Drake announces plans to unveil Johnny Bright statue

Drake will honor one of its most prominent and influential former football players later this season.

Bulldogs director of athletics Brian Hardin announced the school will unveil a statue of Johnny Bright in a public ceremony on Oct. 16 at 11 a.m.

The statue will stand approximately six and a half feet tall and rest on a one-foot-tall concrete pedestal outside the southeast gate of Drake Stadium, along Forest Avenue.

Bright suffered a broken jaw after he was repeatedly struck after a play during Drake's Oct. 20, 1951 game at Oklahoma State.

Two Des Moines Register photographers caught the incident that garnered national attention and earned the Pulitzer Prize. Bright went on to earn All-American honors that season and finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting.

"We are immensely proud at Drake Athletics to have helped bring a statue celebrating Johnny Bright to our campus," Hardin said in a statement. "His life story of valor, honor, persistence, and selflessness will undoubtedly inspire others. The location of the statue and the plaques that will share details of Johnny will certainly become a destination for visitors to our campus."