[MUSIC] >> LOOK, WE TALK ABOUT A MULTI-CULTURAL SOCIETY OF DIVERSITY WHERE EVERYONE HAS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY OR SHOULD HAVE AN EQUITABLE OPPORTUNITY TO DEVELOP TO THE MAXIMUM OF THEIR HUMAN POTENTIAL, BUT HOW CAN YOU DO THAT IF YOU ARE BLOCKED OUT IN SO MANY DIFFERENT AREAS?

LOOK AT WHAT CHIP DID, MAN.

>> LACROSSE IS THE OLDEST SPORT ON THE NORTH AMERICAN CONTINENT.

NATIVE AMERICANS CALL THE SPORT 'THE CREATORS GAME' AND ITS PURPOSE IS TO HEAL THE SICK, SETTLE DISPUTES, AND STRENGTHEN THE COMMUNITY.

FRENCH COLONISTS ADOPTED THE GAME IN THE 1800s AND BY THE TURN OF THE CENTURY, COLLEGE TEAMS WERE FORMING THROUGHOUT THE NORTH EAST.

EVENTUALLY SCHOOLS LIKE JOHNS HOPKINS, MARYLAND AND SYRACUSE EMERGED AS PERENNIAL CONTENDERS.

CURRENTLY, MEN'S LACROSSE IS A VARSITY SPORT AT OVER 400 COLLEGES ACROSS THE COUNTRY... NONE OF WHICH ARE HISTORICALLY BLACK.

>> "THE MORGAN LACROSSE" STORY IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY CONSTELLATION ENERGY COMMITTED TO ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND, ENERGY EFFICIENT AND SUSTAINABLE ENERGY SOLUTIONS.

CONSTELLATION ENERGY- THE WAY ENERGY WORKS.

[MUSIC] >> MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY IS LOCATED IN NORTHEAST BALTIMORE.

WHEN THE CAMPUS MOVED THERE FROM THE WEST SIDE OF TOWN IN 1918, LOCALS PROTESTED THE SALE OF THE LAND TO A 'NEGRO' COLLEGE.

IN THE 1960s RACIAL DIVIDES WERE AGAIN GROWING WIDER.

>> THESE WERE THE BEST OF TIMES AND THE WORST OF TIMES FOR BLACK STUDENTS...

IT WAS A TIME WHERE PRESIDENT KENNEDY HAD BEEN KILLED, MARTIN LUTHER KING HAD BEEN ASSASSINATED, THERE WERE RIOTS IN BALTIMORE CITY AND THE CITY WAS AFLAME.

WE WERE JUST COMING IN TO OUR FRESHMAN YEAR OF MORGAN, VIETNAM WAR WAS GOING ON... A VERY TURBULENT TIME.

>> BACK IN THOSE DAYS, MORGAN AND ALL OF THE OTHER BLACK HISTORICALLY COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES WERE FULL OF FIRE AND VIM.

THE STUDENTS VIEWED THEMSELVES AS BEING ON THE FRONT LINE OF REVOLUTION, BRINGING ABOUT CHANGE IN AMERICA.

>> BY THE END OF THE 1960s, THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT WAS ONLY BEGINNING TO MAKE A DENT IN SOCIAL INJUSTICE.

AMERICA WAS STILL MADE UP OF TWO SOCIETIES, BLACK AND WHITE-- SEPARATE AND UNEQUAL.

AT MORGAN STATE, THE UPPER-CLASS WHITE GAME OF LACROSSE WAS BEGINNING TO TAKE ROOT.

BEHIND THIS MOVEMENT, WAS A DETERMINED GROUP OF YOUNG MEN, AND THE HEART OF A COMMUNITY.

>> AT THAT TIME, QUITE HONESTLY, I DON'T THINK WE WERE LOOKING AT IT IN A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE.

I THINK WE WERE LOOKING AT IT MORE AS A MECHANISM FOR RELEASE.

IT WAS AN OUTLET FOR US-- A WAY THAT WE CAN EXPRESS OURSELVES ATHLETICALLY.

>> WE WERE PROUD BECAUSE WE WERE BLACK, WE WERE PROUD BECAUSE WE WERE ACADEMICALLY SOUND AS AN INSTITUTION.

WE HAD RIOTS IN THE CITY, AND TURMOIL IN OUR COMMUNITIES.

BUT WE WERE ABLE TO TURN THAT TURMOIL INTO SOMETHING VERY PRODUCTIVE.

>> THE ACTUAL LIVING OUT OF CREATING EQUALITY WAS AN ONGOING PROJECT.

AND IN THE LATE '60s AND EARLY 70'S WE WERE INVOLVED IN THAT ONGOING PROJECT TO THE EXTENT THAT WE WERE ABOUT TO EMBARK ON WHAT WAS CONSIDERED TO BE A WHITE SPORT WITH AN ALL BLACK TEAM >> FRATERNITY BROTHERS MILES HARRISON AND VAL EMERY, LOCAL STUDENTS WHO HAD PLAYED LACROSSE IN HIGH SCHOOL, WERE THE FIRST TO DISCUSS THE IDEA OF FORMING A MORGAN TEAM.

THE FALL OF 1969 WAS THE START OF THEIR JUNIOR YEAR AND TIME WAS RUNNING OUT ON THEIR ATHLETIC CAREERS.

IF THEY WANTED TO PLAY LACROSSE AGAIN, THEY NEEDED THE SUPPORT OF ATHLETIC DIRECTOR EARL BANKS.

>> LACROSSE WAS SOMETHING THAT I NEVER GOT MY FILL OF.

AND SO I STARTED TALKING TO COACH BANKS, LETTING HIM KNOW THAT WE'VE GOT ENOUGH TALENT HERE, THAT IF WE STARTED WE'D PROBABLY START AT A REALLY HIGH LEVEL AND CAN YOU PLEASE TRY TO SEE IF YOU CAN GET THE ADMINISTRATION TO DO THAT?

>> FEARING A DRAIN ON THE ALREADY-STRAPPED ATHLETIC BUDGET, BANKS TRIED TO IGNORE THE RISING TIDE OF STUDENT INTEREST.

>> I WAS A PRETTY GOOD STUDENT.

I HAD SOME RELATIVES WHO WERE FAIRLY HIGH UP IN THE ADMINISTRATION THERE.

SO WITH KIND OF THOSE BACKGROUND HELPERS COACH BANKS SAID, "WELL, IF YOU COULD FIND US A COACH, WE'LL SEE IF WE CAN DO IT."

>> THESE BOYS WANTED TO PLAY LACROSSE, THEY WERE NOT BOYS WHO WENT TO SCHOOL TO PLAY BALL.

THESE WERE KIDS WHO HAD A DEFINITE GOAL IN THEIR MIND FOR THEIR CAREER... THEIR CAREER PATH.

AND IT TAKES THAT KIND OF STUDENT TO DO LACROSSE.

SO THEY WORRIED EVERYBODY TO DEATH TO HELP THEM GET A LACROSSE TEAM, SO THEY WENT AROUND AND FINALLY THE ATHLETIC DIRECTOR GAVE IN.

>> ALTHOUGH RELUCTANT TO THE IDEA, BANKS TURNED TO ONE OF THE FEW PEOPLE ON CAMPUS HE THOUGH MIGHT BE ABLE TO HELP, 27-YEAR OLD ASSISTANT DEAN, CHIP SILVERMAN.

>> WHEN HE TALKED, YOU LISTENED, YOU WERE IN AW, TALKING TO HIM, I MEAN HE WAS LIKE VINCE LOMBARDI, BEAR BRYANT, EDDIE ROBINSON ALL ROLLED INTO ONE.

HE USED TO CALL ME "SIBMIN" A HURRIED PRONUNCIATION OF "SILVERMAN" AND HE SAID, "SIBMIN, YOU BEING WHITE AND ALL, YOU PROBABLY PLAYED LACROSSE, DIDN'T YA?

I SAID, "COACH BANKS THAT'S KIND OF RACIST STATEMENT, ISN'T IT?"

HE SAID, "DID YOU PLAY LACROSSE?"

"YEAH."

"ARE YOU WHITE?"

"YEAH."

"WELL THEN?"

I SAID "OKAY, SO I PLAYED LACROSSE."

HE SAID, "WELL, LISTEN WE GOT THIS UH, PROBLEM HERE."

>> A BALTIMORE NATIVE, SILVERMAN HAD PLAYED THE GAME IN HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE, BUT COACHING WAS A DIFFERENT STORY.

>> SO HE SAID TO ME, "YOU'LL COACH THE LACROSSE TEAM."

NOT ASKING ME OR EVERYTHING JUST TELLING ME I'LL COACH THE LACROSSE TEAM.

I SAID, "COACH BANKS I HAVE NO EXPERIENCE, I'M 27 YEARS OLD. "

THE ONLY COACHING I DID WAS AT A PLAYGROUND I GREW UP IN.

I MIGHT OF COACHED 8, 10 YEAR OLD KIDS IN SOFTBALL.

AND HERE HE'S ASKING ME TO BE THE HEAD COACH THERE.

I SAID, "I DON'T THINK I COULD DO IT."

AND HE SAID, "I TOLD YOU'LL BE THE LACROSSE COACH."

