Elmira Small Fry is proud of its heritage. It is our goal to promote the positive qualities of integrity, leadership, courage, and humility, which were exemplified by Ernie Davis during his life. Each year hundreds of local boys and girls participate in football, basketball and cheerleading with Elmira Small Fry.

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Ernie Davis moved to Elmira, New York at the age of 12. He went on to become Elmira's favorite son both as an outstanding athlete and as a respected and well-loved citizen.

Ernie was born on December 14, 1939 in New Salem, Pennsylvania. He soon moved to Uniontown, PA where he lived with his grandparents until relocating to Elmira to permanently live with his mother and step-father.

Ernie's talent in sports bloomed early. In Uniontown, where sports were everything, Ernie excelled at every sport he played.

He played for the Superior Buick team in Elmira's Small Fry Football League and was chosen as a Small Fry All-star in 1952 and 1953. He played basketball at the Neighborhood House and was a grade school all-star.

Ernie's prowess in sports further developed in high school at Elmira Free Academy. They chose Ernie first team All-Southern Tier Conference in all three varsity seasons - football, basketball, and baseball. He was selected as Elmira Player of the Year and high school All-American in his junior and senior years. Ernie also excelled in the classroom.

Ernie's athletic ability was closely watched by colleges coast to coast. Scholarship offers came from over 50 schools, including Notre Dame, Air Force, and UCLA.

It is important today to remember this accomplishment in relation to the times. Recruiting in 1958 was not as sophisticated as it is today. Plus, many colleges, particularly those in the South, did not offer scholarships to black players.

Fortunately for Syracuse University, Ernie chose to stay close to home. Syracuse University enjoyed its greatest football success while Ernie played for them. The team's record was 24-5 plus two bowl victories.

Ernie's accomplishments are notable during his college career.

He became eligible for the varsity squad in his sophomore year. The season ended with Syracuse earning its first national championship and Ernie led Syracuse to its first bowl victory, for which he was voted the game's most valuable player.

It was Ernie's performance against the University of Pittsburgh that year which inspired the nickname "The Elmira Express." The phrase was coined by Elmira Star-Gazette sports writer Al Mallette.

During his junior year, Ernie set a record of 7.8 yards per carry average and was the third leading rusher in the nation with 877 yards. He rushed for over 100 yards in 6 of 9 games and was named All-American.

In addition to his success on the football field, Ernie excelled on Syracuse's basketball court. In the October 16, 1961 issue of Sports Illustrated in a feature article on Terry Baker of Oregon State, Ernie was listed with six others as noteworthy all-around athletes.
Ernie's senior football season included another notable performance and additional awards. He was named Sports Illustrated's 'Back of the Week,' four times weekly All-East, a consensus All-American, and the Heisman Trophy winner. He led Syracuse in rushing for the third consecutive year, gaining over 100 yards three times and over 90 yards on three other occasions. Plus he led the team in scoring with 15 touchdowns.

He was quoted by Sports Illustrated as "unquestionably the top college runner in the nation..."

Winning the Heisman Trophy is a significant accomplishment regardless of the year or player. However, in 1961, Ernie Davis' receipt of the esteemed award was historical and unprecedented. He was the first black athlete to win the Heisman Trophy.

While in New York City to receive the coveted trophy, Ernie learned that President Kennedy had requested to meet with him. They met at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Ernie described the meeting, "We're standing in the anteroom talking when the doors open and here comes the president. He walked up and introduced himself, 'Hi, I'm Jack Kennedy.' We chatted and the president remarked what an honor it was to win the Heisman Trophy. A picture was taken and we left."

Ernie was the number one pick for the 1962 National Football League draft following his senior year. He signed with the Cleveland Browns to a three-year no-cut, no-trade $65,000 contract with a $15,000 signing bonus - setting a new record for a rookie. This was less money than the AFL Buffalo Bills had offered him. However, it was reported that Ernie picked the Browns because they were part of the more established NFL, and because of Coach Modell and player Jim Brown.

To celebrate Ernie's success and to honor him, Ernie's hometown held "Elmira Salutes Ernie Davis Day" on Saturday, February 3, 1962. Special guests included: NY Governor Nelson Rockefeller, Jim Brown, Art Modell, and Ben Schwartzwalder. The community gave him a brand new 1962 Thunderbird convertible.

