VSGA member Everett Whiten Jr . has the Howard University golf
program on track to compete at the highest level this spring
by CHRIS LANG
Bison Building
BIG
VSGA member Everett Whiten Jr . has the Howard University golf
program on track to compete at the highest level this spring
IN THE CLOSING MOMENTS OF AN EPISODE OF “ WHY NOT US ?” an eight-part series documenting the rise of Howard University ( HU ) golf televised by ESPNU , Bison coach Sam Puryear walked toward the setting California sun and made a simple statement — that it was his dream to see a historically Black college and university ( HBCU ) golf team , filled with “ Black and brown kids ,” not only play but compete at a high level against some of the nation ’ s best programs .
He had reasons to smile that afternoon in March 2023 . For one , his Bison squad — led by VSGA member Everett Whiten Jr ., among others — had just finished 25th out of 28 teams at the prestigious Goodwin , an annual event hosted by Stanford University that features some of the nation ’ s top teams . While that may not sound impressive on the surface , consider what had happened the year before when Howard made the trip out west .
The Bison finished dead last at 75-over-par , 23 strokes behind the nearest competitor , Division II Hawaii-Hilo . In 2023 , Howard finished at 31-over , beating three fellow Division I competitors and nearly nipping UC Davis to move another spot up the leaderboard . The results from year to year were night and day .
“ Back in the 80s when I was in college , you ’ d show up to tournaments , and it was Nebraska , Vanderbilt , Florida State , whoever . But you couldn ’ t convince me that if we ever found the best Black kids that we couldn ’ t represent in a way that would make people completely proud ,” said Puryear , a former captain at another HBCU , Tennessee State University . “ We want to let people know that Black kids can play golf and they can play it in a mighty way .”
Howard University , which is tucked away in the Shaw neighborhood in Northwest Washington , D . C ., made waves in 2019 when it resurrected its men ’ s and women ’ s golf programs after 50 years of dormancy behind the bankrolling of NBA superstar Stephen Curry , a golf enthusiast looking for an outlet to give back to the game he loves . He found one in HU .
Enter Puryear , a former Stanford assistant who made history when in 2008 he became the first Black head coach at a Power 5 program and began a four-year stint at Michigan State .
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