>> BECAUSE OF ITS REPUTATION AS AN ELITE WHITE SPORT, MANY WONDERED IF THIS HISTORICALLY BLACK INSTITUTION COULD FIND PLAYERS WITH ANY EXPERIENCE.

BALTIMORE HAD A RICH LACROSSE HERITAGE, BUT THAT TRADITION RARELY INCLUDED THE BLACK COMMUNITY.

>> I WAS WELL AWARE THAT THERE WAS NO PREDOMINATELY OR ALL BLACK LACROSSE TEAM.

I WAS WELL AWARE THAT, UM, THERE WAS GOING TO BE SKEPTICISM ABOUT PERFORMANCE.

AND I WAS AWARE THAT ONCE WE PUT THIS TEAM TOGETHER THAT THERE WERE GOING TO BE QUESTIONS ABOUT WHETHER WE COULD FUNCTION, BUT THERE WERE NO QUESTIONS IN MY MIND THAT WE COULD.

>> LACROSSE IS A PHYSICAL GAME REQUIRING STRENGTH AND ENDURANCE.

THE FIELD IS 110 YARDS LONG AND 60 YARDS WIDE AND FOR THOSE WHO KNOW THE GAME, ITS OFTEN REFERRED TO AS "THE FASTEST GAME ON 2 FEET."

THE HARD RUBBER BALL CAN MOVE FROM END TO END IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE.

[PEOPLE CHEERING] >> AS YOU'RE RUNNING DOWN THE FIELD THINGS ARE CHANGING.

>> I DON'T KNOW ANY OTHER SPORT WHERE YOU CAN COVER 110 YARDS IN A MATTER OF SECONDS.

>> ONCE I GOT INTO IT, I WAS JUST HOOKED.

[SPORTS ANNOUNCER] >> HOW I COULD I HAVE EVER PLAYED BASEBALL?

IT SEEMS LIKE YOU'RE WATCHING GRASS GROW I DON'T MEAN TO OFFEND ANY BASEBALL FANS.

I STILL LIKE THE ORIOLES, BUT LACROSSE AFFORDED MORE OF AN ADRENALINE RUSH FOR ME.

>> YOU COULD GET INVOLVED IN EVERY PLAY, EVERY PLAY OF THE GAME.

WHERE AS IN BASEBALL, IF YOU PLAY RIGHT FIELD AND THEY DON'T HIT YOU THE BALL, YOU JUST STAND THERE ALL GAME.

>> LACROSSE GOALIES POSSES LIGHTNING-QUICK REFLEXES AND THE THREE SURROUNDING DEFENSE MEN ARE AGILE AND AGGRESSIVE.

>> THE ATTRACTION IS THE SPEED OF THE GAME, THE CONTACT.

YOU KNOW, YOU CAN HIT SOMEBODY.

>> I LIKE THE PHYSICAL CONTACT, I LIKE THE RUNNING.

IT JUST HAD ALL THE THINGS I LIKED IN A GAME.

>> THE DIRECTION OF THE GAME CAN CHANGE SUDDENLY AND LACROSSE MID FIELDERS MUST PLAY BOTH ENDS OF THE FIELD.

>> I'M ON DEFENSE THIS MINUTE, OFFENSE THIS MINUTE, AND I CAN RUN UP AND DOWN THE FIELD.

OH, I LOVED IT...

I LOVED IT.

>> THE ATTACK MEN MOVE THE BALL FROM STICK TO STICK WITH ASTONISHING EASE AND CAN SHOOT THE BALL OVER 100 MILES PER HOUR.

TEAMS REGULARLY TALLY OVER 15 GOALS IN A SINGLE GAME.

>> AND THAT BALL MOVING... THAT'S POETRY IN MOTION.

>> THE GREAT EQUALIZER IS THE STICK, AND AS LONG AS YOU CAN BECOME PROFICIENT WITH A STICK YOU CAN TRULY PLAY AGAINST SOMEONE BIGGER AND BE EQUAL.

>> EVERY TIME I PICKED UP THE STICK, I GOT BETTER, EVERY TIME.

[MUSIC] >> BALTIMORE IS KNOWN FOR ITS BLUE-COLLAR HERITAGE AND ITS ETHNIC NEIGHBORHOODS.

FOR SOME, IT IS ALSO KNOWN FOR ITS LACROSSE.

ONE OF THE FEW PLACES IN THE COUNTRY WHERE THIS SPORT TAKES CENTER STAGE.

>> THE BALTIMORE METRO AREA...

IF YOU GO BACK 20 YEARS YOU GO TO THE SAME SCHOOLS, THE SAME NEIGHBORHOODS, THE SAME REC LEAGUES AND THEY WERE THRIVING VIBRANTLY LACROSSE TEAMS BACK THEN AND IT'S STILL THAT WAY... TO GO AND SEE A HIGH SCHOOL LACROSSE GAME IN BALTIMORE IS AS GOOD AS IT GETS QUITE FRANKLY.

PERSONALLY.

SO MANY DADS HAD PLAYED AND SO MANY OLDER BROTHERS WERE PLAYING THAT MY AGE GROUP, WE BEGAN TO PLAY ORGANIZED LACROSSE, TWO OR THREE PRACTICES A WEEK AND GAMES EVERY WEEK, WHEN I WAS STILL IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL >> BUT FOR ALL THE ATTENTION AND SUPPORT LACROSSE RECEIVED FROM THE COMMUNITY, THE SPORT REMAINED, FOR THE MOST PART, A WHITE MAN'S GAME.

>> YOU HAVE BLACKS LIVING HERE ON ONE SIDE OF THE TOWN, THE WHITES LIVING ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE TOWN.

... AND BY HAVING THESE DIFFERENT AREAS, LACROSSE JUST DIDN'T TRICKLE DOWN TO LEXINGTON AND LEFAIR STREET.

>> LACROSSE WASN'T AN INNER-CITY GAME, SO THE BLACKS WEREN'T REALLY EXPOSED TO IT.

THE ORIGINS OF LACROSSE WERE REALLY A... KIND OF A RICH MAN'S GAME, KIND OF A PREP-SCHOOL TYPE OF GAME AND THE BLACKS, I DON'T THINK, IDENTIFIED WITH THAT.

>> THE HIGH COST OF LACROSSE EQUIPMENT AND PEER PRESSURE TO COMPETE IN GAMES THAT WERE IDENTIFIED WITH THE INNER-CITY, KEPT LACROSSE OUT OF REACH FOR LOWER-CLASS FAMILIES.

>> BASKETBALL TO ME IS SOMETHING THAT IS SOCIALLY ACCEPTED FOR INNER CITY KIDS, MEANING YOU CAN PUT A BASKETBALL OUT AND A THOUSAND KIDS CAN PLAY WITH IT.

>> WHY IS IT THAT THERE ARE MORE AFRICAN AMERICANS PLAYING BASKETBALL?

THE REASON PROBABLY IS THAT THEY ARE DRIVEN TO THAT IN A CERTAIN SENSE IN THEIR COMMUNITY.

THAT'S WHAT THEY DO, THAT'S WHAT THEY HAVE TO DO TO, OKAY, TO MAYBE TRY AND MAKE IT OUT OF THE COMMUNITY OR THAT'S WHAT THE COMMUNITY EXPECTS OF THEM.

>> IN THE 1960s, THE CITY'S ETHNIC AND RACIAL POPULATIONS WERE SHIFTING AND PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS REFLECTED THIS CHANGE.

>> THERE WAS A THING CALLED RED LINING BACK THERE, THAT WAS KIND OF UNDER THE RADAR SCREEN, BUT POLITICIANS AND REALTORS WERE REALLY CHANNELING, THE BLACKS, FOLLOWING THE JEWS FROM DOWNTOWN OUT LIBERTY RD., REISTERSTOWN RD., PARK HEIGHT AVE., THAT AREA.

>> AT SCHOOLS LIKE EDMONDSON IN WEST BALTIMORE, SPORTS USUALLY ASSOCIATED WITH WHITE SCHOOLS WERE NOW OPEN TO A NEW COMMUNITY.

>> WHEN EDMONDSON FIRST OPENED IT WAS ALL WHITE.

AND BY EDMONDSON BEING WHITE AND US MOVING INTO THE AREA, WE JUST NATURALLY WENT OUT FOR THE DIFFERENT ATHLETICS AND LACROSSE WAS ONE OF THOSE SPORTS THAT WAS OFFERED AT THE SCHOOL.

>> I GOT INVOLVED IN LACROSSE BECAUSE A KID AROUND THE CORNER FROM ME HAD A LACROSSE STICK.

WE THOUGHT IT WAS A CRAB NET.

>> THERE WERE NOT A LOT OF LACROSSE TEAMS IN THE AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY, BUT...

THEY PICKED IT UP AND THEY RAN WITH IT.

>> MORE AND MORE BLACK ATHLETES IN BALTIMORE STARTED PLAYING LACROSSE.

FORTUNATELY FOR SILVERMAN, MANY OF THESE PLAYERS ENDED UP AT MORGAN STATE.

>> EDMONDSON HIGH SCHOOL HAD A COUPLE OF VERY GOOD TEAMS IN A ROW IN THE EARLY 1970s.

THOSE PLAYERS FORMED THE CORE OF THE PROMINENT PLAYERS THAT MORGAN STATE HAD IN THE 1970S.

