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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The life of one of professional football's greatest |
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players of the 1950s drew to a close with the passing of Ollie |
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Matson on February 19, 2011, at the age of 80; and |
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WHEREAS, Ollie Genoa Matson II was born in Trinity on May 1, |
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1930; when he was 14, his family moved to San Francisco, where he |
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graduated from George Washington High School; after initially |
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studying at City College of San Francisco, he enrolled at the |
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University of San Francisco and played on the Dons football team |
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while earning a bachelor's degree in history; and |
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WHEREAS, With his speed and size, Mr. Matson quickly proved |
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himself a player of rare ability who excelled as both a running back |
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and a defensive back; sadly, he often found himself battling racism |
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and segregation as a result of being one of only two African |
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Americans on the integrated University of San Francisco team; in a |
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1949 incident, the University of Tulsa made an unsuccessful attempt |
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to prevent USF's black players from appearing in a game, and when |
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Mr. Matson took the field that day, he was subjected to illegal hits |
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and had each of his three touchdowns nullified by penalties; and |
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WHEREAS, In 1951, his senior season, Mr. Matson led the |
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nation in rushing and touchdowns and was named an all-American; the |
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Dons established a perfect 9-0 record and should have attracted |
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attention from the major bowl games, but the Orange, Sugar, and |
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Gator Bowl committees would not consider inviting an integrated |
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team; when the USF coach asked the team if they wanted to remove |
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from the roster Mr. Matson and Burl Toler, their other African |
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American player, in order to gain an invitation to the Orange Bowl, |
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the players steadfastly refused, and the Dons did not play in a bowl |
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contest; and |
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WHEREAS, A versatile athlete, Mr. Matson competed in the |
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United States Olympic trials in 1948 and earned a place on the U.S. |
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team in 1952; he took part in the Summer Games in Helsinki that |
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year, winning a bronze medal in the 400-meter dash and a silver in |
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the 400-meter relay; and |
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WHEREAS, The Chicago Cardinals chose Mr. Matson with the |
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third pick in the 1952 National Football League draft, and he |
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embarked on a stellar professional career that spanned 15 seasons, |
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with a year off for service in the U.S. Army in 1953; he was |
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co-Rookie of the Year in 1952, was named to the Pro Bowl six times, |
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and was a first-team all-pro selection five times; he ranked second |
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in career all-purpose yards at the time of his retirement and set a |
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record for touchdown runbacks on kicks and punts; such was his |
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reputation that the Los Angeles Rams traded eight players and a |
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draft choice to the Cardinals in 1959 in order to bring him to their |
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team; and |
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WHEREAS, Mr. Matson also played for the Detroit Lions and |
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Philadelphia Eagles before retiring in 1966; he was elected to the |
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Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1972 and the National Football |
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Foundation College Hall of Fame in 1976; after his playing career |
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ended, he taught physical education and coached football at Los |
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Angeles High School; he went on to serve as the running backs coach |
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for San Diego State University and as a scout for the Eagles, and he |
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spent more than a decade as the special events supervisor at the Los |
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Angeles Memorial Coliseum; and |
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WHEREAS, An exceptional competitor who persevered in the face |
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of adversity, Ollie Matson earned a place among the legendary |
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figures of the NFL, and his achievements will be remembered and |
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celebrated long into the future; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of Ollie Matson and |
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extend sincere condolences to the members of his family: to his |
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daughters, Lisa Lewis and Barbara King; to his sons, Ollie and Bruce |
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Matson; to his eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren; to |
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his sister, Ocie Thompson; and to his other relatives, friends, and |
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many fans; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of |
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Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Ollie |
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Matson. |