For the remainder of the season Hamilton again took over the team, guiding Pitt to an upset of number nine Navy and handing West Virginia its only loss of the season. In 1955 Pitt sought a return to the roots of its previous success by turning to John Michelosen, a quarterback on Jock Sutherland's 1936 and 1937 championship teams who later served as a Sutherland assistant and as the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Michelosen immediately brought Pitt football back to respectability in his first season with the 1955 Eastern Championship that was capped by an appearance in the 1956 Sugar Bowl. Pitt's invitation to the Sugar Bowl was surrounded by controversy because Pitt, an integrated team, was the first to bring an African-American, Bobby Grier, to play in a southeastern bowl game in the segregated Deep South. Grier's play in the Sugar Bowl cemented the university's place in civil rights history as the first team to break the color barrier for southeastern bowls. However, the game was marred by protests in the South leading up to the game, which Pitt lost 7–0 when a controversial interference penalty was called on Grier that set up the winning touchdown for Georgia Tech. The following season, Michelosen guided Pitt to another bowl berth, the Gator Bowl, which resulted in another seven-point loss to Georgia Tech. Four additional winning seasons followed against formidable national schedules that were highlighted by victories over Notre Dame, USC, Miami, UCLA, Penn State, Oregon, Syracuse, Nebraska, and West Virginia. A three win season in 1961 that included wins at Miami and over Navy and USC, along with three close losses by 6 points or less to Baylor, Washington, and Notre Dame, was followed by a 5–5 record in 1962 and then perhaps the best team of the Micheloson era in 1963. The 1963 team, led by All-American Paul Martha, swept through a schedule that included wins at Notre Dame, UCLA, West Virginia, and Miami and home victories against Washington, Cal, Syracuse, and Penn State. The only loss of the season was in late October at Navy, which was led by Roger Staubach and would finish the season ranked second in the nation. The Panthers, at 7–1 and ranked fourth in the nation, headed into their rivalry against Penn State with a chance to play for a national championship. However, national tragedy struck on November 22 when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated which resulted in postponing Pitt's next-to-last game against Penn State from November 23 to December 7. The Panthers defeated the Miami Hurricanes on November 30, improving their record to 8–1.