Cam Newton didn’t attend an HBCU, but in his most recent video, he made a pretty good argument for prospects to look at them.
The 2010 Heisman Trophy winner recently spoke to a group of high school prospects about the realities of recruiting and college football. And he didn’t hold back.
“You think (Georgia head football coach) Kirby Smart needs you? You think (Alabama head coach) Nick Saban needs you? Newton asked rhetorically. “You stupid. You going to Tennessee? Half y’all going to schools that don’t even offer you.”
Newton then pivoted to a point that HBCU coaches have been telling prospects for decades.
“If you’re good, it don’t matter where you go, they’re going to find you. I promise you that. A lot of you wanna go to the Alabamas the North Carolinas, the North Carolina States. Y’all gonna be there for four years and not have a meaningful game.”
Ouch.
“Oh, but I got a catch, though. It was senior day,” Newton said mockingly. “It was a slant – relax.”
Bro, you better go somewhere where you put yourself first. Because when you play for that G, and you play for that A, when you play for that T, when you play for that AU – bro they are putting themselves first. They are bullet-proof.
Of course, Cam Newton never went to an HBCU himself. He started out at the University of Florida, spent a year at Blinn College before capping off his college career with a national championship in his lone year at Auburn. But his family has an extensive HBCU background. His father, Cecil Sr., played at Savannah State. His older brother, CJ, played at Tennessee State. Newton’s baby brother, Caylin, started his career at Howard before transferring to Auburn and, eventually, William and Mary.
Perhaps Caylin’s experience at Auburn was in Newton’s mind when talking to the prospects. Going from a world of playing time at an HBCU to virtually none at Auburn was a world of difference. Either way, Newton’s message of choosing the best scenario for the individual players was one that HBCUs should look to capitalize off of.