In 1891, Nebraska’s second year with an official football team, George Flippin — the son of a freed slave — became the first black player at NU and only the fifth black athlete at the predominantly white university.

Because of Flippin’s presence on the team, Missouri refused to play Nebraska in 1892, losing the game 1-0 on a forfeit. Flippin also competed in wrestling, baseball and track. He was inducted into the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame in 1974.

In 1892, Flippin led Nebraska to a 6-0 victory against Illinois in the first game NU played against a big opponent, scoring the game’s only touchdown after recovering a fumble.

Flippin graduated from Henderson High School. He went on to become a well-known doctor and practiced in Stromsburg, where he died in 1929.

— Brent C. Wagner