Kenny Washington (American football)
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| Position: | Running back | ||||||||
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| Personal information | |||||||||
| Date of birth: | August 31, 1918 | ||||||||
| Place of birth: | Los Angeles, California | ||||||||
| Date of death: | June 24, 1971 (aged 52) | ||||||||
| Place of death: | Los Angeles, California | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 237 lb (108 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Los Angeles (CA) Abraham Lincoln | ||||||||
| College: | UCLA | ||||||||
| Undrafted: | 1946 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| Rushing Yards: | 859 |
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| Rushing Average: | 6.1 |
| Rushing Touchdowns: | 8 |
| Player stats at NFL.com | |
Kenneth S. Washington (August 31, 1918 – June 24, 1971) was a professional football player who was the first African-American to sign a contract with a National Football League team in the modern (post-World War II) era.
Washington was a star running back at Abraham Lincoln High School in Los Angeles.
UCLA, Washington rushed for 1,914 yards in his college career, a school record for 34 years. He was one of four African American players on the 1939 UCLA Bruins football team, the others being Woody Strode, Jackie Robinson and Ray Bartlett. Washington, Strode, and Robinson starred on the 1939 UCLA Bruins football team, in which they made up three of the four backfield players. This was a rarity to have so many African Americans when only a few dozen at all played on college football teams. They played eventual conference and national champion USC to a 0-0 tie with the 1940 Rose Bowl on the line. It was the first UCLA-USC rivalry football game with national implications. UCLA teammates have commented how strong Washington was when confronted with racial slurs and discrimination.
Washington led the nation in total offense and became the first consensus All-American in the history of the school's football program in 1939. However, he was named to second team All-America selection instead of the first and was omitted from the East-West Shrine Game that year. These slights were the source of much outrage among West Coast media outlets which blamed them on racial discrimination.
According to Time magazine's coverage of the 1940 College All-Star Game, Washington was "considered by West Coast fans the most brilliant player in the US last year."
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