Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio.
Here we go again, for the umpteenth time.
A young, gifted and talented Black professional has left one of our own institutions to work at a predominantly white one. The big story last year was Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders relocating from Jackson State to Colorado. Florida A&M experienced a similar loss on Monday when head football coach Willie Simmons resigned to join the staff at Duke.
Simmons enjoyed tremendous success in his six years at FAMU, where he posted a 45-13 record that was capped this season with the Southwestern Athletic Conference championship and the HBCU national title via a Celebration Bowl victory. He proved himself previously by going 21-11 during three years at Prairie View A&M. Clearly among the nation’s best young coaches, he could’ve run the FAMU program for decades and seen his statue erected, becoming a legendary lifer like Grambling State’s Eddie Robinson (56 years) and FAMU’s Jake Gaither (25 years).
Instead, the 43-year-old Simmons stepped down to become an assistant — not the offensive coordinator at Duke, but the running backs coach.
Cue the moaning.
Some critics said the job offer was an insult that devalues HBCUs and proves our schools are less than. Others blamed FAMU for not moving quicker to increase Simmons’ pay — the school’s national alumni association raised more than $138,000 to aid the cause — and entice him to stay. Yet another chorus suggested there’s a character flaw within coaches who leave HBCUs for six-figure raises from PWIs.
How can I put this gently?
They all tripping.
The white man’s ice isn’t colder but there’s a helluva lot more. It also comes in assorted colors and different shapes: cubes, crushed and fancy-ass sculptures with perks.
Aspiring to work at one of those factories doesn’t mean you think less…
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