Charles Follis
Encyclopedia
Charles W. Follis, a.k.a "The Black Cyclone," (February 3, 1879 – April 5, 1910) was the first African-American professional football
player. He played for the Shelby Blues
of the "Ohio League
" from 1902 to 1906. On September 16, 1904, Follis signed a contract with Shelby making him the first African-American contracted to play professional football. He was also the first black catcher
to move from college baseball
onto a black professional baseball team
.
. However his parents moved to Wooster, Ohio
when he was still a young boy. He was one of seven children, which consisted of four sisters and two brothers. All three of the Follis brothers played football for Wooster High School
. Charles younger brother Curtis died at the age of 19 from a football related injury.
In 1899, Charles helped organize the varsity football team for Wooster High School. He served as the team's halfback
and was elected the team's captain by his white schoolmates. He then led Wooster to an undefeated season. The football field/outdoor track facility at the new Wooster High School, was dedicated in 1998 in his honor (Follis Field).
During the 1902 and 1903 seasons, Follis played for Shelby and dominated his opponents on the field. During a 58-0 win over a team from Fremont
, Follis ran for a 60-yard touchdown
. In 1904, he helped led the Blues to a 8-1-1 record. Their only loss was to the Massillon Tigers
, the 1904 Ohio League champions. Then in 1906, the Blues became an entirely open professional team. However Charles missed the early part of the season due to an injury. He did return in the second half of the season. Finally, on Thanksgiving Day
1906, while playing against the Franklin Athletic Club of Cleveland
, he suffered another injury. This time though he ended his career.
of nearby Ohio Wesleyan University
.
In 1902, he left Wooster University and by 1909 he was catching for the Cuban Giants. He became the Giants' star catcher, their leading slugger and their most popular player. Follis was credited with many stolen base
s, double play
s, and even two triple play
s in his career. However he had a better reputation as a power hitter. On May 16, 1906, Buttons Briggs
, a pitcher
formerly of the National League
's Chicago Cubs
, was brought in by Elyria
to pitch against the Wooster Giants. This moved was intended to intimate Wooster, since Briggs won 20 games in 1905. However Follis as the lead-off batter in the first inning, first ball hit a home run
off the former major league star's first pitch. He completed the day with four-for-six against Buttons.
In 1910, Follis died of pneumonia
. He was 31.
. Rickey would later become the general manager
of baseball's Brooklyn Dodgers and Pittsburgh Pirates
. He was often hired to play for Shelby while attending nearby Ohio Wesleyan University
. Rickey also played against Follis on October 17, 1903, when he ran for a 70-yard touchdown against the Ohio Wesleyan football team. It is highly probable that Rickey's first-hand observation of Follis influenced his decision to sign Jackie Robinson
to a Major League Baseball
contract in 1947, breaking baseball's color barrier.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player. He played for the Shelby Blues
Shelby Blues
The Shelby Blues were an American football team based in Shelby, Ohio. The team played in the Ohio League from 1900 to 1919. In 1920, when the Ohio League became the APFA , the Blues did not join but continued to play against APFA teams, only to later suspend operations...
of the "Ohio League
Ohio League
The Ohio League was an informal and loose association of American football clubs active between 1903 and 1919 that competed for the Ohio Independent Championship . As the name implied, its teams were based in Ohio...
" from 1902 to 1906. On September 16, 1904, Follis signed a contract with Shelby making him the first African-American contracted to play professional football. He was also the first black catcher
Catcher
Catcher is a position for a baseball or softball player. When a batter takes his turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. This is a catcher's primary duty, but he is also called upon to master many other skills in order to...
to move from college baseball
College baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. Compared to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a less significant contribution to cultivating professional players, as the minor leagues primarily...
onto a black professional baseball team
Negro league baseball
The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams predominantly made up of African Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relatively successful leagues beginning in...
.
Early life
Charles was born on February 3, 1879 in Cloverdale, VirginiaCloverdale, Virginia
Cloverdale is a census-designated place in Botetourt County, Virginia, United States. The population was 2,986 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Roanoke Metropolitan Statistical Area....
. However his parents moved to Wooster, Ohio
Wooster, Ohio
Wooster is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Wayne County. The municipality is located in northeastern Ohio approximately SSW of Cleveland and SW of Akron. Wooster is noted as the location of The College of Wooster...
when he was still a young boy. He was one of seven children, which consisted of four sisters and two brothers. All three of the Follis brothers played football for Wooster High School
Wooster High School (Ohio)
Wooster High School is a public high school in Wooster, Ohio. It is the only high school in the Wooster City School District. The mascot/nickname of the school is the Generals, named after American Revolutionary War General David Wooster....
. Charles younger brother Curtis died at the age of 19 from a football related injury.
In 1899, Charles helped organize the varsity football team for Wooster High School. He served as the team's halfback
Halfback (American football)
A halfback, sometimes referred to as a tailback, is an offensive position in American football, which lines up in the backfield and generally is responsible for carrying the ball on run plays. Historically, from the 1870s through the 1950s, the halfback position was both an offensive and defensive...
and was elected the team's captain by his white schoolmates. He then led Wooster to an undefeated season. The football field/outdoor track facility at the new Wooster High School, was dedicated in 1998 in his honor (Follis Field).
