Equality in the NFL is under the microscope again in light of Brian Flores’ lawsuit against the league over racist hiring policies. Meanwhile, the first HBCU Combine and Legacy Bowl are a benchmark for potential customers. The emphasis on equality is critical and must not be lost.
NFL prospects belonging to historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) face a better window in which they can showcase their talents on the national stage. No, drop it…
Only it should be more than a dedicated window, more than a convenient spotlight for athletes who deserve the all-encompassing impact that Power 5 college football schools have.
A week after Super Bowl LVI, the Black College Football Hall of Fame will present the inaugural HBCU Legacy Bowl at New Orleans’ Yulman Stadium, creating a landmark television audition for the NFL’s top 100 or so HBCU draft-eligible players. While the postseason All-Star Game will be the main event, the event also includes a week-long celebration of Black culture and history in addition to the Job Fair, designed to provide job opportunities and career counseling for seniors.
The Reese’s Senior Bowl recently capitalized on its burgeoning “draft starts on mobile” mantra by teaming with the NFL to host the HBCU Combine in Alabama from January 28-30, when scouts and executives from all 32 teams interviewed and ranked 39 players out of 22 HBCUs in the process. modeled on the annual NFL association. What’s more, eight members of the HBCU Development and Women’s Pipeline Initiative attended the Combine this year as athletic trainers, further enhancing the diversity.
“I wish they had that opportunity for me 23 years ago,” said NFL legend Green Bay Packers and Alcorn State alum Donald Driver.
What is HBCU?
“HBCU is a bridge to equality,” said BCF Hall of Famer James Shack Harris following the announcement of the HBCU Legacy Bowl in March 2021.
In a somewhat discouraging irony, meanwhile, the NFL head coach’s yearly divorce cycle was teetering at an unthinkable level as the league looked at the possibility of Mike Tomlin leaving the Pittsburgh Steelers during the offseason as the only black head coach.
Such was the case on Tuesday, Feb. 1, when former Miami Dolphins head coach Flores sued the league and three of its teams for alleged racist hiring policies. Iconic lawsuit? Watershed moment? It really depends on what happens next, but Flores, willingly risking his coaching career in the name of equality and racial justice, should change the league forever. The NFL needs to see this.
Simplicity lies on the surface, whether it’s HBCU scouting or the failed league Rooney rule: the goal of increased recognition, just equal opportunity, the focus on the player, not the program they belong to or the community they grew up in, the focus on expertise and the person underneath.