>> IN THE SPRING OF 1970, THE MORGAN STATE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT ADDED MEN'S LACROSSE TO THEIR LIST OF SPORTS.

OVER 30 STUDENTS CAME OUT FOR THE TEAM.

>> I LOVED THE GAME OF LACROSSE... AND KNEW ENOUGH ABOUT IT THAT I FIGURED MAYBE I CAN MUDDLE THROUGH THIS KIND OF STAY AHEAD OF KIDS EVERY DAY.

THERE WERE ABOUT 6 GUYS FROM EDMONDSON HIGH.

THEY'RE MY NUCLEUS OF STICK HANDLERS AND STUFF AND MAYBE WE'LL SURPRISE SOME PEOPLE.

>> WE HAD NO MONEY, WE HAD NO SUPPORT FROM THE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT, AND SO WHAT HAD LITERALLY HAPPENED WAS, THE GUYS DECIDED HELL OR HIGH WATER, WE'RE GONNA HAVE A GOOD LACROSSE TEAM.

>> THEY HAD BEEN TRAINED TO FEEL THAT YOU'RE AS GOOD AS ANYBODY ELSE AND YOU GO OUT THERE AND DO WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO.

>> AS SILVERMAN BEGAN HIS FIRST SEASON AS THE HEAD COACH OF MORGAN'S LACROSSE TEAM, IT BECAME CLEAR THAT THE ODDS WERE STACKED AGAINST HIM.

SUPPORT FROM THE UNIVERSITY WAS LIMITED, AND HE FOUND IT DIFFICULT TO MOTIVATE HIS PLAYERS.

>> THE FIRST DAY OF PRACTICE, I REMEMBER, I KIND OF WAS TRYING TO GET THE RESPECT OF THE GUYS AND I SAYS "COME ON, LET'S GO, LET'S TAKE A LAP AROUND THE FIELD, LET'S GET RUNNING" AND NOBODY WAS DOING ANYTHING.

FINALLY, I JUST FREAKED OUT.

>> I THINK IT TOOK A LITTLE TIME TO BE ACCEPTED.

HERE, WE HAD A LITTLE JEWISH GUY WHO WAS TRYING TO TELL US HOW TO PLAY LACROSSE.

WE SAID, "WHO THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING TO, YA PEE WEE?"

>> WHAT IS THIS WHITE GUY GOING TO TELL ME ABOUT PLAYING LACROSSE?

WE WERE ALL ABOUT THE SAME AGE AND ALL.

SO WHAT IS HE GOING TO TELL US ABOUT LACROSSE, YOU KNOW, BASICALLY?

>> THE MORGAN STATE BEARS WORE SECOND-HAND JERSEYS, PRACTICED ON HALF A FIELD, AND RARELY HAD ENOUGH PLAYERS AT PRACTICE TO SCRIMMAGE.

ON MARCH 16th, 1970, THEY PLAYED THEIR FIRST GAME AGAINST THE COMMUNITY COLLEGE OF BALTIMORE.

>> THERE IS AN UNSPOKEN CAMARADERIE THAT AFRICAN AMERICAN ATHLETES HAVE.

AND THIS IS AN INTERNAL FEELING THAT WE HAVE THAT WE'VE BEEN GIVEN SOME ATHLETIC GIFTS AND THAT NOBODY CAN OVERCOME THOSE GIFTS.

REGARDLESS OF WHAT THE SPORT IS, AS LONG AS YOU GIVE US TIME ENOUGH TO LEARN THE SPORT, OUR GIFTS ARE GOING TO ALLOW US TO RISE TO THE TOP OF THAT SPORT.

AND IT'S JUST THE WAY WE FELT.

AND I'VE FELT THAT WAY IN EVERY SINGLE SPORT I'VE PARTICIPATED IN.

AND THIS ONE ESPECIALLY.

AND WHAT WE'RE DOING IS ALLAYING EACH OTHER'S INSECURITY.

UNDERSTAND, I'M TALKING TOUGH, BUT INSIDE WE'RE REALLY WONDERING, CAN WE DO THIS?

CAN WE REALLY DO THIS?

>> MORGAN STATE WAS DISORGANIZED AND UNDISCIPLINED AND SEVERAL COACHING ERRORS COST THEM THE GAME, YET SILVERMAN WAS ENCOURAGED.

>> IT WAS A CLOSE GAME.

AND I COULD SEE THE TALENT THAT WE HAD AND IT WAS JUST A CASE OF ME REALLY LEARNING.

>> MILES HARRISON DISPLAYED SOME OF THE TALENT THAT HAD MADE HIM AN ALL-STATE PLAYER AND SEVERAL OTHERS SHOWED PROMISE.

BUT THE BEARS WERE MISSING AN OFFENSIVE SPARK... A PLAYER THAT COULD CHANGE THE GAME.

>> WAYNE JACKSON WAS A HIGH SCHOOL TEAMMATE OF SEVERAL MORGAN PLAYERS AND WAS WATCHING THE FIRST GAME FROM THE STANDS.

JACKSON DID NOT INITIALLY COME OUT FOR THE TEAM BECAUSE HE HAD SPRING FOOTBALL PRACTICE.

SHORTLY AFTER THE GAME HOWEVER, HE INFORMED SILVERMAN THAT HIS SERVICES WERE NOW AVAILABLE.

I SAID, "YOU GOT A VERY NICE TEAM," YOU KNOW, I SAID, "YOU'RE MISSING ONE THING."

HE SAID, "WHAT'S THAT?"

>> WAYNE IS AN ATHLETE WHO IS VERY CONFIDENT AND SIMPLY SAID TO CHIP, "YOU'RE MISSING SOMETHING OUT THERE.'

AND HE SAID, IT'S ME."

>> HE KIND OF LOOKED AT ME AND DIDN'T ANSWER ME RIGHT AWAY, YOU KNOW.

I GUESS HE SAID, "THIS LITTLE ARROGANT GUY COMING UP TO ME TALKING ABOUT I NEED HIM.

WHO IS HE?"

YOU KNOW.

>> WHAT HE WAS SAYING IS, THAT FIRST MID FIELD'S MISSING A DYNAMIC PLAYER.

AND HE WAS RIGHT.

HE WAS ABSOLUTELY RIGHT.

>> NOW REUNITED WITH HIS HIGH SCHOOL TEAMMATES FROM EDMONDSON, JACKSON'S PRESENCE COMPLETED SILVERMAN'S STARTING TEN.

HIS IMPACT WAS IMMEDIATE AND THE BEARS WENT ON TO WIN LOCAL GAMES VERSUS CATONSVILLE, ESSEX AND THE TOWSON STATE FRESHMEN.

>> WAYNE JACKSON WAS PROBABLY ONE OF THE TOP TEN PLAYERS I EVER SAW IN MY LIFE PLAY THE GAME.

>> AND THE MOMENT THAT HE WAS IN THE FIRST MID FIELD, THAT STARTING 10, I CAN TELL YOU, COULD HAVE PLAYED AGAINST ANYBODY.

>> SILVERMAN QUICKLY ADAPTED TO THE UNIQUE CHARACTER OF THE TEAM AND FOCUSED ON HIS PLAYERS' NATURAL STRENGTHS.

>> HE WAS THE RIGHT MAN TO BE COACHING THAT TEAM.

I'M NOT SURE TOO MANY WHITE MEN COULD HAVE GAINED THE RESPECT AND THE ATTENTION FROM THE PLAYERS THAT HE DID OF THOSE MORGAN STATE GUYS.

>> CHIP, THOUGH LOOSE HE WAS, ENCOURAGED THEM TO BE THE WAY THEY WERE >> CHIP, DESPITE THE LACK OF SUPPORT, UH, PERSEVERED.

I MEAN, THAT IN ITSELF, YOU CAN CALL A MIRACLE.

>> I DON'T EVER RECALL EVERYBODY BEING AT PRACTICE IN ALL THE YEARS THAT I COACHED THERE AND I HAD AN ASSISTANT SAY TO ME ONE TIME, "WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO, ARE YOU GOING TO THROW THEM OFF THE TEAM, YOU'RE GOING TO SUSPEND THEM... " THIS AND THAT.

I SAID, LOOK, YOU KNOW, MY KIDS COME FROM A DIFFERENT LIFESTYLE, DIFFERENT CULTURE.

YOU KNOW, GETTING HERE, THEY COULD BE 8 TO 5 TO GET HERE ALIVE EVERY DAY, LET ALONE GET TO PRACTICE.

>> FOR MANY OF SILVERMAN'S PLAYERS, LACROSSE WAS A RELATIVELY NEW SPORT AND THEIR SKILLS WITH THE STICK WERE ROUGH.

IF THEY WANTED TO COMPETE WITH MORE EXPERIENCED PLAYERS, THEY HAD TO EXCEL IN OTHER AREAS.

>> OUR BRAND OF OFFENSIVE LACROSSE WAS DIFFERENT THAN OTHER TEAMS BECAUSE WE DID NOT HAVE MULTIPLE, VERY GOOD STICK USERS, SO WE COULDN'T WHIP THE BALL AROUND.

THAT DISADVANTAGE BECAME AN ADVANTAGE.

I THINK WE ALL LEARNED TO USE PICKS AND TO DODGE BETTER BECAUSE WE HAD TO DO IT THAT WAY.

