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R.I.P Bernie Custis

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  • #1

    R.I.P Bernie Custis

    Most do not know the name but he was the first African American to play quarterback at a major US university (Syracuse) and the first to play quarterback professionally, when he started for Hamilton in 1951.

    American professional football would not fully accept an African-American playing quarterback for another 30+ years when Warren Moon joined the NFL from the CFL.And then primarily because his ex-coach in Edmonton (Hugh Campbell) was coaching the team in the NFL that Moon joined (Houston).

    Bernie had a short professional career but went on to be a teacher/principal for 34 years in the Hamilton area and coached university, college and junior football in the area for years.

    Younger generations do not remember that until the late 1970's CFL teams could and often did outbid NFL teams for players. Particularly those who wanted to start a career because CFL teams found them good fulltime jobs and did not practice until after 4:00pm. The CFL was also a good choice for a considerable number of African-American players who came to Canada and enjoyed the relative lack of segregation and racial tension that they had grown up with in America. Many stayed here and became Canadian, often doing very well. John Henry Jackson, George Reed, Elison Kelly, Granny Liggins, Chuck Ealey are just some examples. As one African-American said about playing in Canada, "I might be a big shot in the States when I am playing but after I retire down there I will just be another n#@^&r".

    I know that many of you do not respect Simmonds of the Sun but here is his article on Bernie and it is a good one.
    Bernie Custis, the quiet pioneer, dies at 88
    http://www.torontosun.com/2017/02/23/bernie-custis-the-quiet-pioneer-dies-at-88
    I used to sit with Bernie Custis sometimes, usually before Argos games, and ask him to tell me stories about his remarkable life in football.
    Last edited by Arthur Dailey; Feb 24, 2017, 10:11 AM.
    Tags: None
  • #2
    Re: R.I.P Bernie Custis

    Good article. I saw the name in the thread lead in and wondered why I remembered that name. I grew up in Hamilton and was a rabid Tiger Cats fan and worked at Civic Stadium in the mid sixties selling potato chips while watching the Cats home games.

    Hamilton was pretty ethnically diverse but every black man of an athletic age, we assumed to be a Tiger Cat back in those days. The CFL had a real influence in racial integration, certainly in the East end of Hamilton.

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    • #3
      Re: R.I.P Bernie Custis

      I played for Bernie as a defensive end/offensive tackle on the Burlington Braves from 1965-67 before going on to play for McMaster. He took us to the Canadian Championship in 1967 which we did not win, losing to the Edmonton Huskies.

      I would have run through a brick wall for him, a great coach and even greater man. Bernie is second from the left, next to Tony Gabriel.
      Attached Files
      Last edited by rgk5; Feb 24, 2017, 10:15 AM.
      In the Hamilton Golf + CC Embroidered Ping Hoofer

      Club Champion Callaway AI Smoke 11*, Aldila Ascent 40 A Flex​​
      Srixon F45 4-wood, 17*, KuroKage 606 S
      TXG Custom T. Made SIM Max 21* 7-wood, Accra FX 140 2.0 M2
      TXG Custom Cobra Tech 5-hybrid, KBS TGI 75 R
      TXG Custom PXG 0211 6-Pw, 1* up, Recoil ESX 460 R
      PXG 0211 GW, 50*, UST Recoil Dart R
      TXG Custom Cleveland CBX 54*, Tour Issue DG Spinner 115
      Ping Glide 4.0, 58* TS/6, Nippon 115 S
      Tour Velvet Midsize Grips, Custom TXG Signature Putter Grip
      TXG Custom King Cobra Nova, 25 gram weights, KBS CT Tour Shaft

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      • #4
        Re: R.I.P Bernie Custis

        Small world, my younger brother( Dan Sikora) played for the Burlington Braves in the early 70s, playing the Saskatoon Hilltops for the Canadian Juniors. I think they played two years in a row and lost both.

        The Bernie Custis thread made me think of my misspent youth playing pool in Rogers Light lunch at King and Wentworth. There was a black American Tiger Cat who played in the cash games, "Willie; I think his last name was Bethea (sp). He was a cool stick. Always wore a fedora and a tie.

        He and Lincoln Alexander's son Duncan, who I played ball with at Mahoney Park were my introduction to black folks. I learned a lot from them and how they reacted to the culture of the 1960s that stood me in good stead when I moved on into the military and then the police.

