1939 UCLA Bruins: The Gold Dust Trio

I am not sure fans knew it at the time, but the 1939 UCLA Bruins football backfield may be one of the most talented and significant groups ever assembled. They may also be one of the bravest groups as they helped set the standard for breaking the color barrier in football both at the Collegiate and later the Professional levels.

The back field of this 1939 Bruins back field were made up with three of the four being men of color, and to have this many black men on one squad was quite unique for the time period. In fact the Bruins had four African-Americans on the team including a reserve player while the rest of the country combined outside of the South had possibly only a dozen or two black players. To make them even more significant to the annals of football history is that their talent of being great football players was off the charts. They are remembered as the "Gold Dust Trio." Each of the three men that started in the 1939 backfield for the Bruins would star in the collegiate limelight at UCLA but they all had gigantic accomplishments after they left the school's gridiron field as well. This is a fact and it is a pretty big jump for each of these men because in 1939 the Bruins had their first undefeated season in school history on the football field at 6-0-4. The three gents behind the offensive line were each men of color in a time where in many places their skin tone was not accepted well. The three teammates though were Jackie Robinson (maybe you have heard of him before), Woody Strode and Kenny Washington. There was also a fourth African American player on the Bruins in 1939, Ray Bartlett who served as a substitute. Before we go into what each of the Gold Dust Trio did after UCLA's 1939 season, let's discuss the 1939 season for the Bruins.

UCLA in 1939, besides not suffering a loss all year, finished in second place in the Pacific Coast Conference. The season came down to the first game against rival USC that had had national impications. The Bruins played the third ranked Trojans to a scoreless tie in front of 103,000 of paid attendance, and ended up ranked #7 in the final AP Poll. Unfortunately for the Bruins the tie breaker of who would represent the West Coast in the 1940 Rose Bowl went to the Trojans, who went on to topple Tennessee in the big game. The Bruins though live on through the lives and accomplishments of their brave back field trio.

Woody Strode was also a California native, Strode’s athletic abilities were sensational. He was a decathlon specialist, nearly beating world records in the shot put and high jump. Strode excelled at football and track and field at Thomas Jefferson High School.  Woody was an exceptional athlete and was given a scholarship to attend UCLA for his football talent. Strode was a physical specimen with a muscular and very athletic build and the skills to accompany his physique. Unfortunately much of his UCLA story is lost to time. After school though he was unable to get an NFL contract, because of racial reasons in the League but he did play semi-pro ball in the Pacific Coast League along with Kenny Washington for the Hollywood Bears. According to an LA Times story from 1995, Strode was playing football for the Hollywood Bears when World War II broke out and he followed his coach into the Army Air Corps, where he resumed playing the sport. After seeing service in the Pacific, Strode returned to Los Angeles, where he and Washington later played for the Rams in the team’s first season in the city. He later played in the CFL and had a short stint with the Brooklyn Dodgers football team of the AAFC.

29 Nov 1948, Mon The Ottawa Journal (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada) Newspapers.com

After his playing days were over Strode became a professional wrestler before he began to land small muscleman acting parts and such roles as the lion in “Androcles and the Lion” and a gladiator in “Demetrius and the Gladiators.” Yes his days as a Hollywood actor were hust beginning. In 1960, he landed the role of a soldier in the film “Sergeant Rutledge,” which was one of his best-known performances. Woody Strode would act alongside the top actors of the time including several films with John Wayne, including “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.” He also appeared in “The Ten Commandments,” “Pork Chop Hill” and “The Professionals.” He even had a part in the movie “Spartacus,” where Woody engaged in one of the most famous movie fights ever, facing off with Kirk Douglas.

Kenny was the tailback of this trio of UCLA stalwarts. Kenny Washington was from the Los Angeles area and went to UCLA on scholarship. As a youngster in LA, he enjoyed sports especially baseball, but despite baseball being his first love, Washington was a very gifted and exceptional football player. He helped lead his Lincoln High School team to a city championship

As a collegian Kenny rushed for 9,975 yards which was a Bruin record for over 56 years! He was also UCLA's very first ever consensus All-American in 1939. According to a story on the Brittanica website: "Because of his race, Washington’s awards failed to match his accomplishments, however, as he made the second team rather than the first in the major All-America selections, and he was not named to the postseason East-West Shrine Game at all. Each of these slights provoked outrage in the national black press and in the mainstream press on the West Coast, where Washington was both greatly admired and immensely popular." Mr. Washington was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame in 1956. According to the Newsroom at UCLA Kenny Washington, who was a senior, was named as the nation’s top collegiate player. He led UCLA to its first undefeated season and played in the College All-Stars Game against the Green Bay Packers.

But while almost all of his All-Star teammates signed with the NFL, Washington was not picked, even though Chicago Bears coach George Halas tried to convince NFL coaches to lift the ban on black players for the Bruin star. Without much hope of an NFL contract Kenny joined the Los Angeles Police Department and played some semi-pro ball on the side. Later on though, Kenny got his big break when the Rams franchise moved from Cleveland to the West Coast. Washington has the destinction of being the first African American player to sign a contract in the NFL in the common era (after World War II) with the L.A. Rams though after playing in the Pacific Coast League with the Hollywood Bears until then. He along with Marion Motley, Bill Willis and others helped break the color barrier in the NFL.

11 Aug 1946, Sun The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California) Newspapers.com

Many people do not know what a great gridiron player Jackie was, as his accomplishments in baseball far overshadow those of his collegiate football career, and rightfully so. However we are here to preserve football history and Mr. Jackie Robinson's part in it. Robinson initially went to Pasadena Junior College before being offered a scholarship to attend UCLA. When Robinson joined the Bruins, he along with Strode and Washington formed a game-changing and historic trio, the Gold Dust Trio.

Jackie Robinson of course broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers. He is remembered each year when all players of the MLB salute his accomplishments by each wearing his number 42 jersey during games on the diamond.

When Jackie transferred to UCLA in 1939, Washington and Strode were already in their seniors seasons. The tandem had already established themselves as mainstay, talented backs in the Bruins offensive arsenal. Head coach at the time, Edwin C. Horrell, ran the Wing T offense and was licking his chops for the upcoming season. The formation isn’t popular nowadays, but it was a favorite amongst coaches of this pre-World War II era. The formation has a tailback, fullback, and wing-back, using their speed and pre-snap motion to gain advantages over their opponents. This group had quickness and speed to spare!

Robinson along with Washington combined for 1325 yards of offense according to the record books. Unfortunately we do not have much information we could uncover on Woody Strode's 1939 stat line contributions, but we can tell you that they were indeed significant.

All three men suffered mistreatment on the field and off of it because of the color of their skin, both by opponents and teammates alike. But they overcame, with bravery, dignity and great play on the football field, opening the doors for countless thousands of players that came after them. That is why we remember this talented Bruin trio and their part in the history of football.