>> IF WE IN SHAPE, WE CAN RUN IN THAT FOURTH QUARTER, WE CAN MAKE UP WHAT WE LACK IN THE STICK ABILITY, SKILL LEVEL, YOU KNOW.

WE COULD RUN WITH THE BEST OF THEM.

WE HAD SOME HORSES ON THAT TEAM.

>> WHEN WE WERE ON THE FIELD, WE PLAYED TO WIN, AND BY THE MEANS NECESSARY WITHIN THE CONFINES OF THE RULES.

>> CHIP SAYS, "HEY, YOU DON'T HAVE THE STICK WORK, BUT YOU GOT THE HEART, AND THAT'S GONNA MAKE THE DIFFERENCE IN THE GAME."

AND CERTAINLY, THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED.

>> SEVERAL MORGAN FOOTBALL PLAYERS HAD JOINED THE TEAM AND THE BEARS USED THEIR PHYSICAL PRESENCE TO INTIMIDATE THEIR OPPONENTS.

>> WE WERE BIG, WE WERE FAST, WE WERE STRONG, WE WERE INTIMIDATING... CHIP USED TO SAY "HEY, LOOK MAN, THESE WHITE BOYS ARE SCARED OF YOU, KNOCK A COUPLE OF THEM OUT."

>> AS SOON AS OUR STRENGTH AND POWER WAS RECOGNIZED, YOU COULD SEE A DIFFERENCE IN THEIR BODY MOVEMENTS AND THEIR DEMEANOR.

IT WAS NO LONGER THE AGGRESSIVE DEMEANOR, IT WAS PROTECTIVE.

SO I THINK WE HAD A DISTINCT ADVANTAGE WITH OUR SPEED AND SIZE.

>> WE WERE EVOLVING INTO A PRETTY GOOD TEAM AND WE WERE VERY PHYSICAL.

AND, SO, AFTER ABOUT A QUARTER, YOU COULD SEE THE FEAR IN THE EYES OF A LOT OF THESE TEAMS.

>> THEY FINISHED THEIR FIRST SEASON WITH A 13 TO 4 WIN OVER MOUNT ST. MARY'S AND A RECORD OF FIVE WINS AND THREE LOSES.

ALMOST ALL OF SILVERMAN'S PLAYERS WOULD BE BACK FOR ANOTHER SEASON.

>> YOU COULD SEE THE NATURAL ATHLETIC ABILITY OF THE MORGAN STATE GUYS AND THAT THEY WERE JUST A STEP AWAY FROM BEING VERY OUTSTANDING WITH ANOTHER COUPLE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE, YOU COULD JUST SEE IT JUST TAKING OFF.

>> MORGAN STATE, I'M SURE BEGAN THE SEASON, NOT WITH THE IDEA THAT THEY WERE GOING TO HAVE THAT KIND OF SUCCESS, BUT WITH THE IDEA THAT THEY WERE GOING TO WORK AT THIS AS STRONG AS THEY POSSIBLY COULD AND WHEN IT STARTED TO HAPPEN FOR THEM AND THEY STARTED TO HAVE SUCCESS, THAT SUCCESS ONLY CREATED MORE ENERGY ON THEIR PART.

>> DESPITE THE BEARS' MODEST SUCCESS, SOME OPPOSING COACHES AND FANS ASSUMED THEY WERE OUT OF THEIR LEAGUE AND THEY WERE FREQUENTLY CAST AS UNDERDOGS.

>> WHEN I FIRST WENT TO THAT LACROSSE CONVENTION AND I'M STARTING TO SCHEDULE TEAMS, EVERYBODY WANTED TO PLAY US... "IT'S A BLACK TEAM, THEY CAN'T BE ANY GOOD."

>> THERE WERE A LOT OF PEOPLE, I THINK, THAT WAS IN AWE OF US BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT THAT THEY WERE GOING TO JUST RUN OVER US AND THAT WE WERE NOT GOING TO BE COMPETITIVE, AND IT WAS BASED ON THE FACT THAT THEY DIDN'T FEEL THAT BLACKS KNEW ANYTHING ABOUT LACROSSE.

>> THE HEART OF RACISM IS INABILITY TO UNDERSTAND THE OTHER PERSON.

AND IF YOU HAVEN'T BEEN AROUND THAT OTHER PERSON YOU DON'T STAND A CHANCE OF KNOWING THEM.

>> IN 1971, URBAN AREAS ACROSS THE COUNTRY WERE STILL ENGULFED IN THE FLAMES OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT.

THE MORGAN STATE LACROSSE TEAM WAS NOT IMMUNE TO THE REALITIES OF SOCIAL INJUSTICE.

>> IT WAS PLAYED IN A HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT BECAUSE THE SOCIETY WAS DIFFERENT AT THE TIME.

THERE WERE STILL LYNCHINGS IN THE SOUTH.

THE N-WORD WAS STILL BEING SCRATCHED ON THE SIDE OF BUSES, AND THERE WERE STILL MARCHES GOING ON.

>> IT WAS MORE THAN JUST AN OPPOSING TEAM.

MAN, THEY WAS GOING AGAINST THE GRAIN OF CULTURE AND EVERYTHING.

THEY WAS GOING AGAINST SEGREGATION, YOU NAME IT.

>> THEIR SOLIDARITY IN THE FACE OF DISCRIMINATION EMBODIED THE CIVIL RIGHTS STRUGGLE.

AS A RESULT, THE TEAM'S POPULARITY GREW ON CAMPUS, ESPECIALLY WITH VIETNAM VETERANS LIKE TIGER DAVIS.

>> WE VIEWED THE LACROSSE TEAM AS BEING PART AND PARCEL OF THE FRONTLINE STRUGGLE FOR LIBERATION IN AMERICA... >> CHIP WAS LOOKING AT IT AS AN ATHLETIC TEAM, YOU KNOW, BLAH BLAH, THIS AND THAT.

BUT IT WAS MORE THAN THAT TO ME.

>> WHEREAS I MIGHT HAVE LOOKED AT IT AS A GAME AND AN OPPORTUNITY FOR A HISTORICALLY BLACK SCHOOL, YOU KNOW, TO SHOW THAT THEY COULD ALSO PLAY LACROSSE AND THIS AND THAT, THEY SAW IT MORE AS AN ISSUE OF RACE, THE STRUGGLE, THE POLITICS AND THE FABRIC OF SOCIETY THEN AND PART OF THE WHOLE CIVIL RIGHTS STRUGGLE.

IT WAS TRULY A COMPETITION THAT, BECAUSE THE ONE TEAM WAS ALL BLACK AND THE OTHER TEAM WAS ALL WHITE, BY DEFINITION, HAD A RACIAL OVERTONE.

WHETHER WE WANTED TO RECOGNIZE IT, ACKNOWLEDGE IT, BY DEFINITION IT HAD A RACIAL OVERTONE TO IT >> THE BEARS HEARD RACIAL SLURS FROM OPPOSING PLAYERS ON OCCASION, BUT INSULTS FROM THE STANDS WERE FAR MORE COMMON.

>> WERE THERE INSTANCES OF RACISM?

YEAH.

YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES I WOULD NOTICE THE OTHER TEAM MIGHT LET A RACIAL SLUR SLIP A LITTLE BIT TO SEE IF YOU COULD GET THE GUY THROWN OUT OF THE GAME FOR GETTING INTO A FIGHT AND ALL.

>> THE "N" WORD WAS USED VERY LIBERALLY.

SOME REFERENCES TO ANIMALS, LIKE MONKEYS, AND THINGS LIKE THAT.

THOSE WERE KIND OF USED.

>> THEY THREW BEER CANS AT US FROM THE SIDELINES AND EVERYTHING, YOU KNOW, BUT WE PLAYED THROUGH IT, YOU KNOW.

GET A LITTLE WORRIED ABOUT GOING HOME, GETTING OUT OF THERE.

BUT, YOU KNOW, IT'S PART OF THE GAME, YOU KNOW.

WE REALIZE THAT WE HAD TO DEAL WITH IT.

>> I WAS PRETTY STRICT WITH MY PLAYERS.

I TOLD THEM, "NEVER LET EMOTION RULE YOU ON THAT FIELD.

I DON'T CARE WHAT THE OTHER TEAM CALLS YOU, LET IT GO."

>> ON CAMPUS, THE PLAYERS WERE SURROUNDED BY PROTESTS AND POLITICAL ACTIVISM, BUT ON THE LACROSSE FIELD, THEY LET THEIR ACTIONS SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES.

>> THE WAY I EXPLAINED IT TO THE GUYS WHEN THEY CAME BACK TO THE SIDELINES, BECAUSE I WAS ALWAYS THERE, AND I GAVE IT TO THEM STRAIGHT UP, I SAID LOOK, YOU KNOW THOSE WHITE BOYS ARE ALWAYS GOING TO PLAY DIRTY AGAINST US, AND YOU KNOW THE OFFICIALS ARE GOING TO BACK THEM UP AND SO THERE'S NO SENSE IN CRYING, JUST GET YOU ASS IN GEAR AND GET OUT THERE AND BEAT THE [DELETED] OUT OF THEM.

>> YOU'RE GETTING READY TO PLAY AGAINST THESE GUYS, SO YOU GOT TO TRY TO GET INTO THEIR HEAD TO SEE, YOU KNOW, WHERE HIS HEAD IS, YOU KNOW.

