Wilmeth Webb, born February 13, 1918 inย Washington, D.C., become the first star African Americanย athleteย at Syracuse University. His father, Elias Webb, died when Wilmeth was young, and his mother, Pauline Webb, remarried. Her new husband, Dr. Samuel Sidat-Singh, was a medical student fromย India. He adopted Wilmeth, giving him his name, and moved the family to Harlem to set up a medical practice.
Sidat-Singh attended DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx, where he was a star basketball player. He led his team to theย New Yorkย Public High School Athletic League championship in 1934.
In 1935, Sidat-Singh accepted a basketball scholarship from Syracuse University. He led the team in scoring during his senior year and they went 40-13 during his career. After aย footballย assistant coach spotted him in an intramural game, he was encouraged to play football for the University as well.
Sidat-Singh started his football career as a sophomore, playing singlewing halfback, a position similar to todayโs quarterback. Syracuse University and the nearby Cornell University were among the first collegiate football teams to include African Americans as starting backfield players. Therefore when games were played in southern states enforcingย segregation, African American players were frequently banned from the field.
Because of Sidat-Singhโs light complexion and his adoptive fatherโs last name, he was sometimes assumed to be โHinduโ and was allowed to play. However, shortly before a game against the University ofย Maryland, an article was published inย The Baltimore Afro Americanย that revealed his true racial identity. Sidat-Singh was forced to sit out of the game, and Syracuse lost 0-13. The following season, he did play Maryland, leading the Syracuse Orangemen to a 53-0 victory over the Terrapins at Archbold Stadium.
After graduating with a degree inย zoologyย in 1939, Sidat-Singh played professional basketball with both the Syracuse Reds and the Harlem Renaissance. He then joined the Washington, D.C.ย policeย force.
In 1943, after U.S. entry intoย World War II, Sidat-Singh applied and was accepted into theย U.S. Armyย Air Corps. He was assigned to the onlyย pilotย training program then available for African Americans, theย Tuskegee Airmen.ย After earning his pilotโs wings, Sidat-Singh tragically died during a training mission when the engine of his P-40 airplane failed over Lake Huron. The date was May 9, 1943, and he was only 25 years old. Today, Sidat-Singh is buried in Arlington National Cemetery inย Virginia.
On February 26, 2005, Syracuse University retired Sidat-Singhโs number at halftime of the Orangemenโs game with Providence University, hanging his basketball jersey in the rafters of the Carrier Dome. Later, on November 9, 2013, the University of Maryland publicly apologized to Sidat-Singhโs surviving relatives with a ceremony during a football game with Syracuse University.
