Black History Month: Giants legend Emlen Tunnell's story fit for Hollywood
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- It's a story that is begging to be told, the incredible life of New York Giants all-time great Emlen Lewis Tunnell.
"I don't think people really knew his full story, what he did in the war and the fact he hitchhiked up to New York to get that tryout. If anybody deserves to have a movie made about his life, it was Emlen Tunnell," co-owner John Mara said.
In 1948, one year after Jackie Robinson debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Tunnell became the first African-American to play for the football Giants.
Tunnell was a game-changing force on the Giants defense, even earning the nickname "Offense on Defense."
Despite playing in an era where the passing game wasn't the go-to option for offenses, Tunnell still stands second on the all-time interceptions list with 79. He retired as the NFL leader in multiple categories.
His accomplishments earned him the honor of being the first Black player inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was also the first Black coach in Giants history.
But all of it may not have been possible if not for a chance encounter with a friendly truck driver.
"So he decides to hitchhike from his home just outside of Philadelphia to Manhattan. He gets picked up along the way by a truck driver who drives him into Manhattan. He makes his way over to our offices. He asks for a tryout," Mara said. "Emlen tells them that he had just hitchhiked from outside of Philadelphia and that he had no money to get back home, so they discussed it and decided anybody that would go through that kind of trouble deserves a tryout. And the rest, as they say, is history."
Yes, history on the football field was made, but it was Tunnell's personal history that came to light decades later that took this already incredible story to hero status.
"Somebody goes overboard in frigid waters on his ship. He jumps in. He's not a great swimmer and helps save the person's life. And the same thing when his ship was torpedoed and the ship was on fire, a gentleman by the name of Fred Shavers was literally burning. (Tunnell) ran into the flames, picked him up, put out the flames and saved his life," said Phil Damiani, curator of the Sports Legends of Delaware County Museum.
Tunnell served our country in World War II as a member of the Coast Guard, but he was such a modest man, he never spoke about it.
A chance find by a Coast Guard historian revealed his once-unknown acts of heroism. In 2011, he was posthumously awarded the Silver Lifesaving Medal and in 2017, a Coast Guard cutter was commissioned as the USCGC Emlen Tunnell.
"His legacy of service lives on through the cutter. The cutter just recently was involved in interdicting a huge drug bust in the waters outside of Oman. Saving people's lives, the activity of the cutter helps to continue his legacy. I mean, it's the only one named after a football player," Damiani said.
"The comradery of the Coast Guard cutter Emlen Tunnell is very tight. We're a second family. We understand that being away from home for over a year or so causes a lot of heartaches and a lot of difficult times, and we rely on each other daily to motivate us and keep our mission going," said Michael Hand, USCG Machinery Technician 2nd Class.
"Comradery is amazing. Like, especially here ... everyone's very tight. There's only 28 of us in these units. You get comfortable very quickly. Whenever we go out for two, three weeks on patrols, all you have is each other, so it's very nice to come together and treat each other as family," said Karel Fonseca, USCG Machinery Technician 2nd Class.
Tunnell almost missed his chance to serve completely. A broken neck suffered in his college football days kept him from enlisting in two different branches of our Armed Forces. Undeterred, he was finally allowed to enlist in the Coast Guard.
"The man broke his neck playing college football, wanted to serve his country. The Army wouldn't take him. The Navy wouldn't take him. The only people that agreed to take him were the Coast Guard. That's how much he wanted to serve. He didn't have to go into service," Damiani said.
Tunnell passed away at the age of 51, dying of a heart attack while still a coach of the Giants. Forty-three years after his death, a statue of Tunnell was proudly unveiled at the Sports Legends of Delaware County Museum in his hometown of Radnor Township. Residents are still in awe of his story.
"It kind of boggles my mind because I can't imagine an African-American in 1948 hitchhiking anywhere," sports historian Richard Pagano said. "I think with saving those two fellas on the ship, he needed to save the person. It didn't matter what color they were, what color he was. He was really unique in that way, too."
Despite his heroics in the war and his athletic accomplishments for a legendary football franchise, Tunnell's life surprisingly isn't well-known, nor is he a household name.
"I've talked to ball players that have no idea who he is. Some of them will actually say, 'I've never heard of him.' It's kind of sad, he's not more well-known. Not just because of football, because of what he did during the war. I think a movie would really help. Even a stamp. Something that gets his name out there so people know about him," Pagano said.
Back in East Rutherford, Tunnell is honored every morning when Mara walks into his office. A painting of Tunnell's smiling face is there to greet him.
"In the nearly 100 years of history of this organization, I can't think of another player, coach or executive who was more beloved than Emlen Tunnell," Mara said.
As for that friendly truck driver outside Philadelphia, Tunnell made sure to thank him during his Pro Football Hall of Fame induction speech.