SO, I SAID IF YOU-- IF THEY'RE COMING HERE THINKING THAT, OH, WE'RE JUST GOING TO RUN OVER THESE GUYS, YOU KNOW, THEN I GOT THEM.

>> NOW, A GUY LIKE WAYNE JACKSON, WHEN THEY WOULD CALL WAYNE A [DELETED] WAYNE WOULD SCORE AND HE'D TURN AND SAY TO THEM, "THAT'S HOW A [DELETED] SCORES."

AND WHEN HE'D KNOCK THEM OUT OF BOUNDS, HE'D SAY, "THAT'S HOW A [DELETED] KNOCKS YOU OUT OF BOUNDS."

AND WHEN HE'D PICK UP A GROUND BALL AND THROW IN AN ASSIST, HE'D SAY "THAT'S HOW A [DELETED] PICKS UP A GROUND BALL AND THROWS AN ASSIST."

WELL, AFTER A WHILE, IT WAS LIKE, "WHAT ARE WE AGGRAVATING THIS GUY FOR?

HE'S ALREADY GOT SIX GOALS."

YOU KNOW, WE SHOULDN'T CALL HIM ANYTHING, EXCEPT WAYNE >> TRASH TALKING NOWADAYS IS THAT.

I MEAN, IT MAY NOT GO TO THAT EXTENT, BUT WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO DO IS GET INSIDE THE HEAD OF ANOTHER PLAYER SO THAT THEY ARE MENTALLY NOT PREPARED TO GO ON AHEAD AND DO WHAT THEY CAN PHYSICALLY DO.

SO I UNDERSTAND IT.

DIDN'T LIKE IT THEN.

THE UNFORTUNATE TRUTH IS IT BACKFIRED.

IT JUST MADE YOU PLAY HARDER.

>> OVER THE COURSE OF THEIR FIRST TWO SEASONS, SILVERMAN LINED THE FIELD, TAPED ANKLES, AND SOMETIMES EVEN BOUGHT STICKS WITH HIS OWN MONEY.

ALONG THE WAY, HE COMPILED A RECORD OF 14 WINS AND EIGHT LOSES.

>> HE'S JUST SO SMOOTH WITH EVERYTHING AND IN HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH PEOPLE AND, YOU KNOW, THE MORE I GOT TO KNOW HIM, THE MORE I GOT TO APPRECIATE HIM AND HOW HE'S RECEPTIVE TO YOUR SUGGESTIONS, YOUR THOUGHTS... BECAUSE WE CAN COME RIGHT TO CHIP AND SAY WHAT WE THINK AND CHIP WOULD WORK IT OUT, YOU KNOW.

AND WE JUST GOT THAT GOOD RELATIONSHIP LIKE THAT WITH HIM, YOU KNOW, AND THEN MADE IT FLOW, MAN.

IT FLOWED.

EVERYBODY FELT COMFORTABLE WITH IT.

>> SILVERMAN'S ABILITY TO NEGOTIATE WAS A CRITICAL PART OF THE TEAM'S SUCCESS, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT CAME TO CONVINCING HIGH SCHOOL KIDS TO ATTEND AN UNDER-FUNDED MINORITY SCHOOL.

ONE OF HIS MOST IMPORTANT RECRUITS WAS A LOCAL GOALIE NAMED COURTNEY SERVERY.

THE 5-FOOT-3 SERVERY WAS AN UNLIKELY HERO FOR THE BEARS, NOT BECAUSE OF HIS SIZE, BUT BECAUSE OF HIS SKIN COLOR.

>> THEY WERE JUST PHYSICAL SPECIMENS AND THEN YOU SEE ME WALK ON THE FIELD AND YOU SAY, "WELL, WHAT IN THE HELL IS HE DOING THERE?"

>> ANY WHITE KID THAT MADE MORGAN'S LACROSSE TEAM BACK THEN AND PLAYED LACROSSE WITH US HAD TO BE TOUGH.

>> THEY DIDN'T SCARE ME AT ALL.

AND I KNEW THEY COULD TAKE ME OUT IN A SECOND, BUT I WAS NEVER INTIMIDATED BY THEM.

AND, UH I THINK THEY RESPECTED THAT AND THEY GREW TO RESPECT IT MORE OVER THE YEARS.

>> THAT WAS A GOALIE, MAN.

HE HAD REFLEXES AND LEADERSHIP ABILITIES THAT I JUST FELT SAFE WITH HIM.

>> THE GRADUATION OF MILES HARRISON HAD LEFT A HUGE HOLE IN THE BEARS OFFENSIVE UNIT THAT SILVERMAN NEEDED TO FILL.

HE KNEW THAT THE COUNTRY'S BEST LACROSSE PLAYERS CAME FROM TWO PLACES, BALTIMORE... AND LONG ISLAND.

HEMPSTEAD HIGH SCHOOL'S DAVE RAYMOND ARRIVED CAMPUS IN THE FALL OF 1971.

THE UNASSUMING AND EASY-GOING RAYMOND WOULD EVENTUALLY GO ON TO SCORE MORE POINTS THAN ANY PLAYER IN MORGAN STATES' HISTORY.

>> DAVE WAS A SUPER ATTACK MAN.

I MEAN, STOP AND GO, THE AWARENESS, LIKE THE CORNER OF THE EYE, MAN, HE COULD SPOT YOU, YOU KNOW.

>> DAVE WAS JUST QUICK AS LIGHTNING.

I MEAN, HE WAS VERY QUICK.

HE HAD THE PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES TO BE GREAT.

>> I KNEW WE HAD THE MAKINGS OF A GOOD TEAM... WE HAD A SOLID GOALIE.

WE HAD GOOD MIDIS.

AND THE ATTACK WAS PRETTY GOOD.

SO ALTOGETHER WITH THE GUYS FROM BALTIMORE, WE PUT TOGETHER A GOOD TEAM.

A GOOD PROGRAM AND WE GOT BETTER EVERY YEAR.

>> THE BEARS' ROSTER WAS STACKED WITH TALENT AND SILVERMAN SLOWLY REALIZED THAT HIS PLAYERS WERE FULL OF PERSONALITY.

>> YOU COULD SEE THAT CHIP REALLY WANTED THIS THING TO WORK AND IN ORDER FOR HIM TO GET IT TO WORK HE HAD TO HAVE EVERYBODY'S CONFIDENCE.

SO THAT'S WHY HE LET YOU BE YOURSELF A LITTLE BIT, HE LET YOU FREELANCE, HE LET YOU JOKE AROUND A LITTLE BIT.

>> THERE WERE EVEN INSTANCES WHERE MY WIFE WOULD COME DOWN AND SIT ON THE BENCH WITH THE PLAYERS AND SING WITH THEM ON THE BENCH.

AND THEN TELL ME "DON'T SEND THAT MIDFIELD IN THERE, THEY'RE HARMONIZING ON THE BENCH."

I MEAN, THIS IS HOW BANANAS IT KIND OF GOT.

>> THEY ALL HAD A SENSE OF HUMOR.

SOMEWAY OR ANOTHER, THEY WERE ALL FUNNY.

THEY ALL HAD THEIR LITTLE IDIOSYNCRASIES.

WE ALL HAD NICKNAMES MINE WAS "CARNATION BABY."

THAT WAS MY NICKNAME.

"POOPIE," I DON'T KNOW HOW HE GOT HIS.

THERE WAS "PUDDIN'", "PUD DIN' JONES", "DINKY," "DINKY BROWN."

THEY HAD NAMES FOR EVERYBODY.

>> WE JUST INITIATED THE WHITE PLAYERS, BUT WE INITIATED ALL THE NEW PLAYERS.

WE JUST HAD TO MAKE THEM PROVE THAT THEY REALLY WANTED TO BE PART OF THE TEAM AND WOULD HANG OUT WITH US, NOT JUST PRACTICE AND GO HOME.

>> I CAME FROM SUCH A SHELTERED BACKGROUND...

THEY WOULD TEASE THE HELL OUT OF ME ABOUT IT.

>> BUT THAT'S HOW WE WERE WITH EACH OTHER, YOU KNOW.

WE TEASE EACH OTHER AND AT THE SAME TIME WE WORKED HARD, THOUGH.

>> THE PLAYERS FREQUENTLY GOT TOGETHER AFTER PRACTICE AND GAMES AT THE OFF-CAMPUS APARTMENT OF 29 YEAR-OLD VIETNAM VETERAN, JAMES "POOPIE" WILLIAMS.

POOPIE'S APARTMENT BECAME AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE TEAM'S DEVELOPMENT ATHLETICALLY AND SOCIALLY.

>> WE USED TO TALK TO EACH OTHER, GO OVER THE DAY, REVIEW GAME, REVIEW WHAT WE SAW THAT PERSON DOING OR WHAT THEY COULD DO BETTER AND WE USED TO GO BY THE HOUSE, LIKE, THREE, FOUR DAYS A WEEK.

THERE'S LIKE 15 OF US IN THE HOUSE, WE WERE JUST SIT OVER THERE, DO A LITTLE PARTYING, MAKE A LITTLE CONVERSATION, AND MAKE A LOT OF NOISE.

