Volume 6, No. 8

AHEAD OF THE RACE Slocum's staff diversity takes A&M to the forefront of minority issues By Homer Jacobs

Generations ago, Texas A&M was an all-male, all-Caucasian school. Yet, the spirit of the university was built through its military background and open-arms attitude.

Sure, there were no women and few minorities at the school, but Aggieland still welcomed kids from all backgrounds – rural, metropolitan, rich and poor.

Students shed their high school rings and letter jackets, and only one color stood out – khaki.

Women were allowed in school in the 1960s, and the color barrier was broken on the athletic fields when players like track star Curtis Mills and football hero Hugh McElroy donned the maroon and white as the decade of the ’70s arrived.

"I think some people look at the perception of what the town looks like from the outside looking in. They really haven't gotten into the core of the place and seen how people are treated. Our (players) are very happy here." –Running backs coach Ken Rucker

But A&M has battled the perception of being a conservative, mostly white agricultural school for years. And because of that, part of the Vision 20/20 campaign is to focus on becoming a more diverse university.

Aggie football coach R.C. Slocum isn’t waiting for the year 2020, however. In fact, Slocum and the A&M athletic department are taking a proactive stance on the issue of hiring minority coaches for the Aggie athletic programs.

With so many schools – primarily playing Division I football – lagging behind in the hiring of minority coaches, it’s Texas A&M that is taking the lead.

A&M features two African-American head coaches in men’s basketball coach Melvin Watkins and women’s basketball coach Peggie Gillom. And Slocum recently made three hires to his football staff – all African-Americans – to give his staff four minority coaches.

As Slocum says, it was the right thing to do.

"I didn’t hire them because they were black coaches but because they were good coaches," Slocum said. "But I am pleased that I have four minority coaches on the staff.

"When I started interviewing coaches, I looked for the best coaches I could find. I was impressed with these guys as anyone. I didn’t let race be a factor or stand in the way."

The A&M football staff features nine assistants, and typically, Slocum had placed two African-Americans in coaching positions. But now there are four minority coaches on staff, two of which are in major, high-profile positions.

Dino Babers came from Arizona to be Slocum’s offensive coordinator, and Kevin Sumlin was hired away from Purdue to become assistant head coach. Running backs coach Ken Rucker returned to Aggieland for his second stint on the staff, and Buddy Wyatt is entering his second season as the Aggies’ defensive line coach.

Indeed, there is quantity, but quality is the overriding issue with these coaches.

Kevin Sumlin has been impressive as the Aggies' assistant head coach and wide receivers coach.

"I’m happy that we’re one of the football progams that is willing to go out and be on the forefront and not only have African Americans on staff, but also have them in high level positions as offensive coordinator and assistant head coach," said Wyatt, who came to A&M from Colorado. "They’re in those positions, and they’re all very bright people. They’re good with our players, and I think that’s important. It has to be a fit. It can’t only be that you’re African-American. I think that’s where R.C. has done a good job is finding good fits for our kids and Texas A&M."

The hiring – or lack thereof – of minority coaches in college football has been a recent hot-button issue… and for good reason. Out of the 117 Division I schools playing football, only five have African-American head coaches. And of the 362 job openings for head coaches since 1979, only 19 were filled with African-American coaches.

Slocum said there are several factors for the lack of minority head coaches in football: There is a large number of African-Americans who are able to play in the NFL and then don’t want to return to the lower-profile college game; and after college playing careers are over, the demand is high for minorities in other high-paying fields besides the grind of college coaching.

And while more minority coaches in college football are attaining coordinator positions, the wheels of change aren’t rolling smoothly.

"I think it’s changing, but the change is going too slowly right now," said Slocum. "I’m on the board of trustees for the American Football Coaches Association, and one of the first meetings I attended was with representatives of the Black Coaches Association. And they spoke about some of the frustration of lack of opportunities. Guys work hard, and when it gets down to it, a lot of them aren’t considered for coordinating jobs and assistant head coaching jobs. It seems they weren’t getting the same consideration.

"Maybe there’s a lot of apprehension on a lot of head coaches’ parts to do that. These coaches I hired are very good football coaches. I have no reservations about their coaching credentials or abilities."

A&M defensive line coach Buddy Wyatt (left) and new offensive coordinator Dino Babers hope they will be judged on their performance, not skin color.

