University honors first Black collegiate football players with Unity Plaza

[Coach Andy Mac]

The university unveiled Unity Plaza on Saturday, which honors the legacies of Abner Haynes and Leon King, the first black players to integrate major college football at a four-year university in Texas.

The plaza was installed next to the Athletic Center and the Lovelace and McNatt Families Practice Facility.

“This is a good opportunity to reflect upon the history of UNT, which is also the history of the city of Denton, and just celebrate a couple of great role models that came through this university,” Denton Mayor Gerard Hudspeth said.

The unveiling took place prior to the Homecoming football game where multiple people spoke about the accomplishments of Haynes and King.

The plaza itself includes two gateways with both men’s names, under which bust statues and plaques detailing their accomplishments are featured. Between the two gateways is a plaque that describes the meaning of the plaza, along with the names of both the plaza’s designer and the busts’ creator.

This project has actually been in the works for years, said Jared Mosley, the associate vice president and chief operating officer of UNT Athletics.

“When Wren was hired in 2016, we began discussions around the most appropriate way to honor Abner and Leon and ensure this very important part of UNT and football history within the state of Texas could be recognized for years to come,” Mosley said.

Eventually, the current design of the plaza was decided upon, with the designer being Brandon Lacy, the senior project manager and design manager at the university.

Lacy had submitted over 10 Unity Plaza designs before the current one was selected, with many of the designs varying from one another.

Despite the Unity Plaza looking complete, it is only about 98 percent done, Lacy said. There are still little details that need to be added, such as lighting and finalized plaques.

“We’ve had a lot of great moments here — great seasons, tremendous student-athletes and championships,” said Wren Baker, the vice president and director of UNT Athletics. “But the impact that Abner and Leon left her is probably the greatest legacy that anybody’s ever left here. They paved the way for opportunities for so many student-athletes after them here at UNT, but also across the state of Texas.”

Haynes and King both joined the North Texas freshman team in 1956. They and their teammates faced a lot of backlash for the integration, but they showed their unity despite the retaliation. A pivotal moment for the team was their second game of the season that year against Navarro Junior College in Corsicana.

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