>> WE STUCK TOGETHER, WE WENT EVERYWHERE TOGETHER, WE WERE ON CAMPUS TOGETHER, WE HAD AFTER PRACTICE GET-TOGETHERS, AND, YOU KNOW, IT WAS JUST LIKE A REAL FAMILY.

>> THAT WHOLE EXPERIENCE OF US JUST BEING TOGETHER AND MAKING IT MORE THAN JUST OUR ENCOUNTER ON THE FIELD.

GOING OFF THE FIELD, SHARING TIME, JUST THE WHOLE CAMARADERIE OF THE WHOLE SITUATION IS TECHNICALLY WHAT TOOK US THERE.

>> THEIR SUCCESS ATTRACTED MORE FANS TO THEIR GAMES AND THEIR POPULARITY BEGAN TO EXTEND BEYOND THE CAMPUS.

MANY SAW THE CONTESTS AS MORE THAN JUST GAMES.

>> YOU'RE ON THE SIDELINE AND YOU ARE WITNESSING SOMETHING THAT YOU KNOW IS A WHOLE NEW BEGINNING, AN ADVANCEMENT FOR YOU.

YOU KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING.

THEY ARE TAKING YOU ALONG.

SO IT'S... YOU'RE JUST THERE IN WONDERMENT.

STILL.

STILL.

>> THE POSITIVE IMPACT OF THE GAME ON THE COMMUNITY WAS NOT INCIDENTAL.

SINCE IT'S CREATION, LACROSSE HAS BEEN A COMMUNITY GAME.

>>LACROSSE IS THE ONLY INDIGENOUS GAME IN THIS COUNTRY.

LACROSSE IS A SPIRITUAL, CEREMONIAL EVENT WHICH NATIVE AMERICANS BELIEVE WAS GIVEN TO THEM BY THE CREATOR.

>> LACROSSE HAS BEEN ON THIS CONTINENT FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS.

IT IS THE ORIGINAL AMERICAN PASTIME.

IT WAS BELIEVED TO HEAL THE SICK AND SOMETIMES PLAYED TO PREPARE FOR WAR.

NATIVE AMERICANS PLAYED LACROSSE TO SEE INTO THEMSELVES AND TO LOOK OUTWARD AND STRENGTHEN THE COMMUNITY.

>> WHAT YOU ACTUALLY GET IN RETURN IS A SELF-ANALYSIS OF WHO YOU ARE AS YOU PLAY.

AS AN INDIVIDUAL IF I MAKE GOOD CHOICES AND I MAKE GOOD DECISIONS, IF I HAVE ETHICS, IF I HAVE VALUES, IF I HAVE CHARACTER, THEN HOPEFULLY, I AM GOING TO BE ABLE TO SERVE THE COMMUNITY THE WAY THE COMMUNITY SHOULD BE SERVED.

LACROSSE CAN HELP YOU DO THAT.

>> THE MAJORITY OF THE TEAMS THAT WE PLAYED, THEY THOUGHT THEY WOULD JUST WALK RIGHT IN AND RUN OVER US.

THEY WEREN'T EXPECTING ANY COMPETITION FROM US BUT, ONCE THE GAME STARTED, THEY KNEW THAT WE COULD PLAY.

>> THERE'S A BROTHERHOOD ABOUT THE GAME OF LACROSSE AND IT IS A REFLECTION OF THE HISTORY AND THE CULTURE OF THE GAME.

BECAUSE WE CAN GO OUT THERE AND KNOCK EACH OTHER AROUND, BUT WE RESPECT EACH OTHER FOR THE WAY THE GAME WAS PLAYED AND FOR THE EFFORT THAT WAS DISPLAYED.

>> THE MORGAN PLAYERS HARNESSED THE HEALING POWERS OF LACROSSE TO CHANGE THE NOTION THAT THIS WAS A GAME ONLY FOR WHITE PEOPLE.

ALWAYS POPULAR WITH THE BALTIMORE MEDIA, THE STORY OF THEIR STRUGGLE, WAS EVENTUALLY REPLACED WITH THE STORY OF THEIR SUCCESS.

>> WE WERE SO INTO THE SPORT, WE WERE SO INTO WINNING, IT WASN'T ABOUT BEING BLACK OR BEING WHITE.

IT WAS ABOUT WINNING... AND I WOULDN'T WANT TO BE KNOWN AS JUST A BLACK LACROSSE PLAYER.

I WOULD LIKE TO BE KNOWN AS A VERY GOOD LACROSSE PLAYER.

>> AS WE ENTER THESE LACROSSE GAMES AND WE PLAY AND WIN AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN ARE RESPECTED BY THE VERY PEOPLE WHO WERE JEERING AND SAYING SOME VERY INTERESTING THINGS TO US DURING THE GAME, UM, THERE WAS A LEVEL OF ACCOMPLISHMENT AND SATISFACTION THAT'S VERY HARD TO DESCRIBE.

BECAUSE WHAT YOU REALIZE IS YOU JUST MADE ANOTHER ATHLETE REALIZE, I'M AS GOOD AS YOU ARE, REGARDLESS OF WHAT COLOR I AM.

AND THOSE WERE THE KIND OF VICTORIES WE WANTED.

I MEAN, WE JUST WANT TO SHOW THAT IF YOU LEVEL THE PLAYING FIELD I CAN DO EVERYTHING YOU CAN DO.

>> THAT KIND OF STRUGGLE, YOU KNOW, TAUGHT US THAT YOU NOT ONLY HAVE TO HAVE DISCIPLINE, YOU HAVE TO HAVE HEART, AND YOU GOT OTHER PEOPLE JUST LIKE YOU OUT THERE THAT ARE READY TO BATTLE-BLACK AND WHITE.

IT DREW US TO BOND WITH OTHER PEOPLE OF OTHER CULTURES TOO, AND THAT WAS GOOD, THAT WAS HEALTHY.

>> I WOULD VENTURE TO SAY THAT AT THE END OF THE CONTEST THAT THE WHITE COMMUNITY OR THAT PARTICULAR WHITE TEAM HAD ENORMOUS RESPECT FOR WHAT JUST TRANSPIRED OUT THERE ON THE FIELD.

>> I REMEMBER ONE GAME PLAYING AGAINST UMBC AND I WAS ALWAYS TO PLAY THEIR #1 ATTACK PERSON, AND IT WAS A GUY NAMED DICKIE BOND, WHO WAS AN ALL-AMERICAN AT THE TIME.

AND WE TALKED TO EACH OTHER THE WHOLE GAME, I MEAN, IT WAS JUST TALKING SMACK, YOU KNOW BACK AND FORTH.

IT WAS JUST A FUN KIND OF THING TO DO.

HE SAID, "WELL, I'M GONNA SHOW YOU WHAT I'M MADE OF BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH."

AND I'M SAYING "YOU'RE NOT GONNA SCORE TODAY," YOU KNOW AND WE JUST TALKED BACK AND FORTH AND AT THE END OF THE GAME I THINK HE MIGHT HAVE SCORED ONE GOAL, BUT IT WAS BELOW WHAT HE HAD NORMALLY DONE.

AFTER THE GAME, WE HUGGED AND WE TALKED ABOUT IT FROM THE STANDPOINT THAT HE SAID HE WAS REALLY IMPRESSED AND SURPRISED AT WHAT WE HAD DONE.

ALMOST EVERY GAME THE OPPOSING TEAMS CAME BY AND CONGRATULATED US ON NOT ONLY BEING A CLEAN TEAM IN TERMS OF HOW WE PLAYED THE GAME, BUT ALSO BEING A QUALITY TEAM.

>> CHIP HAS TAKEN THESE GUYS AND MOLDED THEM INTO A NATIONALLY RESPECTED LACROSSE TEAM.

NOW THAT'S AMAZING!

>> IN 1973, WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITY IN LEXINGTON, VIRGINIA ADDED MORGAN STATE TO THEIR SCHEDULE.

THE GENERALS WERE A TOP-RANKED DIVISION ONE TEAM.

>> I WAS REALLY SURPRISED, TO BE HONEST WITH YOU, THAT WE EVEN PLAYED WASHINGTON & LEE.

THE FIRST YEAR, YOU KNOW, AND I THINK PROBABLY CHIP WAS TOO.

>> WASHINGTON AND LEE WAS ONE OF THE TOP THREE-FOUR TEAMS IN THE COUNTRY AT THE TIME...

IT WAS THE FIRST GAME OF THE YEAR, THEY TREATED US GREAT AND IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL, MAGNIFICENT SCHOOL.

>> YOU KNOW, GUYS WERE LIKE OKAY, WE'LL FIND OUT WHAT WE'RE MADE OF.

THIS IS A REALLY GOOD TEAM, WE'LL SEE WHAT OUR SEASON IS GOING TO BE LIKE BASED ON PLAYING THESE GUYS, AND THE FIRST YEAR WE WENT DOWN AND GOT BEAT PRETTY GOOD BY THEM.

>> IT WAS A GOOD EXPERIENCE FOR OUR GUYS AT WASHINGTON AND LEE, A UNIVERSITY THAT DIDN'T HAVE A LOT OF AFRICAN AMERICANS, TO REALIZE THAT THE AFRICAN AMERICANS WERE PLAYING THIS GAME.

>> THE TEAMS AGREED TO PLAY AGAIN IN VIRGINIA THE NEXT YEAR.

