COLUMBIA S.C.— Black lawmakers are urging Black football recruits to reconsider playing for the University of South Carolina because the school could lose its lone Black trustee.
State Rep. David Weeks, chairman of the Legislative Black Caucus, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he doesn’t think there are enough votes in the Legislature to get lawyer Leah B. Moody appointed to a full term on the 22-member board next month.
She is the board’s only Black member and is finishing the term of a trustee who resigned before pleading guilty to bank fraud.
“We are asking young athletes to be aware … there are folks in this state who say it’s fine to play ball but not be on the governing board,” Weeks said.
He and several other lawmakers, including former Gamecocks lineman Anton Gunn, a Black Democrat from Columbia, said members of the Black community were calling recruits and their families and asking them to rethink playing for the school.
While the Gamecocks have been mediocre for years, the football team and coach Steve Spurrier draw massive fan support in a state with no professional sports. The Southeastern Conference team is the subject of radio talk shows and media coverage year-round, and home games at the school’s enormous stadium in the capital city draw tens of thousands for hours of tailgating each week during the season.
The team had a 2009 record of 7-6 and an average attendance of more than 75,300 at its seven home games.
