Oze E. "Ozzie" Simmons (June 6, 1914 – September 26, 2001) was an American college football player for the University of Iowa.
The Simmons brothers found Iowa football coach Ossie Solem in his office.
"[2] Ozzie had been poorly educated in their segregated school in Texas, so he spent his freshman year catching up on academics.
In his first game, a 34-0 win over South Dakota, Simmons had a 22-yard scoring run as well as punt returns for 61 and 32 yards.
Ralph Cannon of the Chicago Daily News wrote, "This slithery, rubbery, oozy flyer...can make his legs talk more languages than even Red Grange's could when he was a sophomore...Most of it seems to come naturally to Simmons, as such things must come to the genius of any line.
But Iowa lost every remaining game in 1934, despite the play of Simmons, who returned an interception 80 yards for a touchdown in a loss to Ohio State.
[5] Ozzie's final game was against nationally ranked Temple and their Hall of Fame coach, Pop Warner.
Ozzie Simmons graduated with 1,544 career rushing yards, the third most in Iowa history at the time.
"[6] Ronald Reagan, then a radio sportscaster in Des Moines and later the 40th President of the United States, said, "The problems were when you played another team that did not have a black.
Reagan said, "I saw (Iowa players) Dick Crayne and Ted Osmaloski walk over to the Illinois huddle during a timeout, and after the game I found out...they said, 'Do that to (Simmons) once more, and we're going to run you right out of the end of your stadium.'"
Just 12 years earlier, Iowa State's first black player, Jack Trice, was killed by injuries sustained in a game against the Gophers.
While talking to a reporter, Iowa's governor stated, "If the officials stand for any rough tactics like Minnesota used last year, I'm sure the crowd won't."
Minnesota's coach Bernie Bierman requested extra security for his team, and tensions were high.
Black players were not allowed in the NFL at the time, and Ozzie Simmons played only two years professionally.