BEFORE THE SEASON, THE BEARS SELECTED POOPIE WILLIAMS AS THEIR CAPTAIN.

>> HERE'S A GUY WHO CAME BACK FROM VIETNAM AND HAD BEEN TO WAR...

THE OLD MAN ON THE TEAM, AND CAME BACK WITH LITTLE TO NO STICK WORK, AND WAS A GREAT MIDFIELDER.

>> WHAT WAS NATURAL WAS HIS LEADERSHIP.

THAT'S WHAT WAS NATURAL ABOUT POOPIE, AND IT WAS A QUIET LEADERSHIP.

BUT HE WAS ALSO THE MOST...

HE WAS THE GUY WHO WOULD STEP FORWARD.

HE WAS HEROIC, THAT'S WHAT POOPIE WAS.

OH, HE WAS HEROIC.

>> MONTHS BEFORE THE SEASON BEGAN, TRAGEDY STRUCK THE BEARS.

WILLIAMS AWOKE LATE ONE NIGHT WHEN HE HEARD SCREAMS COMING FROM THE APARTMENT NEXT DOOR.

>> HE RAN OUT OF THE APARTMENT INTO THE HALLWAY AND CAME UPON THESE THREE GUYS WHO WERE CONFRONTING THESE GIRLS.

POOPIE INTERVENED AND IN THE INTERIM THESE GUYS HAD GUNS AND THEY HAD KNIVES AND HE INTERVENED.

HE JUMPED IN THE MIDST OF THESE GUYS, UH, HARASSING-- NOT HARASSING, BUT REALLY BEATING UP THESE GIRLS AND HE WAS KILLED.

THE IRONY OF IT ALL WAS THAT HE HAD GONE TO VIETNAM AND COME BACK HOME AND IT WAS SUCH A GLORIOUS MOMENT BECAUSE POOPIE HAD COME BACK HOME AND HE HAD STARTED A NEW LIFE, AND HE CAME BACK HOME TO BALTIMORE ONLY TO BE KILLED.

>> AT WILLIAMS' FUNERAL, SILVERMAN AND SEVERAL PLAYERS SERVED AS PALL BEARERS.

THE TEAM WOULD WEAR A NUMBER 25 ON THEIR SLEEVE FOR SEVERAL SEASONS TO COME IN HIS MEMORY.

THE BEARS DEDICATED THE FOLLOWING SEASON TO POOPIE.

>> THEY INVITED US DOWN EVERY YEAR.

THEY WOULD GIVE US LODGING, THEY WOULD FEED US.

THEY TREATED US VERY WELL.

PROBABLY BECAUSE THEY USED TO BEAT THE HELL OUT OF US EVERY YEAR.

>> THE FIRST GAME OF THE 1974 SEASON WAS ANOTHER TRIP TO WASHINGTON AND LEE IN WHICH THE BEARS WERE SOUNDLY DEFEATED.

>> IT WAS PRETTY ONE-SIDED, BUT THEY WERE GOOD ATHLETES WHO JUST DIDN'T HAVE A WORLD OF EXPERIENCING PLAYING AND THE INTRICACIES OF THE GAME.

>> THEY KILLED US THAT YEAR.

BEAT US 16 TO 4, JUST DESTROYED US.

AND, SO, IT WAS NO PROBLEM GETTING THEM TO PLAY US AGAIN IN '75.

>> BEFORE HE COULD LOOK AHEAD TO A RE-MATCH WITH THE GENERALS, SILVERMAN NEEDED TO RELOAD.

>> WE WERE PLAYING TOWSON CATHOLIC THE LAST GAME OF MY HIGH SCHOOL CAREER.

AS I WOULD RUN TOWARDS THE EAST END OF THE FIELD, I WOULD HEAR SOME ONE LIKE... PSSST, PSST.

I WAS, LIKE LOOKIN' AROUND, "LIKE, WHAT IS THAT?"

FINALLY I LOOKED OVER THE BUSHES-- IT WAS CHIP.

LIKE "CAN I TALK TO YOU?

CAN I TALK TO YOU?"

AND THAT'S HOW I GOT MY SCHOLARSHIP - FROM CHIP HANGING IN THE BUSHES.

>> MORGAN STATE HAD A PROGRAM CALLED THE "OTHER RACE" GRANT, WHICH WAS INTENDED TO INCREASE DIVERSITY ON CAMPUS BY ATTRACTING WHITE STUDENTS TO THE SCHOOL.

SILVERMAN USED THIS PROGRAM AS ANOTHER WAY TO BOLSTER HIS ROSTER.

>> IF I SAW A WHITE KID AND HE WASN'T GOING TO GET TO GET THE FINANCIAL AID AT A WHITE SCHOOL, THEN I WOULD GO TO HIM AND I'D TELL HIM I HAD A LACROSSE SCHOLARSHIP FOR HIM.

WELL, IT WASN'T A LACROSSE SCHOLARSHIP, IT WAS THE OTHER RACE GRANT, BUT WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?

>> I THINK THE FACT THAT SOMEBODY CAME TO SEE ME, THE FACT THAT HE WANTED ME TO PLAY LACROSSE FOR HIM 'CAUSE I FIGURED I WOULD PLAY LACROSSE SOMEWHERE THAT PROBABLY MADE ME SAY, "WELL, I'LL LOOK INTO THIS."

I DON'T THINK I EVEN REMEMBER THINKING THAT STRONGLY THAT "OH IT'S A BLACK COLLEGE OR I'M A WHITE GUY OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT."

I HONESTLY DON'T REMEMBER THINKING LIKE THAT, I WAS JUST LIKE "HEY THIS GUY LIKES ME!"

>> THE FUTURE LOOKED PROMISING.

ALL-AMERICANS, DAVE RAYMOND AND COURTNEY SERVERY WOULD BE BACK FOR ANOTHER SEASON AND SEVERAL KEY RECRUITS ARRIVED ON CAMPUS IN THE FALL.

THE BEARS HAD EVOLVED INTO A SERIOUS CONTENDER IN THE COLLEGE LACROSSE WORLD.

THEY OPENED THE 1975 SEASON WITH ANOTHER GAME AT WASHINGTON AND LEE.

>> HERE WAS A TEAM-- WAS NUMBER ONE IN THE COUNTRY, OKAY.

A TEAM THAT AT THE END OF THAT SEASON, WENT TO THE DIVISION I TOURNAMENT AND BEAT HOPKINS, THE DEFENDING CHAMPS IN THE TOURNAMENT.

>> WHEN YOU LOOKED AT THEM YOU SAID "THAT'S A WELL-OILED MACHINE."

>> I RECALL THAT AFTER WE GOT READY FOR THE GAME THAT THE FIELD WAS ACROSS, LIKE, A FOOTBRIDGE AND THE TEAM KIND OF GOT TOGETHER AND WE KIND OF RAN AS A TEAM ACROSS THE BRIDGE.

TO THIS DAY, I REMEMBER THAT IT JUST SEEMED AS WE WERE MARCHING THE BRIDGE WE WERE JUST IN TANDEM AND IT WAS JUST MAKING THAT SOUND LIKE SOLDIERS GOING TO BATTLE.

>> THE CROWD IN THE STANDS WAS VERY BOISTEROUS, THEY WERE LOUD, THEY WERE SCREAMING AT US "YOU GUYS ARE GONNA GET HANDLED TODAY.

YOU GUYS ARE OUT OF YOUR LEAGUE," THAT TYPE OF THING.

>> I THOUGHT WE COULD COME CLOSE AND I KNEW WE WERE GOING TO HURT SOME PEOPLE.

THAT WAS PRETTY MUCH SELF-ASSURED OF.

>> THE GAME STARTED AND I THINK THAT RIGHT FROM THE GET GO THERE WAS NO DOUBT THAT IT WAS GONNA BE A GOOD GAME.

>> AT THE END OF THE FIRST QUARTER, WASHINGTON AND LEE WAS UP THREE TO ONE, BUT THE BEARS WERE NOT DISCOURAGED.

>> THEY WOULD USUALLY WEAR US DOWN, BUT IT DIDN'T HAPPEN THIS TIME.

I THINK THAT ENERGIZED US.

WE SAW THAT WE HAD A CHANCE OF BEATING THIS TEAM.

>> YOU COULD TELL THEY WEREN'T READY TO PLAY SOMEBODY WHO HAD BEEN WORKING SO HARD AS WE HAD TO PREPARE FOR THAT GAME AND TO HAVE THE CHALLENGE IN FRONT OF US THAT WE KNEW WE HAD.

>> FRESHMAN, MIKE WALSH SPARKED THE MORGAN ATTACK WITH A GOAL IN THE SECOND QUARTER BUT THE GENERALS BOUNCED RIGHT BACK WITH BACK TO BACK GOALS.

>> THERE WERE MOMENTS WHEN THEY SCORED A GOAL SO EASILY AND YOU WERE JUST LIKE "DOGGONIT, MAYBE THE TIDE'S GOING TO TURN," BUT WE KEPT DIGGING IN.

I THINK WE DREW A LOT OF INSPIRATION FROM COURTNEY IN THE GOAL.

>> AFTER TWO QUARTERS OF PLAY, THE BEARS WERE DOWN FIVE TO TWO.

IN THE LOCKER ROOM AT HALFTIME, SILVERMAN ADDRESSED THE TEAM.