Pro football career
After graduating high school in 1901, Follis entered Wooster College. However he chose to play football for the amateur Wooster Athletic Association, rather than the college squad. It is during his time with the Wooster Athletic Association that he would earn the nickname, "The Black Cyclone." At the end of the 1901 season, Wooster played the Shelby Blues in a two game series. Follis' performance brought him to the attention of the Shelby team management. Finally Frank C. Schiffer, Shelby manager; decided he wanted Follis to play with his team, not against them. He secured Follis for his team and set him up with a job at a local hardware store. Charles' working hours were arranged so that he could both practice and play football.During the 1902 and 1903 seasons, Follis played for Shelby and dominated his opponents on the field. During a 58-0 win over a team from Fremont
Fremont, Ohio
Fremont Public Schools enroll 4,450 students in public primary and secondary schools. The district administers 9 public schools including seven elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school, Fremont Ross. In addition, the city is home to one private catholic high school, Saint Joseph...
, Follis ran for a 60-yard touchdown
Touchdown
A touchdown is a means of scoring in American and Canadian football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone.-Description:...
. In 1904, he helped led the Blues to a 8-1-1 record. Their only loss was to the Massillon Tigers
Massillon Tigers
The Massillon Tigers were an early professional football team from Massillon, Ohio. Playing in the "Ohio League", the team was a rival to the pre-National Football League version of the Canton Bulldogs. The Tigers won Ohio League championships in 1903, 1904, 1905, and 1906, then merged to become...
, the 1904 Ohio League champions. Then in 1906, the Blues became an entirely open professional team. However Charles missed the early part of the season due to an injury. He did return in the second half of the season. Finally, on Thanksgiving Day
Thanksgiving (United States)
Thanksgiving, or Thanksgiving Day, is a holiday celebrated in the United States on the fourth Thursday in November. It has officially been an annual tradition since 1863, when, during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of thanksgiving to be celebrated on Thursday,...
1906, while playing against the Franklin Athletic Club of Cleveland
Franklin Athletic Club of Cleveland
The Franklin Athletic Club of Cleveland was a short-lived professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio from 1903 until around 1909. Franklin played against in "Ohio League" against the early Canton Bulldogs, Shelby Blues and Massillon Tigers...
, he suffered another injury. This time though he ended his career.
Baseball
Follis was the first black catcher to move from college baseball into the Negro Leagues. During the 1901 and 1902 seasons, while playing for Wooster University, Follis became the talk of the Ohio college circuit. His closest competitor at the position, was Branch RickeyBranch Rickey
Wesley Branch Rickey was an innovative Major League Baseball executive elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1967...
of nearby Ohio Wesleyan University
Ohio Wesleyan University
Ohio Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1842 by Methodist leaders and Central Ohio residents as a nonsectarian institution, and is a member of the Ohio Five — a consortium of Ohio liberal arts colleges...
.
In 1902, he left Wooster University and by 1909 he was catching for the Cuban Giants. He became the Giants' star catcher, their leading slugger and their most popular player. Follis was credited with many stolen base
Stolen base
In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a baserunner successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is delivering the ball to home plate...
s, double play
Double play
In baseball, a double play for a team or a fielder is the act of making two outs during the same continuous playing action. In baseball slang, making a double play is referred to as "turning two"....
s, and even two triple play
Triple Play
A triple play is a baseball play in which three outs are made as a result of continuous action without any intervening errors between outs.Triple play may also refer to:...
s in his career. However he had a better reputation as a power hitter. On May 16, 1906, Buttons Briggs
Buttons Briggs
Herbert Theodore "Buttons" Briggs was an American Major League Baseball pitcher, who played a total of five seasons.-Career:...
, a pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
formerly of the National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
's Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
, was brought in by Elyria
Elyria, Ohio
-Community:Elyria has an extensive, although financially burdened, community food pantry and "Hot Meals" program administered through the Second Harvest Food Bank and several churches Elyria is served by Elyria Memorial Hospital.-Recreation and parks:...
to pitch against the Wooster Giants. This moved was intended to intimate Wooster, since Briggs won 20 games in 1905. However Follis as the lead-off batter in the first inning, first ball hit a home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
off the former major league star's first pitch. He completed the day with four-for-six against Buttons.
In 1910, Follis died of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
. He was 31.
Branch Rickey
One of Follis' Shelby teammates during the 1902 and 1903 seasons was Branch RickeyBranch Rickey
Wesley Branch Rickey was an innovative Major League Baseball executive elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1967...
. Rickey would later become the general manager
General manager
General manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...
of baseball's Brooklyn Dodgers and Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
. He was often hired to play for Shelby while attending nearby Ohio Wesleyan University
Ohio Wesleyan University
Ohio Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1842 by Methodist leaders and Central Ohio residents as a nonsectarian institution, and is a member of the Ohio Five — a consortium of Ohio liberal arts colleges...
. Rickey also played against Follis on October 17, 1903, when he ran for a 70-yard touchdown against the Ohio Wesleyan football team. It is highly probable that Rickey's first-hand observation of Follis influenced his decision to sign Jackie Robinson
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson was the first black Major League Baseball player of the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947...
to a Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
contract in 1947, breaking baseball's color barrier.