Pro football’s first black quarterback Bernie Custis dies at age 88
All Bernie Custis wanted was the chance to be a pro quarterback, but to Damon Allen he will always be a football pioneer.
Custis, pro football’s first black quarterback who blazed the trail for future CFL stars like Allen, Warren Moon and Chuck Ealey, died Thursday. He was 88.
Custis made pro football history Aug. 29, 1951, when he became a starter with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. It came after he was denied the opportunity to play the position with the NFL’s Cleveland Browns.
“During Bernie’s time, they could actually lock the door and keep you from actually participating,” Allen said. “I got the chance to walk through a hallway (because) they couldn’t lock the door, the door was already open because of Bernie.