Gene Upshaw: South Texas Tough

If you have ever been to the flatlands of South Texas, you know it’s a rugged and unforgiving place.  There’s not much in the way of animal or plant life that can survive there.   The sun bakes the ground to over 115 degrees, the fire ants will eat you alive if the rattlesnakes don’t get you first, and long-tusked wild boars called Javalinas can rip you apart if you catch one on a bad day. 

This is the same environment that brings us cacti, mesquite trees, king ranch cowboys, Santa Gertrudis cattle, and killer spiders.  But the toughest product it brought us was Eugene Upshaw.

In 1963 a burley young man took a 10-minute ride from Robstown, Texas (population 10,000) to a small University with a blossoming football program and a coach that operated much differently from his peers.  When he left Kingsville a year later, that young man did so as a first-round pick to the Raiders in 1967.  He also left as one of the most respected men and football players to ever step foot in Javalina stadium.  Keep in mind it was the mid-sixties in “South Texas.”  Not an easy place for a young, African-American teenager to speak his mind.  However, Eugene Upshaw, it was said, not only spoke his mind but did so in a way that won over both blacks and whites as well as coaches and fans.  He also was an offensive lineman, which is not the typical position from which a team leader comes.  But like some of the tall, rugged Texas palms that rose up around the A&I campus, Gene also rose up against incredible odds to fight, lead, win, and build the foundation for thousands of NFL players.  As a result of his work, players are treated fairly and stand as partners with the owners.

I didn’t know Gene that well, but every time I saw or called him he always made time for me and was a willing conversationalist ready to discuss any topic.  He never grew weary of talking about player issues and always went out of his way to spend a little bit more one-on-one time with Texas A&I (currently Texas A&M-Kingsville) players at team meetings.

There are numerous agents such as myself who didn’t always agree with Gene’s methods and goals.  However, I don’t know of anyone who can argue with the purity of his intentions.  For it was his “intentions,” combined with that thick-skinned, unwavering determination, that gave the leagues’ players the leverage and wealth they have today.

On your way to Kingsville (or most likely South Padre island) headed south on route 77, you will pass through Robstown.  There you will see a hand-painted sign that says “home of Gene Upshaw.”  There may be a convenience store or two, some mesquite trees, and maybe a BBQ place nearby.  You would hardly think it was the place that shaped and incubated the man who stood up to a group of wealthy, sophisticated owners and the powerful juggernaut that is the NFL.  However, for life to survive in South Texas, it must grow tough, strong, and determined.  That was Gene Upshaw!

On behalf of myself, Earl Dotson, John Randle, Mike Dyal, Jorge Diaz, Karl “the Truth” Williams, Roberto Garza, Floyd Young, Darrell Green, James Jefferson, Jermane Mayberry, Al Harris and the 98 Javalinas who signed NFL contracts; we thank you Gene for your example, leadership, and commitment.   Rest in peace, my friend.