGM

[Cr1028]

Great listen

[PlummMeanGreen]

This podcast is well worth your time to listen to no matter where anyone attended college in the Lone Star State & beyond. 
👏👏 Hank Dickenson & Zac Babb did a superb job with this podcast.   

I had never heard Dr. Leon King talk about his & Abner Haynes’ integration of North Texas story until this podcast. Many of us have heard Abner talk about their 1955 experience on our Denton campus during the sad Jim Crow era in America.

🦅 The dedication of these 2 Texas historic guy’s plaza near Apogee Stadium is Saturday, November 5’th.  Easy to predict that event will be as well attended as Mean Joe Greene’s statue unveiling that many of us who frequent GMG attended. 

 

Edited October 22, 2022 by PlummMeanGreen

[PlummMeanGreen]

JUST ONE MORE THING…

The Jim Crow era story UNT All American Abner Haynes didn’t talk about with the allotted podcast time was when the team took a train from Denton to Houston to play the UH Coogs in the 1950’s.

••• Many of you have heard this story, but this is what I recollect from hearing Father Time (as Ron Shanklin called Abner) several years ago when the 3 of us were at a Fort Worth 7’th St. Mexican eatery, namely Dos Gringos. (Ron Shanklin of the Mean Joe Greene era had some interesting stories of his own that day).

Anyhow, UNT’s team train was parked on the railroad track near the Houston hotel & its management said blacks were not allowed to stay or eat inside their hotel.  Again, it was the era of Jim Crow so that was an unfortunate common experience most all blacks had in the South & Southwest. 
Well, the white players for North Texas spoke with Eagle coaches & said if their 2 black teammates couldn’t join them in the hotel the entire team would spend the night in the train with Leon & Abner.  Love that story & I’ve heard similar stories to that one at other sports locale’s. 

 

Below pic is Robertson Stadium on the UH campus where I’d wager NT teed it up with the Coogs in the late 50’s. It was called Jeppessen Stadium in the 1950’s. The Oilers even played there when late KC Chief’s owner Lamar Hunt helped organize the American Football League in 1960. 

Abner Haynes at Fouts Field, Denton.

GMG!

Edited October 22, 2022 by PlummMeanGreen