And President John F. Kennedy sent the following telegram:
"Seldom has an athlete been more deserving of such a tribute. Your high standards of performance on the field and off the field, reflect the finest qualities of competition, sportsmanship and citizenship. The nation has bestowed upon you its highest awards for your athletic achievements. It's a privilege for me to address you tonight as an outstanding American, and as a worthy example of our youth. I salute you."

Davis rushed for 2,386 yards and scored 220 points for the Orangemen.

Ernie was diagnosed with acute monocytic leukemia on Monday, July 30, 1962. He died on Saturday, May 18, 1963 and was mourned by the nation.

Though Ernie never played a game for the Cleveland Browns, they retired his number 45, worn only in practice.

Both houses of US Congress eulogized Ernie.

In Elmira, more than 10,000 citizens passed the Neighborhood House on May 21 where Ernie lay instate. All flags in the city were flown at half-mast. He was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery.

Ernie's high school coach Marty Harrigan summed up what many felt for Ernie Davis when he said, "Everyone knew Ernie's athletic greatness, but few realized what a great human he was. His concern for his fellow man, and his affection for children, was sincere."
Heisman Trophy Winner: 1961
Star-Gazette: Special Ernie Davis Section
Syracuse Athletics: Ernie Davis
Davis won Heisman, Respect

Elmira Free Academy was renamed Ernie Davis Middle School in 1964 in honor of Ernie Davis. The Ernie Davis Statue is located in front of Ernie Davis Middle School on the corner of Lake Street and Fifth Street.

Contents on this web page are used from Ernie Davis, The Elmira Express: the Story of a Heisman Trophy Winner, Bartleby Press, Silver Spring, Maryland, 1999. To read more about Ernie Davis, check this book out at your local library.

Davis won Heisman, respect
By Bob Carter
Special to ESPN.com

"The way he carried himself, the way he did not drown in his own tears, the way that he did not hang on his sickness, the way that he functioned as a human being under all of those conditions was tremendous courage," says Jim Brown about Ernie Davis. The honors came early and often, from the time he started with organized sports. Ernie Davis succeeded at every venue, a three-sport standout in high school, a two-time All-American halfback at Syracuse.

Davis rushed for 2,386 yards and scored 220 points for the Orangemen. He led Elmira (N.Y.) Free Academy to a 52-game winning streak in basketball and as a Syracuse sophomore helped the Orangemen gain their only national football championship. As a senior in 1961, he became the first African-American to receive the Heisman Trophy and was the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft. And then, stunningly, he was gone. Struck down by leukemia, Davis never realized his dream of playing in the NFL. In March 1963, while in remission, Davis wrote an article for The Saturday Evening Post in which he said, "Some people say I am unlucky. I don't believe it. And I don't want to sound as if I am particularly brave or unusual. Sometimes I still get down, and sometimes I feel sorry for myself. Nobody is just one thing all the time.
"But when I look back I can't call myself unlucky. My 23rd birthday was December 14. In these years I have had more than most people get in a lifetime."

Davis was a two-time All-American at Syracuse.

Two months later, Davis died.
Davis was a coach's dream: modest, hard working, team-oriented, a sportsman who never put down opponents or teammates. "An excellent practice player. He lapped everyone," said John Mackey, a Syracuse teammate who later starred in the NFL. Davis never took himself that seriously. He was quiet, a stutterer as a child who improved his speech as demands on his public speaking increased. He remained appreciative of those who helped him on the road to fame. Friends noticed. Ben Schwartzwalder, his football coach at Syracuse, said, "I never met another human being as good as Ernie." Davis was born on Dec. 14, 1939, in New Salem, Pa. His parents separated shortly after his birth, and his father was soon killed in an accident. He grew up in poverty in Uniontown, a coal-mining town 50 miles south of Pittsburgh, where he was raised by caring grandparents.

At 12, Davis moved to live with his mother and stepfather in Elmira. A high school All-American in football and basketball, he won 11 letters at Elmira Free Academy. Of the three sports he played, he thought he was weakest in baseball, though a scout once predicted that with some refinements in his swing, Davis could become a major leaguer. The growing media attention never changed him. "Ernie was the same kid at the end he was at the start," said Jim Flynn, his high school basketball coach. More than 30 colleges, including UCLA and Notre Dame, recruited Davis for football, but Syracuse, just 90 miles away, held an advantage. Syracuse also had a famous player in its corner, Jim Brown, the first in a line of star running backs with the Orangemen.

