This week in Duke history: Duke football welcomes African-American opponent to Durham in 1950

The nation may currently be dealing with the intersection of race and sports, but the issue is certainly not new.

It hit home for Duke Sept. 30, 1950, when the Associated Press recapped the Blue Devils' 28-14 victory against Pittsburgh. The Panthers featured tackle Flint Greene—who became the first African-American football player to play a Southern Conference game in North Carolina.

The milestone came three years after Jackie Robinson made his major-league debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers and several years before the Civil Rights movement picked up the momentum that resulted in the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The article included a statement issued by Duke President Hollis Edens:

Yes, we have heard that the Pittsburgh team has a Negro on the squad. When we schedule a team we of course expect to play on fair and even terms. The coaches of each team have the unquestioned right to play any eligible man they choose to play. We have neither the right nor the desire to ask a coach to restrict or limit his team's participation because of creed or color. Duke fans and students have a fine record of treating visiting teams courteously. We have [every] reason to believe that this record will be continued.

Edens' words highlight some of what we take for granted today. It was necessary and even progressive at the time to state that a football player of any race could play, and Duke has stayed true to his promise that "this record will be continued."