The 1949 Sun Bowl controversy refers to the student protests at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania, after a Sun Bowl invitation was extended to the Lafayette Leopards football team under the condition that the African American player, David Showell, would not play.
On November 19, 1948, Lafayette College was invited by the Sun Bowl Committee to play against the Texas College of Mines, now the University of Texas at El Paso.[1] Just four days later, on November 23, the Lafayette faculty voted to turn down the bid because the Sun Bowl Committee would not allow Showell to play.[2] This bid rejection led to a large student demonstration on the Lafayette campus and in the city of Easton against segregation.[2]
West Virginia University later accepted the bid after Lafayette's rejection. The 1949 Sun Bowl was played on January 1, 1949. West Virginia defeated the Texas College of Mines by a score of 21–12.[3]