The AAS department was created in the spirit of revolutionary thinking. Syracuse students were among the first in the United States to rebel against institutionalized injustices in education in the 1960s. When Ernie Davis became the first Black football player to win the Heisman trophy in 1961, it was a major landmark for progress for African Americans in higher education. Syracuse alumnus Joe Biden noted in a tribute speech in 2011, that Ernie Davis "gave a whole group of people hope". Subsequently, racial discord in the football program began to be highlighted, which resulted in an increase in racial tension. This tension began in 1969 when a group known as the " Syracuse 8 " highlighted the discrimination they faced in football by coach Floyd "Ben" Schwartzwalder. By the opening pre-game of the season, tensions were so high that they resulted in a confrontation between nearly 100 policemen and at least 400 students at the football stadium a