In 1974, the men’s soccer squad from Howard University was admitted into the university’s Sports Hall of Fame. The Team Was Made Up of Mostly Players from The Caribbean. Over the weekend, the HBCU threw several festivities to honor the team’s historic win and perfect season.
The 1974 team’s goalie, Trevor Leiba, told Howard’s campus news outlet, The Dig, that “I knew it was something big, but now that I look back on it, I don’t think I realized just how big this was, for Howard and for Black people.”
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Leiba noted, “I love meeting people who will say that they’re familiar with our team and it makes me very proud to be a part of a team that made history. It’s just very special to be the only HBCU team to win a national title.”
The formal induction ceremony on November 8, 2024, marked the beginning of the festivities. On November 10, 2024, the weekend concluded with a dinner hosted by alumnus Rock Newman.
The 2016 publication of the documentary Redemption Song, which chronicled the history of Howard’s soccer program, brought it into the public eye. The squad became the first HBCU to win an NCAA national championship after winning the 1971 title. Then, because of player eligibility problems, the organization annulled their championship. In 1974, the squad returned with another victory.
Lincoln Phillips, the head coach, who led the Bison from 1970 to 1980, remarked, “I look back on that time and I felt then what I feel now, truth crushed to earth shall rise again.”
He added, “We knew following the 1971 season that we were the rightful champions, and we fought to reclaim what was rightfully ours. That 1974 season – an undefeated season – was a true testament to claiming our rightful place in history.”
“To win a championship was one thing, but to do it without losing a game is something pretty amazing,” Phillips noted.
“It’s an accomplishment that has never been equaled and, for that, I am both humbled and immensely proud.”
He added that victory was important for both the Black community and soccer.
“Back then, soccer was really a minor sport, but now, it has grown so much and so many people, including Black people, appreciate the game,” Phillips remarked. “What we were doing back in the 1970s was really setting the groundwork for the game to become what it is for our people.”
