Columnist Ron Kantowski: ‘White Tiger’ grateful to Grambling

Thursday, Sept. 19, 2002 | 10:14 a.m.

Ron Kantowski's insider notes column appears Tuesday and his Page One column appears Thursday. He can be reached at ron@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4088.

He wasn't Grambling's first "White Tiger," though it's a good bet that Eric Parks has a better haircut than Bruce Jenner did in a TV movie about Jim Gregory, the first white football player at Grambling.

And it's a lock that Parks has a better perspective of what it was like to be a white football player at a historically black college, because he did it for real.

Parks' only regret was that his Grambling career lasted only one semester. He went through spring football with the Tigers in 2001 but when some of his credits from Arkansas (where he had started his college career) weren't accepted at Grambling, Parks was ruled ineligible. If not, he'd probably be kicking for the Tigers in Saturday's Silver Dollar Classic against Tennessee State at Sam Boyd Stadium.

Parks, whose brother, Kirk Baird, is a writer for the Sun's Accent department, said he would gladly give up his job at a Dallas retirement home and return to Grambling if the NCAA would let him.

"In a heartbeat," said Parks, who was so proud to have been a Tiger that he still carries his Grambling ID card.

Parks played high school football in Dallas and was recruited by Grambling coach and former Super Bowl MVP Doug Williams but chose to attend Arkansas instead. When the Hogs' starting kicker was popped for DUI with his backup in the back seat, Parks was asked if he would forsake his red-shirt year to kick against Mississippi State.

He made three extra points against the Bulldogs but ultimately let his grades slip. When he decided to transfer, Williams was the first person he called.

When asked if his Grambling experience was enlightening, Parks said it was -- but not for the reasons you might think. He launched into a discourse about how the Tigers have been able to accomplish so much with so little.

He noted the phenomenal success of legendary Grambling coach Eddie Robinson -- "Mister Eddie Robinson," Parks said with reverence -- and that of his successor and former quarterback Williams.

Owing to its football heritage, Parks said most people probably think of Grambling as they do Notre Dame or Michigan. But when Grambling opened a new athletic training facility, it was considered a luxury, not a prerequisite.

"Those guys (at Grambling) play because they love the game, not because they've got nice equipment and stuff like that," Parks said.

Talking to Parks, one gets the impression that had there not been a mirror in the locker room, he wouldn't have noticed that his was the only white face. Our conversation was 15 minutes old before he even mentioned it, and then only after prodding from his inquisitor.

"I was treated like a god," Parks said. "As long as I could boot that (football), they didn't care (what color I was).

"There are some things we can change, some things we can never change. Those guys didn't get caught up in what our great, great, great grandfathers did. I will never understand that. What I do understand is that that university has come a long, long way."

Though he never kicked in a game, Parks said he will always be grateful to Williams for giving him the chance as well as a history lesson.

"I can see why Coach Williams wanted to go back," he said. "One day, Grambling is going to be a major college power, not just a Division I-AA power."

And that, Parks said, is as simple as black and white.