Jesse White is known best as Illinois Secretary of State. Some may even know him as the founder of a famous youth tumbling team.
Jesse White is known best as Illinois Secretary of State. Some may even know him as the founder of a famous youth tumbling team.
But few people may be aware that White is also a former All-American high school and college baseball and basketball player who has been inducted into two halls of fame.
In 1995, he was inducted into the Chicago Public League Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame, and in 1999 he was inducted into his alma mater’s–Alabama State University–Sports Hall of Fame.
Attending a historically Black college is a much different experience than attending other colleges, White told the Defender.
“Black colleges teach you about school pride, so even if the football team lost all its games, students would still sell out every game to cheer them on,” he said. “And let’s not forget the bands, which is the only other reason to attend a Black college football game besides the teams themselves.”
So it’s not hard to understand why the Alabama State College (now Alabama State University) alum will be cheering Sept. 24 for the Hornets to defeat Mississippi Valley State University at the 12th Annual Chicago Football Classic at Soldier Field.
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