This is the third of a four-part series highlighting UH’s first black athlete.
Warren McVea may have been blessed with an array of talents and physical attributes, but great size wasn’t one of them.
When McVea arrived at UH in August 1964 as the school’s first black football player, he stood about 5 feet 9 inches and weighed about 180 pounds. As a running back, he probably didn’t look imposing.
But what McVea lacked in size, he made up for with speed, agility and the ability to embarrass even the best defenders.
"He was quick as a cat," said Bill Yeoman, who coached the Cougars from 1962-86. "He could run real fast and use his quickness. He could change directions instantaneously."
It was McVea’s speed that made him an asset to the Cougars’ developing program. Of course, UH would have to wait a year before it could show off that speed against the likes of Mississippi State, Texas A’M and Mississippi.
At the time, the NCAA prohibited freshmen from playing with the varsity, but allowed them to play on the freshman team. McVea said he played in only two games with the freshmen team in 1964. He was promoted to the varsity next season and became part of what some consider the best backfield in school history.
The Cougars’ backfield in 1965 consisted of McVea, junior quarterback Bo Burris and junior running back Dick Post.
"We probably had the best backfield in the United States when we had Dick Post, Warren McVea and Bo Burris," Yeoman said. "I’m here to tell you that nobody had any better people than that. Nobody."
McVea didn’t receive a ton of carries as a sophomore, serving mostly as the team’s kickoff returner.
His highlight of the season came when he caught six passes for 201 yards and two touchdowns in a 17-3 win over Mississippi. He also came up big with a 92-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in a 16-16 tie at Florida State.
But McVea also had to deal with the hostile environments he faced while playing at Texas A’M, Tennessee, Miami and Florida State.
Those environments paled somewhat to the one he faced when the Cougars played Mississippi in Memphis, Tenn. in 1966.
"I’m telling you, they called me everything under the sun," McVea said. "But you know what? I was totally unafraid. I don’t know why."
There was also the racism McVea experienced upon returning to Houston.
"When I was in college, and me and all the white guys would go get something to eat, the police used to stop the car," McVea said. "They would pull the white guys out and (before) they found out who I was, they would ask, ‘What the hell you doing with this (Negro)?’ It was tough for a minute."
But the hostile environments didn’t prevent McVea from keeping his composure, Yeoman said.
"He had a great feel for the way things were, and that’s the kind (of person) you had to have," Yeoman said.
McVea had a more impressive campaign as a junior, rushing for 648 yards on 74 carries, averaging 8.8 yards per game. McVea’s season was highlighted by three 100-plus yard games, including a 148-yard, three rushing-touchdown performance in a 56-18 win over Kentucky. He tacked on three more 100-plus yard rushing outings in 1967, his final season.
McVea was named an honorable mention All-American by United Press International in 1966 and was as a second-team All America pick by UPI in 1967.
He played a key role in the Cougars’ surge to prominence. UH finished 8-2 and 7-3 in his final two seasons, respectively, and ranked 16th in the final 1967 Associated Press poll.
McVea was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the fourth round of the 1968 NFL draft.
His accomplishments at UH, both on and off the field, were not easily forgotten.
"Warren’s a good kid, and he made a great accomplishment to the school, football and the people here in the South," Yeoman said. "He gave them chances they never had."
