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P: Angus, that's an area that we do not have very much
information on, and if you remember, I wish you'd go
back and tell me about this revolt against Mr. White.
L: That's an interesting period of university history andI found
out something about it later on that might be interesting.
I:believe it was Frank Wright or Red Newton, both of whom you
know, who invited me to a meeting in an old house out east
of the campus. We met out there one Sunday night and had
lanterns and candles. There were about fifteen or twenty. I
was editor of the paper. And I didn't know much about the
director of the athletic department, James L. White. Iwas
not much of an athlete; I didn't go out for any games or any-
thing like that. They met thereand they had some people who
knew what was going on in the department, so they said, and they
brought seventeen charges against him. Frank Wright, I'm sure,
had something to do with writing of the charges. He was a
sports writer for the Florida Times-Union at that time.
Red Newton was, I guess, for the Tampa Tribune. I had been
the year before, the Associated Press representative of the
campus--that was my sophomore year. So Iwent and we
gathered there and! believe then we had a recess and long
after midnight we met again, and we all approved the petition.
Then it was to be printed and signed, then we were to meet
again and the understanding was that Jerry McGill, the
president of the student body, was to submit the petition
to the president.
P: What was the opposition to Mr. White?
L: I can remember one specific thing--that he would schedule
games with teams and then forget about them. A name would
be put down on the schedule and one college team came
to Gainesville one time and nobody knew anything about it.
They were already turned out in their uniforms and went over
to the athletic department and there was nobody to play with.
P: Now, Van Fleet was the coach at the time, was he not?
L: Van Fleet was the football coach and commandant of the
ROTC. But I'think Van Fleet had left the university at that
time, I'm almost certain that he had.
P: And White had moved in too?