Fearless four honoured for historic titles
Four Bermudian footballers have been inducted into Howard University’s Athletic Hall of Fame.
Dr Alex Romeo, Cecil Durham, Stanfield Smith and Dr Donnie Simmons were entered into the college’s Hall of Fame during the Class of 2014 ceremony held recently in Washington, DC.
Romeo and Durham, who played for Devonshire Colts, were members of Howard’s 1961 team that won the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Championship.
Durham scored the winner in a 3-2 victory over Newark Engineering in the final to earn Howard the distinction of being the first predominantly black college in the United States to win a national collegiate title.
“We were playing in Pennsylvania and won the final,” Durham recalled. “I scored the winning goal and Romeo passed me the ball, so it was like a Bermudian coalition. Romeo was playing left wing and I was the striker.”
Durham’s winner arrived with only eighteen seconds left in regulation time.
“I sped up the wing and saw Durham and thought I could get the ball to him,” Romeo said. “Rather than loop it into the goal area so someone else could head it, I put it right on Durham’s foot and timed it in a way that all he would have to do is run on and kick it — and that’s basically what he did.
“I am very proud that Howard University got its first championship even though soccer was the low boy on the athletic scale.
“Soccer was the ‘Johnny-come-lately’ and not one that got much money from the institution.
“I certainly applaud the institution for recognising those individuals who put Howard on the map because as attention came to Howard the interest around soccer became a lot more focused.”
Romeo and Durham played under coach Ted Chambers, who is credited for assembling “a remarkable group” of players largely from the Caribbean. Chambers was keen to support the foreign students’ “passion for soccer” and perceived the beautiful game as vital for instilling “the right values in young men”.
Building upon the solid foundation laid by Chambers was former Somerset Trojans pair Smith and Simmons, who were members of Howard’s team that won the 1971 NCAA Division One title — the first predominantly black institution to win a major college championship in the United States — after defeating two-times defending champions St Louis University in the final at the Orange Bowl.
“It was one of the most memorable moments in my athletic soccer career,” said Smith, the captain, who played under both Chambers and his successor Lincoln Phillips.
“It was just fantastic and we were over the moon. I assisted with the winning goal and was a midfield player along with Donnie. Dr Alvin Henderson, who was our striker, scored the winning goal. We won 3-2 and at the end we got the trophy, which was one of the most historic, memorable moments for us.
“Once we won, we received a motorcade through DC and also had a banquet held in our honour, so we were treated wonderfully.”
Sadly, Howard were stripped of their national title two years later after the NCAA’s Committee on Infractions determined that the college had violated three rules.
“It was very disturbing once we were stripped, but we held our heads high,” said Smith, who played professionally with the Baltimore Comets and San Diego Jaws in the former North American Soccer League. “We still felt like we were the champions and were treated that way.”
During that era, Howard played an attractive brand of football that became “must-see events” on campus, with professors scheduling classes around matches.
“Back then football was not high profile in America — everything was American football or basketball,” Simmons said. “But we took it to another level and once we started to do well we basically galvanised the entire institution to the extent that people took off classes to come and watch us play.”
Smith and Simmons played for Howard during a civil rights struggle in the United States where they were confronted with racism and discrimination.
“Once we were driving through this town on a bus and we were all hungry and the coach had to get off the bus, go to a restaurant, buy the food and bring it back to us because we were not allowed to go in the restaurant as a group,” Smith said.
Those attitudes were also prevalent on the pitch.
“Most teams did not want to play us, they refused to play us,” he recalled. “We earned the right to play these teams, the predominantly white teams, because we not only won our division, we had an unbeaten record so they were forced to play against us. We often played against fourteen players: eleven opponents, two linesmen and a referee. I hate to say it, but it’s a reality.
“But we rose above that and produced some brilliant football and did not hold anything against any of our opponents. Everything was on the field and off the field we were respectful gentlemen who just wanted to play soccer.”
Of the foursome, only Smith and Simmons were aware of September’s induction ceremony. “The induction was just fantastic and it was a moving ceremony,” Smith said. “As the captain I had to speak on behalf of the ’71 team to about 600 guests and we were over the moon.”
Simmons added: “It was just overwhelming to be honoured for something that took place in 1971.
“It was something that I never anticipated.”