Within the evolving world of faculty soccer, success can include a price — even for a Division II HBCU program. Simply weeks after main Virginia Union to an Elite Eight end within the NCAA Division II playoffs, head coach Dr. Alvin Parker watched 17 gamers enter the switch portal. That record included star extensive receiver Reginald Vick Jr., who landed at ACC member Wake Forest, and defensive standout William Davis, now at West Virginia.
“Once we walked off the sphere from that Elite Eight loss to Valdosta (State), I seemed round and I stated, you recognize what? We’re a two-time champion workforce, made an Elite Eight run, and I obtained 13 starters coming again,” Parker stated on Verified Sources with SJG. “I felt nice about it. Two weeks later, I had 17 guys within the portal.”
A New Period for HBCU Roster Administration
The mass departure highlights a rising problem for HBCU packages, particularly on the Division II stage. Gifted gamers are more and more drawn to larger faculties with bigger monetary incentives.
“The panorama modified. It may well change simply that fast. We’re not speaking about years. We’re speaking about days and weeks,” Parker stated. “At that time now, we go from a participant improvement employees to a roster administration kind employees.”
Maintaining His Promise to Gamers
Regardless of the upheaval, Parker stays dedicated to creating gamers — even when it means watching them depart.
“I promised each man after they got here to Virginia Union, I promise all of them you’ll depart right here higher than you have been if you got here,” he stated. “So when guys are available in and so they’re getting enormous contracts, cash that they’re not going to get from anyplace else, that I can’t present them — you recognize what? I stored my promise.”
Platform for the Subsequent Stage
Parker’s method has elevated Virginia Union’s visibility within the HBCU soccer panorama. Gamers like Vick and Davis used this system to showcase their abilities on a nationwide stage.
“We gave them the platform. They got here right here and so they confirmed off. Different folks noticed them and so they obtained swooped up,” Parker stated.
Constructing for the Future
Even after main departures, the Panthers’ tradition of improvement stays robust. Parker and his employees proceed to organize new expertise whereas reinforcing the HBCU pipeline.
“We’ve completed a ok job of creating certain the roster all the time seemed a sure method that, you recognize, it was type of like, ‘who’s up subsequent?’” he stated. “As a result of the panorama of faculty soccer is completely totally different. Individuals say it wasn’t prefer it was after I was again then. No — it wasn’t like what it was final yr.”
As HBCU soccer adjusts to the realities of NIL and participant mobility, coaches like Dr. Alvin Parker are evolving too — rooted in custom, but adapting to a fast-changing sport. Parker not too long ago wrote a brand new ebook referred to as “Play411: Management” which tackles the challenges of management.
