Black Coaches Association Happy With NCAA College Football Hires

Finally, the Black Coaches Association has something to be happy about. For years, critics have correctly stated that the NCAA does not do a very good job of hiring African American head coaches. Despite the fact that African Americans dominate the sport on the field, they are rarely given opportunities to coach when their careers are over. This is the ultimate slap in the face, given that the universities are willing to use black labor to win games but are unwilling to hire black men as coaches, professors or athletic directors.

Well, the numbers are slightly better, giving black coaches a ray of hope.

Mike London was recently hired by the University of Virginia, as was Willie Taggart at Western Kentucky University and Larry Porter at the University of Memphis. This has dramatically changed the coaching landscape in the NCAA, giving black coaches some of the opportunities they've long been denied. Coach Terry Bowden, son of Bobby Bowden, has long cited the racism in college sports as the reason that African American coaches rarely get opportunities to excel.

According to Tony McClean at the Black Athlete Sports Network, below is the current distribution of African American head coaches in college football:

Mike Locksley - University of New Mexico Lobos (Mountain West)
x-Turner Gill - University of Kansas Jayhawks (Big 12)
Kevin Sumlin - University of Houston Cougars (Conference USA)
x-Randy Shannon - University of Miami Hurricanes (ACC)
x-Mike London - University of Virginia Cavaliers (ACC)
x-Charlie Strong - University of Louisville Cardinals (Big East)
DeWayne Walker - University of New Mexico State Aggies (WAC)
Larry Porter - University of Memphis Tigers (Conference USA)
Mike Haywood - University of Miami (Ohio) Redskins (MAC)
Ron English - University of Eastern Michigan Eagles (MAC)
Willie Taggart - University of Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (Sun Belt)

x-Conference champ gets automatic BCS berth

As we celebrate the growth of African American coaches in college football, here are a few thoughts to keep in mind:

1) The number is still only 10 out of 120, which is roughly 8 percent of the total. This is a tiny number when compared with the number of black men on the football field -- last measured to be more than 70 percent of the tally.

2) There is still an embarrassing gap between the graduation rates of white and black players. For some reason, the gap has widened in recent years. What's most ironic about the NCAA is that some universities (i.e., U. of Kentucky) will spend tens of millions on guys such as John Calipari, who has a horrible record of not graduating black players, while consistently claiming that the purpose of college sports is to promote academic achievement.

3) Players are still being pimped. The NCAA earns money on the same level as the NBA, NHL and NFL, yet it is the only professional sports league that doesn't have to pay its employees a fair market and negotiable wage. Yes, I called the NCAA athletes professional, because the players are worked like professionals, put under pressure like professionals and told to conduct themselves like professionals, yet when it's time for someone to share the multibillion-dollar pie earned by the NCAA, all of the money goes in to the hands of those who refuse to hire black coaches or black professors. The NCAA will never cease to be the ultimate plantation.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is a faculty affiliate at the College Sport Research Institute at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is also the founder of the Your Black World Coalition. To have Dr. Boyce's commentary delivered to your e-mail, please click here.

Categories

Contributors

Other BV Blogs