WHAT A GAME! Emily Ryan and Kiki Iriafen, my god 😮💨😮💨 I want the rest of the tournament to be like this!! (Not you 🫵 UConn, you can go ahead and win your games comfortably)
Best game of the tournmanet so far by a mile>>>
Just bucket for bucket, again and again like oh my god that was actually insane. That's what March is all about.
I wish they could both advance somehow because both teams gave it their all. But jesus christ the statlines from Emily and Kiki WOW.
If you're unfamiliar with Jack Trice's story, here is a short version:
Trice was originally from Ohio, but in 1922, he followed his high school football coach, Sam Willaman, and some of his teammates to Iowa State College in Ames, Iowa. There, he was one of the very first African American athletes at Iowa State.
On October 5, 1923, Trice wrote the following letter while staying at a racially segregated hotel in Minnesota the night before his second college football game:
“My thoughts just before the first real college game of my life: The honor of my race, family & self is at stake. Everyone is expecting me to do big things. I will! My whole body and soul are to be thrown
recklessly about the field tomorrow. Every time the ball is snapped, I will be trying to do more than my part. On all defensive plays I must break through the opponents’ line and stop the play in their territory. Beware of mass interference. Fight low, with your eyes open and toward the play. Watch out for crossbucks and reverse end runs. Be on your toes every minute if you expect to make good.”
-Jack
The next day, October 6, 1923, Trice and his college teammates played against the University of Minnesota.
Unfortunately, his collarbone was broken on the second play of the game, and he was taken out of the game. However, he would return to the game in the 3rd; only to be trampled by 3 Minnesota players.
He was then sent to a local hospital where he was declared well enough to travel back to Ames with the rest of the team.
Sadly, Trice would die on October 8, 1923, from hemorrhaged lungs and internal injuries sustained during the game.
In honor of Trice, all classes after 3 p.m. on October 9, 1923, were dismissed.
His funeral was held on Iowa State's central campus, and 4,000 students and faculty would be in attendance.
Iowa State would not play Minnesota again until 1989.
In 1973, interest in Trice's story was rejuvenated, and there was a movement to name the new stadium after him. The student body government supported this effort, and the Jack Trice Stadium Committee collected over 3,000 signatures in support. But despite support, in 1984, the stadium was named "Cyclone Stadium," and the field would be named "Jack Trice Field."
Unsatisfied, the student body government raised money to erect a statue of Trice in 1987.
Image via the Ames Public Library
Due to the continuous push from the student body government, students, faculty and staff, alumni, etc. in 1997, the stadium was finally renamed Jack Trice Stadium. It is the only Division I FBS stadium or arena to be named after and African American.
On October 7, 2023, the Iowa State Cyclones wore throwback uniforms to honor Jack Trice. The Cyclones won 27 to 14 over TCU.
For further information, I recommend the book "The Idealist: Jack Trice and the Battle for a Forgotten Football Legacy" by Jonathan Gelber.
It goes into further detail about Trice's childhood, football career, and his life outside of football. Whether you're a football fan or not, this is a story worth knowing.