Jay C. Upchurch
4/19/2009, 10:08 AM
Sylvester Richard Norwood, the last surviving member of the “First Four,” died on Thursday, April 9, 2009, at his home in Panorama City, Calif. He was 72.
Norwood, who was born in Kingfisher, Okla., on July 22, 1936, had battled diabetes over the last few years and complications from that disease contributed to his passing.
It was in the fall of 1955 that Norwood and three other young men -- George Farmer, Frank Wilson Jr. and Charles Parker -- made history by becoming the first African-Americans to officially go out for football at the University of Oklahoma. Norwood, Farmer and Parker hailed from tiny Dunjee High School, located near Choctaw, Okla. Wilson was a graduate of Oklahoma City Douglass.
The four black players were subjected to racial injustices and none of them ended up making OU’s freshman squad that season. But their collective resolve helped break down the color barrier that existed at the time, paving the way for Prentice Gautt to become the first African-American to make the team the following year.
Norwood left OU for California that December to assist his parents, who were in failing health. Over time, he decided to stay on the West Coast and he eventually returned to school and earned his degree from Southern Cal.
After spending two years in the U.S. Army at Ft. Carson, Colo., he returned to California and worked for a number of years in the aerospace industry. He retired in 2000 after spending several years as the manager of a chemical engineering plant. He lived with his family in Panorama City for the last 22 years. Norwood is survived by his wife and three children.
Despite his harsh experience as a player at OU, Norwood remained a Sooner football fan his entire life.
Norwood, who was born in Kingfisher, Okla., on July 22, 1936, had battled diabetes over the last few years and complications from that disease contributed to his passing.
It was in the fall of 1955 that Norwood and three other young men -- George Farmer, Frank Wilson Jr. and Charles Parker -- made history by becoming the first African-Americans to officially go out for football at the University of Oklahoma. Norwood, Farmer and Parker hailed from tiny Dunjee High School, located near Choctaw, Okla. Wilson was a graduate of Oklahoma City Douglass.
The four black players were subjected to racial injustices and none of them ended up making OU’s freshman squad that season. But their collective resolve helped break down the color barrier that existed at the time, paving the way for Prentice Gautt to become the first African-American to make the team the following year.
Norwood left OU for California that December to assist his parents, who were in failing health. Over time, he decided to stay on the West Coast and he eventually returned to school and earned his degree from Southern Cal.
After spending two years in the U.S. Army at Ft. Carson, Colo., he returned to California and worked for a number of years in the aerospace industry. He retired in 2000 after spending several years as the manager of a chemical engineering plant. He lived with his family in Panorama City for the last 22 years. Norwood is survived by his wife and three children.
Despite his harsh experience as a player at OU, Norwood remained a Sooner football fan his entire life.