Trustee flap has black SC lawmakers asking football recruits to rethink playing for Gamecocks

Flap over black trustee spills onto SC gridiron

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Black lawmakers are urging black football recruits to reconsider playing for the University of South Carolina because the school may lose its lone African-American trustee.

Top black state legislators said Wednesday that members of the black community are calling recruits. Black caucus chairman Rep. David Weeks says they should know some people in the state want black people to play sports but not serve as trustees.

The flap involves a black lawyer whose election next month by the Legislature is in doubt.

Weeks and other lawmakers would not say who is making the calls. The AP could not immediately confirm whether any recruits had been contacted.

University athletics spokesman Steve Fink says he’s not aware of the calls.