Colorado State University Athletics
A True Hero
11/1/2004 12:00:00 AM | General
Change is inevitable; it is unexpected and unavoidable. Oftentimes change is not welcome, but when it is seen through the eyes of a legend, change is a beautiful thing.
Sixty-five years ago, Colorado State University, then Colorado A&M, was introduced to one of its finest legendary student-athletes, John Mosley.
Mosley was a man who had everything it took to be a legend: he was smart, athletic, determined and driven.
However, Mosley was black.
This graduate from Denver?s Manual High School came to Colorado A&M in 1939 as its first black student-athlete.
This was not an easy transition for Mosley, but then again, nothing had ever been easy for him.
He was continually proving himself in academics, athletics, and society because Mosley lived in a time of inequality and discrimination.
Standing out and standing alone was nothing new for Mosley. As one of only nine black students enrolled at Colorado A&M, he and his friends called themselves the ?lonesome boys.?
At this time, African-Americans were not allowed to integrate into fraternities, sororities, dorms, and some public shops at this time.
They were not acknowledged as assets to a school or as heroes in sports.
However, Mosley did not let this deter him from changing the attitude of society one step at a time.
It was at Colorado A&M that Mosley recognized that these obstacles, among many others, were not a wall of defeat but a window to success.
?I knew what I had to do to succeed: be twice as good as anyone else in order to be considered average,? said Mosley.
Race, however, was not the only thing that set Mosley apart from his colleagues.
He was named valedictorian of his senior class at Manual, he was an all-star performer for both wrestling and football in high school, and he was offered a scholarship to attend Colorado A&M because of his high academic standing.
?I was not highly sought after as an athlete,? Mosley explained. ?I came to Colorado A&M because I had earned a Merit Scholarship for academics. I was interested in getting an education.?
Mosley?s story began as a fairy tale when he decided to major in physical education and excelled in his academics.
He went on to become an undefeated wrestler for the Aggies under coach Hans Wagner and won several conference titles.
This is where the fairy tale comes to an abrupt halt.
The Aggies were prohibited from traveling to the national tournament because of one minor snag; black athletes were banned from the competition.
It is no fluke that Mosley is remembered in Colorado as a legend.
While most athletes would give up in frustration and blame their failures on the system, Mosley only used this obstacle as an opportunity to learn something.
?The whole thing about competing in sports is that you have a winner and a loser,? said Mosley. ?I was adept at learning how to handle disappointment when you lose, and how to be gracious when we won.?
Mosley carried this attitude with him as he played football for legendary coach Harry Hughes.
Not only was Hughes a great leader on the field, but he was also an outstanding example of a moral man who fought against a segregated society.
?Had it not been for Harry Hughes, I would not have been accepted by the team,? said Mosley. ?He accepted me and understood me.
Fortunately, Mosley had more than one person looking out for him.
?You had people from all around the country, some who had problems with blacks,? said Mosley. ?But I made some very good friends, including people like Chet Maeda, Hersh McGraw, Dude Dent and Woody Fries. When I would have a problem on the field, I never responded or reacted. But those guys, like Chet, stepped forward.?
Mosley preferred to react to harsh words with extraordinary play on the field.
?I ignored the remarks. I knew that I felt good about myself,? admitted Mosley.
It is said that it is healthy to forgive and forget. Unfortunately, some things are impossible to forget.
One such moment was on a football road trip in Salt Lake City, Utah, when Hughes treated the entire team to a movie. While most of the players had no problem entering the theater, Mosley was refused entry unless he sat in the balcony because he was an African-American.
It was Hughes who was angered by this and told him team that if they could not sit together, they would leave together. It did not take long for Hughes to barge in the theater and clear out his team.
?Get all of the Aggies, and tell them to get the hell out. We?re leaving,? yelled Hughes.
?If you got knocked down, you had to get up and try harder,? explained Mosley. ?At times, it was disappointing and you might wonder if it was worth it. But I wanted to demonstrate that it was necessary for things to open up for all blacks,? explains Mosley.
Even through the strife and struggle of inequality, Mosley remained positive.
?It was a very rewarding experience, going to school and playing for the Aggies. Yet at the same time, it was very challenging,? explained Mosley.
When looking at the life of Mosley, it seems as though he attracts challenges and obstacles.
While the world was handling its own obstacles during World War II, Mosley was fighting his own battle.
He wanted to try to get into the CSU?s advanced ROTC program, but he failed the physical due to an alleged heart murmur.
Just like so many other moments in Mosley?s life, he did not let this stop him from standing up for his beliefs.
He fought back by taking an even more vigorous test and joining the Civilian Pilot Training Program, which was devoted to training civilian pilots who would ferry aircrafts to various war zones. Mosley graduated and received his private flying license.
After a great deal of patience, many phone calls, and more societal barriers, Mosley was sent to Tuskegee and joined the airmen enrolled in the experimental program.?
?It was an experiment designed for failure,? said Mosley. ?Anything you did, like not shining your shoes, not making you bed ? things not related to flying ? and you were washed out of the program.?
Of course, this was Mosley?s time to shine because he blossomed in the face of adversity.
?I completed the program because I had the experience at CSU and in high school, how to face similar challenges,? said Mosley.
Mosley was training in Arizona to fly B-25 bombers. In the midst of this training, he and his group, who were the first to fly single-engine fighters, stayed in tents at training airfields, while the rest of the squadron was in barracks.
?The airmen were always treated different,? said Mosley.
He remembered a time in Ft. Knox, Kent., where he and some fellow airmen were stationed. They shared the base with hundreds of German prisoners of war. Ironically, these prisoners had better facilities and better treatment than the airmen.
World War II ended before Mosley was able to participate in the war itself, however, he remained a reservist and returned to Colorado.
Naturally, Mosley did not leave the military without recognition of his extraordinary behavior. As a pilot, he earned a pair of commendation medals, a bronze star, and an outstanding service award.
Again, Mosley was thirsty for success, and earned his master?s degree at Denver University in social work. It is not surprising that he would strive to continue changing society as an adult in the working world.
He worked as a special assistant to James Farmer and Arthur Fletcher, two African-American men who were high-ranking cabinet officials during President Richard Nixon?s administration.
Mosley helped to form Head Start, a federal program designed to help young children, especially minorities, have an opportunity for education.
?We felt that we had a responsibility to bring about change so that those in charge would accept change. We had to convince them that African-Americans could be in a leadership role,? Mosley explained.
Mosley?s desire to make a difference continues to live on today in the lives of his children and wife.
He and his wife, Edna are parents to a daughter and three sons. One of their sons, Eric, was able to prove that his father made a difference in society.
He attended school at CSU as a walk-on-football player. He joined the Air Force ROTC program, was the Cadet Commander and earned his commission upon graduation.
Eric went on to fly in Operation Desert Storm and returned to the U.S. where he is now a captain for a commercial airline.
It is not difficult to understand why Mosley is such a legend. In the face of defeat, he only saw a challenge and an opportunity for change.
Change was a beautiful thing for Mosley and his family.
Mosley summed up his accomplishments when he said, ?As Martin Luther King once said: We?ve come a long, long way and we have a long, long way to go.?
by Gina Zaccagnini
Media Relations Intern