        Good memories of the old days. I went back to Hamilton after 43 years away other than a 1 hr visit to my mother when I was lecturing in Toronto in 1989. The old town has sure changed and not for the better after staying downtown.

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        • #5
          Re: R.I.P Bernie Custis

          Originally posted by sikoram View Post
          Small world, my younger brother( Dan Sikora) played for the Burlington Braves in the early 70s, playing the Saskatoon Hilltops for the Canadian Juniors. I think they played two years in a row and lost both.

          The Bernie Custis thread made me think of my misspent youth playing pool in Rogers Light lunch at King and Wentworth. There was a black American Tiger Cat who played in the cash games, "Willie; I think his last name was Bethea (sp). He was a cool stick. Always wore a fedora and a tie.

          He and Lincoln Alexander's son Duncan, who I played ball with at Mahoney Park were my introduction to black folks. I learned a lot from them and how they reacted to the culture of the 1960s that stood me in good stead when I moved on into the military and then the police.

          Good memories of the old days. I went back to Hamilton after 43 years away other than a 1 hr visit to my mother when I was lecturing in Toronto in 1989. The old town has sure changed and not for the better after staying downtown.
          I've played a lot of golf with Willie at Chedoke over the years. He is now fighting Dementia.
          In the Hamilton Golf + CC Embroidered Ping Hoofer

          Club Champion Callaway AI Smoke 11*, Aldila Ascent 40 A Flex​​
          Srixon F45 4-wood, 17*, KuroKage 606 S
          TXG Custom T. Made SIM Max 21* 7-wood, Accra FX 140 2.0 M2
          TXG Custom Cobra Tech 5-hybrid, KBS TGI 75 R
          TXG Custom PXG 0211 6-Pw, 1* up, Recoil ESX 460 R
          PXG 0211 GW, 50*, UST Recoil Dart R
          TXG Custom Cleveland CBX 54*, Tour Issue DG Spinner 115
          Ping Glide 4.0, 58* TS/6, Nippon 115 S
          Tour Velvet Midsize Grips, Custom TXG Signature Putter Grip
          TXG Custom King Cobra Nova, 25 gram weights, KBS CT Tour Shaft

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          • #6
            Re: R.I.P Bernie Custis

            My father was a referee in the CFL when Bernie played. Had some great stories from the days when the officials and players were friends and would travel via train and drink together.....!
            If St. Andrews is the home of golf, Askernish is it's soul......!

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            • #7
              Re: R.I.P Bernie Custis

              Please tell me your Dad wasn't Paul Dojack, the most hated man (referee) in Tiger Cat history. And if he was, cool!

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              • #8
                Re: R.I.P Bernie Custis

                Originally posted by sikoram View Post
                Please tell me your Dad wasn't Paul Dojack, the most hated man (referee) in Tiger Cat history. And if he was, cool!
                No, but he refereed at the same time as Paul. Two stories to show you how much fun interaction the refs and the players had. #1 Dojack working a game in Regina and calls a holding penalty on Ron Atchison and marches off 10 yards. Ron was incensed and let go on Paul saying, "Dojack, you are the ugliest SOB I've ever seen". Dojack picks up the ball and marches off another 10 yards, puts down the ball and says, "Hey Ron, how do I look from here?" #2 My father is refereeing a game in Edmonton and he had taken my mother along on the trip. Part way through the game he flags Buddy Tinsley for something. Buddy walks up to Dad, nose to nose and starts poking him on the chest and shouting at him. The crowd is loving it but can't hear what Buddy is saying because of the noise. In fact he was winking at my father and saying, "Are you and your wife going to join us for drinks after the game?" My father had hundreds of stories like this and I wish he would have written a book....!
                If St. Andrews is the home of golf, Askernish is it's soul......!

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                • #9
                  Re: R.I.P Bernie Custis

                  Memories. I worked a game in which the Cats slaughtered Regina 67-21 with both Joe Zuger and Frank Cosentino played quarterback. I think they called it the twin system. Sold lots of Sheriffs potato chips that night.

                  I also remember Cookie Gilchrist who played for the Cats then the Buffalo Bills in the old AFL. There was a game between the Buffalo Bills and the Tiger Cats at Civic Stadium. Cookie played for Buffalo that season.It might have been the only time the CFL played the (AFL) NFL. Or at least that I am aware of.

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