Vikings Legend and Daughter Fight to Protect the Legacy of Michigan State’s Black Pioneers

Minnesota Vikings legend Gene Washington has done more for the sport of football than you may know. Yes—he helped lead the Vikings to their first Super Bowl appearance during their 1969 season. And before that, he broke racial barriers playing for Michigan State University, under the leadership of head coach Duffy Daugherty.

Washington, number 84, made Big Ten history, helping Michigan State win two national titles (1965 and 1966) before becoming a first-round draft pick for the Minnesota Vikings in 1967.

As one of the Michigan State 1960s trailblazers, Washington joined teammates like Bubba Smith, George Webster, and Clint Jones to form one of the first fully integrated powerhouse football programs in America. During this time, the South was still segregated. Black athletes were barred from playing at most major colleges below the Mason-Dixon line, and the civil rights movement was just beginning to reshape American hearts and minds.

At Michigan State, Washington lettered in football, indoor track, and outdoor track, earned All-American honors, and graduated in four years before achieving a master’s degree in higher education. In 1967, the Minnesota Vikings drafted him in the first round.

“I came from an all-Black school in Texas,” Washington said of his achievements. “I graduated from MSU in four years, played three sports, and then went on to play pro football, and I’ve been giving  back to that university all my life.”

Despite his commitment, Washington has found himself in a battle against his alma mater to protect the accuracy and integrity of the historical record surrounding that transformative era.

Protecting the Legacy of Black Spartans

Michigan State fielded the first fully integrated championship team in major college football. The Spartans’ success forced the rest of the nation — including schools in the Big Ten and the segregated South — to reckon with the truth that Black athletes belonged on the biggest stage. Many historians credit Daugherty’s recruiting network with helping to end segregation in college football entirely.

Washington grew up in segregated Texas and became a decorated All-American wide receiver at MSU. Today, he is calling on the public’s help to address what he and his family describe as serious inaccuracies and misrepresentations in a Michigan State University Press publication, Duffy Daugherty: A Man Ahead of His Time by David Claerbaut.

“I’ve always been proud of Michigan State and what we accomplished there,” Washington said. “But when people pick up that book in a library or online, they don’t know the harm it’s caused. My teammates and I deserve better.”

Correcting the Record

The Washington family's copy of Duffy Daugherty: A Man Ahead of His Time with notebook paper flagging pages with ethical and factual errors and unsubstantiated stories about Duffy Daugherty and claims about teammates. The family provided a list of inaccuracies and concerns to MSU.

The 2018 book—and a 2022 film project called Black Spartans based on it— claim to tell the story of MSU’s groundbreaking integration, but Washington and his family say they distort history and defame real people.

“After going through this experience and thinking about where I came from, back into the '60s — it was a really, really tough time,” Washington said. “So it means a lot to me to make sure that my legacy or anything about me is accurate and correct.”

Washington and his family say the book contains plagiarism, factual inaccuracies and misleading portrayals that undermine the true story of how Daugherty and his players changed the game. Despite their repeated requests for a review, MSU Press continued selling the book until 2023 and still hasn’t issued a formal public notice or correction.

Gene’s daughter, Maya Washington, a Minneapolis-based filmmaker and author, has been leading the charge to protect her father’s legacy. Her PBS documentary Through the Banks of the Red Cedar tells the real story of how her father and his teammates broke barriers at MSU and helped transform college football forever.

In 2023, she was invited to consult on an athletics history exhibit at Michigan State — only to find the disputed book listed as a research source. “It was alarming,” Maya said. “You had someone sincerely trying to learn about my father’s legacy being misled by the very institution that published the book.”

Recently, the Washingtons issued their own Notice of Publication Status and Integrity Concerns, hoping to reach readers, libraries, and historians directly. They’ve asked Michigan State University to issue a similar public statement — a request that’s been met with mostly silence.

“In the four years since we became aware of the book and flagged integrity issues, we’ve been granted only three phone calls with Michigan State University leadership regarding our concerns,” said Washington, in a statement.

“My wife and I’ve contributed proudly to MSU in numerous ways for over 60 years. I am 80 years old and in good health. I wish to ensure that formal public notice occurs within my lifetime, something that my late wife did not live to see when she passed away in 2024.”

Gene’s late wife, Claudith Washington, graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Michigan State University. Photo Credit: The Washington Family

“I’m my mom’s voice,” Maya said. “I had to say goodbye to my mother knowing they did not make this right in her lifetime. My dad wants it made right in his lifetime because that was something my mother didn’t see.”

Counting on Community

The Washington’s invite academics, journalists and community members to share their public notice and help protect a chapter of history that changed not only Michigan State, but college football and the nation. 

Without the courage of Daugherty’s players, young Black men who left the segregated South for a chance to play on equal ground, there would be no modern game as we know it. They opened doors for future generations of Black athletes in the Big Ten, the SEC, and beyond.

“Our efforts to uphold accuracy and integrity in accounts of history related to myself, my family, fellow student-athletes, coaches, staff, and Michigan State University are extremely important to us and the historical record,” wrote Washington.

“We are counting on those of great integrity and sincerity in the academic community and beyond to uphold ethical, professional, and common-sense approaches to intellectual freedom and historical truth.”