Slocum made a big move last year by hiring Larry Kirksey away from the San Francisco 49ers to be the Aggies’ assistant head coach. Kirksey didn’t stay long, taking his career back to the NFL on the Detroit Lions’ staff. But the short stay didn’t deter Slocum from filling the vacancy with another minority coach in Sumlin.

It becomes obvious after one conversation with Sumlin that he he has the tools to be a quality assistant head coach/receivers coach, and could one day make the step to a head position himself. Indeed, he is much more than a token recruiter, a role in which African-American coaches have been pidgeonholed for decades.

"It used to be, and this wasn’t that long ago, you would have one black coach on your staff and his job was recruiting and dealing with the players," said Sumlin, a former player and coach at Purdue."He was there to communicate. Now, the biggest hurdle that’s been overcome is there have been guys hired because of their knowledge of the game, as well as their recruiting talents. When you have two, three or four minority coaches on a staff, obviously the situation has changed."

Yet, when it comes to an athletic director pulling the trigger and hiring a minority head football coach, the opportunities just haven’t been there. And it doesn’t help matters for minorities, either, when high-profile African-American head coaches like John Blake and Bob Simmons at Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, respectively, have been fired within the last four years.

And if there aren’t more coordinators or assistant head coaches hired in college football, the prospective pool of minority coaches isn’t a deep one.

"I think athletic directors hire the people they feel the most comfortable with and people that they know," said Babers, who was looking for a new job after last season when John Mackovic stepped in for the retired Dick Tomey at Arizona. "They’re turning over a big economic part of their program. It’s a very sensitive issue for them to turn it over to someone they don’t know or have had experience. That’s where I think minorities get into a tough situation. (Athletic directors) maybe would like to take a chance, but you sure don’t want to take a chance on a rookie who has never gone through it before. There just aren’t a lot of us who get that opportunity and not a lot of us who get recycled.

"Someone has to take a chance. I’m just glad Dick Tomey took a chance on me and gave me an opportunity and a chance to do some of the things I’ve been able to do. If not, I probably wouldn’t have this opportunity to be in College Station."

Rucker has an interesting perspective on Texas A&M and College Station, having been rehired for a second stint as running backs coach. He has seen the A&M campus and local community welcome him and his family twice now, and he has heard all the negative recruiting tactics used against A&M in terms of the demographics of Bryan/College Station.

He is a staunch deflector of any racial criticism levied at A&M.

"If people would come to College Station and talk to our African-Americans and visit our township, they would find a warm, outstanding place," Rucker said. "It’s far from conservative, because to me, it’s become more diverse over the years because of its stand taken toward African-Americans and minorities, in general.

"I think some people look at the perception of what the town looks like from the outside looking in. They really haven’t gotten into the core of the place and seen how people are treated. Our (players) are very happy here. We get kids from the rural parts of the country as well as the metropolitan parts of the country, and they come here and are very happy here. This is a great place to live."

As for recruiting purposes with a more diverse coaching staff, Slocum said the response from prospects and their families across the state has been increasingly positive. At a junior orientation day in the spring, the A&M head coach already was hearing excellent feedback from players’ parents.

"Many of our players are from African-American backgrounds, and I think it’s important for those players to have role models here," Slocum added. "I’ve had a number of parents comment just since they’ve been here about how pleased they are that we’ve got some good role models for their sons.

"For the long-range, best interest of Texas A&M, our student body should be reflective of the population of the state of Texas and racial makeup of the state of Texas. I think it’s important we recognize that and that all people in this state feel good about Texas A&M… that it’s a welcoming place for people of all racial backgrounds and not some exclusive, elite place. We open our arms to all good people."

Unfortunately, the A&M coaching staff may have more eyes on it this year, and we’re not just talking about the cameras of ESPN’s "Sidelines" crew. Slocum’s staff – after a good or bad season – surely will be used as an example by some.

"It’s a frontier out there," Rucker said. "We’re establishing some things for the future. It may not happen in mine or Kevin’s time as assistant coaches, but by Coach Slocum giving us an opportunity, it definitely will set things up better down the road."

While the sport of college football continues to press for more racial diversity among the coaching ranks, Texas A&M is being far from conservative on the issue.

Now, a world class university has blended white, black, and khaki into one primary color – maroon.

"Really, there’s other guys looking at you and younger guys coming into the business who are watching what happens," Sumlin said. "From that standpoint, you’re trying to be an example and a role model.

"I think our main focus is being successful and winning games, then good things will happen for everybody."

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