of Education decision. Georgia Governor Marvin Griffin had privately given Dodd and Van Leer his support, but he surprised the campus and the state on Friday, December 2, 1955, by bowing to pressure from segregationists and sending a wire to the Georgia Board of Regents chairman, Robert O. Arnold, requesting not only that Tech not play the game, but that all University System of Georgia teams play only segregated games and to cut all funding to schools who admit students who adhere to integration. Griffin publicly put a great deal of pressure on president Blake R. Van Leer to pull out.: Enraged, Tech students organized an impromptu protest rally on campus. At midnight, a large group of students hung the governor in effigy and ignited a bonfire. They then marched to Five Points, the Georgia State Capitol, and the Georgia Governor's Mansion, hanging the governor in effigy at each location. The students did some minor damage to the Governor's Mansion before the march was dispersed by state representative "Muggsy" Smith at 3:30 am. After receiving death threats about the game, Van Leer's made a comment to the media came on Saturday, December 3, 1955: "I am 60 years old and I have never broken a contract. I do not intend to start now". At a tense meeting of the Board of Regents on Monday, Van Leer threatened to resign and it was decided that Georgia Tech would be allowed to play in the Sugar Bowl. Another state representative John P Drinkard recommended that all of Georgia Tech's state funding be cut off if they proceed and later Griffin suggested anyone who adhered to the principles of integration should not be admitted to Tech. The new policy was that "all laws, customs and traditions of host states would be respected but all games played in Georgia would be segregated", a policy that would remain until 1963. The regents, with the exception of Tech alumnus David Rice, condemned the "riotous" behavior of Tech students. Rice instead criticized Marvin Griffin, and was lauded by The Technique as the "only man with the moral conviction to stand up against Griffin, ... and co". Ironically, Tech defeated Pittsburgh 7–0 because of a pass interference call on the black player. Van Leer died three weeks after this incident, on January 23, 1956; the stress of the controversy was believed to have shortened his life. Integration and