Davis was a two-time All-American at Syracuse. "I wanted to play in the big time," Davis said after leaving Syracuse, "and a lot of people, including Jim Brown, persuaded me that I'd have better opportunities there." Davis didn't disappoint in Syracuse. The only black player on the freshman team, he led the squad to its first unbeaten season, then became the varsity's top rusher as a sophomore in 1959. With colleges still playing one-platoon football (Davis played defensive back as well as halfback), Syracuse assembled a dominant team. The Orange outscored opponents 390-59 in its 10-0 regular season before gaining its first bowl victory. Dubbed the "next Jim Brown," the 6-foot-1, 205-pound Davis wore Brown's No. 44. He ran for 686 yards in the regular season, averaging seven yards a carry, and scored 10 touchdowns (eight rushing). Against West Virginia, he ran for 141 yards on nine carries, setting a school record for per-carry average, 15.7, and scoring twice. In Syracuse's 23-14 victory over Texas in the Cotton Bowl that clinched the national title, Davis, despite playing with a hamstring pull, scored two touchdowns, one on a bowl-record 87-yard reception, and was selected the game's Most Valuable Player. Just before halftime there was a bench-clearing brawl with racial overtones. Syracuse linemen contended that a Texas lineman delivered a racial slur to John Brown, a black Syracuse player, igniting the fight. Davis was to have received his MVP award at the awards banquet that night. But when bowl officials said that only white players were invited to the dinner and that Davis would have to leave after picking up his trophy, the Syracuse team refused to attend the affair. Before his junior year, Davis was chosen a preseason All-American by Playboy magazine, whose sports editor Anson Mount later called him the "greatest running back who ever lived up to that time." The 1960 season began with an 80-yard Davis touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage against Boston University. "Those blockers wiped everyone out," Davis said. "A little kid could have run that one." Syracuse won its first five games, then was upset by Pittsburgh 10-0, ending its 22-game regular-season winning streak. The Orange fell to Army the next week and finished the season 7-2 and without a bowl bid. Davis was the nation's third-leading rusher, running for 877 yards and a school-record 7.8 yards per carry as he was voted an All-American.

Davis met President John Kennedy while in New York to accept the Heisman Trophy.

The Orangemen went a disappointing 7-3 in the 1961 regular season, but Davis ran for 823 yards as he averaged "only" 5.5 yards a carry and scored 94 points. He completed his career by rushing for 140 yards and scoring a touchdown in Syracuse's 15-14 victory over Miami (Fla.) in the Liberty Bowl. His career 2,386 rushing yards and 220 points broke Brown's school records. "He's the kind of runner you hate to coach against," Penn State coach Joe Paterno said. "You can't instruct a boy to tackle a man if he can't catch him." An All-American again, Davis beat out Ohio State's Bob Ferguson and Texas' Jimmy Saxton for college football's most prestigious award. "Winning the Heisman Trophy is something you just dream about," Davis said. "You never think it could happen to you."

Davis met President John Kennedy while in New York to accept the Heisman Trophy. When he was in New York to receive the Heisman, Davis met President John Kennedy, a short visit that thrilled him. "Imagine," Davis said, "a president wanting to shake hands with me." The Washington Redskins made Davis the first pick in the NFL draft on Dec. 4, 1961, but soon traded him to the Cleveland Browns, who signed him to the largest contract up to that time for a rookie -- three years for $65,000 plus a $15,000 bonus. The next July, while training with the College All-Stars for their game against the NFL champion Green Bay Packers, Davis awoke one morning with swelling in his neck. A trainer sent him to the hospital, and doctors soon discovered the leukemia. They told Davis he had a blood disorder, but didn't tell him it was leukemia until October, after he had been in and out of the hospital. "Either you fight or you give up," Davis said in recalling how he felt when told the news. "For a time I was so despondent I would just lie there, not even wanting to move. One day I got hold of myself. I decided I would face up to whatever I had and try to beat it." At that point, the disease was in remission, his blood count was normal and Davis kept planning for pro football. He practiced with the Browns, though often by himself on the sidelines, and said he felt strong. However, coach Paul Brown, heeding the advice of medical people who warned him of the risks, did not play Davis. Sitting out frustrated Davis, who said he wasn't in pain. The next spring, Davis noticed more swelling and entered the hospital again. Two days later, on May 18, he died in his sleep.

His tombstone reads: Ernie Davis / 1961 Heisman Trophy / 1939-1963.