The University of Iowa will be naming the field at Kinnick Stadium for Duke Slater, the All-American tackle from the early 1900s that broke barriers for African Americans before becoming a judge in Chicago. The UI Board of Regents approved naming the facility Duke Slater Field at Kinnick Stadium during a Wednesday meeting in Cedar Falls.
Slater played for the Hawkeyes from 1918 to 1921, before moving on to become the first Black lineman in the National Football League, playing in Rock Island, Milwaukee, and Chicago over 10 seasons. His work as a judge in Chicago in his post-playing years made him one of the first Black judges in the Windy City.
A bronze sculpture outside Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City was built in 2019 commemorating the 1921 unbeaten Hawkeyes team. Slater died in 1966, 15 years after election to the College Football Hall of Fame. He will be inducted next month into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Photo credit – Wikimedia Commons / Iowa City, IA
