John R. Logan III was a young black man from Philadelphia, PA, who came to Wesleyan in 1964, when there were not many that looked like him. Despite the challenges those of color faced during that time, he would go on to create a legacy that until this point has gone untold. Logan sadly is no longer with us having passed away on 7/5/1998 so he can not tell his own story. Today, though we will never be able to do his story justice, we would like to change that and tell his story the best we can. Unfortunately, the stories and records of Wesleyan Athletics only live on through the alums of that era who are still with us and through the stories that live on through old Argus’ articles found in the Wesleyan Special Collection/Archives.
John Logan was a three sport athlete in his time at Wesleyan as a member of the Football, Wrestling (Co-Captain) and Track teams. Logan was a Fullback/Linebacker on the football team. He wrestled at 167 and 177 going undefeated during his career in dual meets, as well as winning ECAC and New England Championships. In addition, he competed as a decathlete for the track team. He majored in Mathematics and Physics in the College of Quantitative Studies. Outside of athletics, he engaged on campus as a member of the Independents, Theta Nu Epsilon, and Skull & Serpent.
After Wesleyan we know Logan went on to obtain his PhD in Philosophy from University of Pennsylvania. We can not confirm but believe he competed in the Olympic Trials for Wrestling and served as an alternate for the Games in 1968 .
We have compiled numerous Argus’ articles that detail his accomplishments on the gridiron and wrestling mat. We were not able to find any information on his efforts on the track. We hope you will enjoy the below stories and photos and help us in celebrating the magnificent collegiate career of one John Logan!
