Dean W. Colvard

Colvard continued to donate to UNC Charlotte and attended campus events until his death. Colvard died at the age of 93 on June 28, 2007.

In a 2003 interview with The Charlotte Observer, Colvard said of segregation controversy: ""I was going to send those boys to that tournament. If anybody was going to get in the way, well, I'd be the winner of that."

After Colvard's tenure at MSU, he became the first Chancellor at the newly minted University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He was selected by UNC System president William Friday and took office in April 1966. He held that position until his eventual retirement in 1978. Colvard was active in increasing the reputation of the university's science and mathematics program, where he was also on the board of trustees. During his tenure, he oversaw the development of the University Research Park and the Discovery Place science museum in Uptown Charlotte.

Babe McCarthy, the head basketball coach at MSU, expressed frustration at having his team excluded from the postseason tournament each year. Many claimed that the state of Mississippi was acting as a "closed society". McCarthy pleaded on his talk show to have his players allowed to play in postseason play during the 1963 season.

In 1963, alumni and fans combined to show their support for the team in their battle against the "unwritten law". The Reflector, Mississippi State's student newspaper, got involved and challenged Colvard's authority.

On March 2, 1963, Colvard announced publicly the acceptance of the invitation to the NCAA tournament. He did this fifteen minutes before the team's final game of the season, against rival Ole Miss.

After the clinching game on February 25, 1962, many students marched up to the residence of Colvard and staged a sit-in on his front lawn to show their support for the team. Colvard promised to take a look at the situation, but was later quoted as saying he "just was glad to have avoided a confrontation." Students still had no idea where Colvard stood on the issue. The Maroons did not compete in the post season that year. Colvard later claimed that the reason was because "he did not feel well-enough established to make a decision of such sort."

After serving as the Dean of Agriculture at North Carolina State University, Colvard became president of Mississippi State University. He arrived in 1960, when Mississippi had an "unwritten law" against integrated collegiate athletics. This meant that no team from Mississippi could accept an invitation to play against any team that had African Americans on it. The rule came into effect after 1955, when Jones County Junior College accepted the invitation to the Junior Rose Bowl against a team of mixed race from Compton, California.

During the eight-year existence of the "unwritten law", no team confronted it more than the MSU Maroons basketball team. The Maroons (now known as Bulldogs) won three SEC titles between 1959 and 1962, and by winning the title they were granted an invitation to the integrated NCAA Tournament. MSU turned down each offer because of the "unwritten law", and were not able to participate in postseason play because of this.

Dean Wallace Colvard (July 10, 1913 – June 28, 2007) was a president of Mississippi State University, notable for his role in a 1963 controversy surrounding the participation of the university's basketball team in the NCAA tournament.

Colvard was born in Grassy Creek, Ashe County, North Carolina on July 10, 1913. Colvard received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Berea College, and followed that up by getting his Master of Arts from the University of Missouri. He then went to Purdue University and received his Ph.D. in science and mathematics. Colvard attended college for a total of 19 years, from 1931 until 1950.