>> "WE'RE DOING A FEW THINGS WRONG, LET'S TIGHTEN UP HERE.

LET'S CLEAR THE BALL.

LET'S STOP TURNING THE BALL OVER, AND WE'RE IN THIS GAME."

SO WE CAME OUT IN THE SECOND HALF AND WE JUST STARTED CLICKING.

>> GUYS GOT OUT THERE, THEY STARTED WINNING FACE OFFS.

GEORGE STARTED ANNIHILATING HIS, UM, ATTACK MEN.

>> IT JUST SEEMED LIKE WE COULD PLAY ON FOREVER.

>> GOALS BY RAYMOND AND MUG HUNT EARLY IN THE THIRD QUARTER PUT MORGAN WITHIN ONE, BUT AGAIN THE GENERALS BOUNCED BACK WITH ANOTHER GOAL.

>> THE STANDS STARTED GOING WILD.

WE STARTED GETTING A LOT OF HECKLERS.

>> JOHN WORKMAN RESPONDED FOR MORGAN STATE WITH CONSECUTIVE GOALS AND THE GAME WAS TIED FOR THE SECOND TIME.

>> IT WAS THE KIND OF GAME THAT EVERY GOAL THAT WAS SCORED, YOU WERE EITHER EXCITED, OR YOUR HEART SANK.

>> DEFENSIVELY, SERVAREY WAS STOPPING ALMOST EVERY SHOT AND THE TIDE WAS SLOWLY TURNING THEIR WAY.

>> THE COURSE OF THE GAME IT WAS SORT OF LIKE "OKAY, THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING.

OKAY, WE'LL TURN IT ON.

WE'LL TURN IT ON," AND, YOU KNOW, THE FURTHER YOU GOT INTO IT, I GUESS, THE MORE YOU SAW THAT, "WELL, WAIT A MINUTE.

IT'S NOT CLICKING OUR WAY," >> AS THE GAME WENT ON, YOU COULD SEE THAT THEY WERE GETTING FRUSTRATED BECAUSE THEY FELT LIKE THEY SHOULD BLOW US OFF THE FIELD, THAT WE SHOULDN'T HAVE EVEN BEEN ANY WHERE NEAR THEM AS FAR AS POINT WISE.

WE WERE GETTING TO THE POINT WHERE WE WERE SAYING "THIS IS A FEASIBLE GAME.

THIS IS GAME THAT WE CAN WIN."

>> EARLY IN THE 4th QUARTER, MORGAN STATE CAUGHT A BREAK WHEN THE WASHINGTON AND LEE BENCH WAS ISSUED A PENALTY FOR UN SPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT.

THE BEARS WOULD HAVE AN EXTRA MAN ADVANTAGE FOR 60 SECONDS.

WITH 12 MINUTES LEFT IN THE GAME, DAVE RAYMOND TOOK A PASS FROM DINK BROWN AND GAVE MORGAN THEIR FIRST LEAD OF THE GAME.

>> THE GUYS ERUPTED, THEY RAN OUT ONTO THE FIELD, WE CELEBRATED, THEY SLAPPED FIVE AND GUYS WENT BACK TO THE BENCH AND SO WE STARTED COMING BACK.

>> THE GENERALS WERE THE TOP-RANKED TEAM IN THE COUNTRY AND THE MORGAN PLAYERS KNEW THERE WAS PLENTY OF TIME FOR THEM TO COME BACK.

>> I WAS A LITTLE JITTERY BECAUSE I KNEW THEY WERE STILL IN CONTROL AND STILL COULD WIN AND STILL COULD DO WHATEVER THEY HAD TO DO.

I WAS JUST A LITTLE NERVOUS.

>> MY GUT WAS IN A TURMOIL, BECAUSE I WAS THINKING WE COULD WIN THIS THING AT THAT POINT.

>> MIKE WALSH ADDED AN INSURANCE GOAL FOR THE BEARS BUT WASHINGTON AND LEE'S ALL-AMERICAN ATTACK MAN, DONNIE CARROLL, SCORED HIS FOURTH GOAL OF THE GAME AND PUT THE GENERALS BACK INTO STRIKING DISTANCE.

THERE WERE LESS THAN TWO MINUTES LEFT IN THE GAME AND AGAIN, THE BALL ENDED UP IN CARROLL'S STICK.

>> THEN THEY CAME BACK AND THE TIME WAS RUNNING DOWN.. 20 SECONDS... 10... 9... THEIR MIDFIELDER MADE A PASS OVER TO THE ATTACK MAN.

>> I GUESS HE FINALLY THOUGHT HE HAD AN ADVANTAGE AND HE TRIED TO COME AROUND THE GOAL TO SCORE.

WHEN HE CAME AROUND THE GOAL, I THINK I JUST KNOCKED HIM OUT.

>> KELLY CAME OUT TO GET HIM, AND I MEAN HE SHOT IT POINT BLANK, I MEAN, WE WERE LOOKING LIKE "WELL, THEY TIED THE GAME."

>> THE SCORE WAS, LIKE, 8-7 AND THEY ARE SHOOTING ONE ON ONE WITH ME.

AND I'M THE LAST GUY THERE.

>> IT'S 1975, I'M ACTUALLY ABOUT TO GRADUATE FROM MEDICAL SCHOOL AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA...

SO I GET A MESSAGE IN PHILADELPHIA THAT THE MORGAN STATE LACROSSE TEAM HAS BEATEN W&L AND I SAY TO SOMEBODY, "WELL, I KNOW YOU PROBABLY KNOW THAT I PLAYED THERE AND THANKS FOR THAT, BUT TELL ME REALLY WHAT HAPPENED."

THEY SAID, "NO, THEY BEAT W&L."

[MUSIC] >> I GOT LUCKY, I WAS IN THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME.

>> I HAD TROUBLE BELIEVING WE HAD WON THE GAME.

>> WE JUST CLEARED THE BENCHES, MAN, RAN ON THE FIELD, JUMPED UP AND DOWN, WAS HUGGING ONE ANOTHER.

WE WON, WE BEAT WASHINGTON AND LEE-- PERIOD.

>> IT WAS NOTHING BUT JUBILATION.

ESPECIALLY ALL OF THE GUYS THROWING STICKS UP, RUNNING AROUND LIKE THEY WERE CRAZY.

>> SERVERY HAD RECORDED 25 SAVES ON THE DAY AND HIS FINAL EFFORT AGAINST CARROLL LEFT HIM BREATHLESS.

>> COURTNEY HYPERVENTILATED.

SO I HAD TO GO OUT ON THE FIELD AND REVIVE HIM BECAUSE HE WAS JUST LAYING THERE.

I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO HIM.

>> I WAS SO EXHAUSTED, MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY, THAT I ACTUALLY SAT ON THE FIELD AND JUST SAT THERE >> THE MORGAN PLAYERS CELEBRATED AN UNPRECEDENTED VICTORY AND ON THE OTHER END OF THE FIELD, THE GENERALS WERE IN SHOCK.

>> I DON'T THINK THEY REALIZED WHAT HAD JUST HAPPENED TO THEM.

I THINK THEY KNEW THEY HAD GOTTEN BEATEN, BUT THEY HAD GOTTEN BEATEN IN A LOT OF WAYS.

>> WELL OUR GUYS WERE DEVASTATED, YOU KNOW, THEY HAD BEEN UNDEFEATED FOR TWO STRAIGHT YEARS IN THE REGULAR SEASON...

I JUST FELT ON THAT GIVEN DAY, THEY WERE THE BETTER TEAM.

>> THEY WERE FINE ATHLETES AND THEY CAME IN PLAYING HARD AND THEY WON THE GAME SO YOU CAN'T TAKE ANYTHING AWAY FROM WHAT THEY ACCOMPLISHED ATHLETICALLY.

>> THEIR STICK WORK WAS PROBABLY BETTER THAN OURS, BUT SOMETIMES STICK WORK DOESN'T ALWAYS WIN THE GAME FOR YOU.

>> AFTER THE GAME, AS THE MORGAN PLAYERS PREPARED FOR THE RIDE BACK TO BALTIMORE, WASHINGTON AND LEE'S COACH, JACK EMMER STEPPED ON THE BUS.

HE SAID, "I WANT TO CONGRATULATE THIS TEAM.

THIS WAS NOT AN UPSET.

YOU KNOW, YOU GUYS PLAYED GREAT.

YOU ARE A GREAT TEAM.

...AND BY THE WAY, YOU ALL BETTER THANK YOUR LUCKY STARS YOU GOT THAT LITTLE GOALIE."

>> THEY EARNED THE WIN AND I WANTED THEM TO REALIZE THEY SHOULD FEEL GOOD ABOUT THAT AND NOT TO HAVE ANYBODY TELL THEM ANY DIFFERENT.

SO I THINK THEY APPRECIATED THAT.

>> JUST FIVE YEARS AFTER THEIR VERY FIRST PRACTICE, THE MORGAN STATE BEARS, AN UNDERDOG TEAM FROM A HISTORICALLY BLACK STATE SCHOOL, HAD DEFEATED A LACROSSE POWERHOUSE.

>> NEVER DOUBT YOURSELF.

NEVER- NEVER THINK THAT THE ODDS CAN BE STACKED AGAINST YOU, BECAUSE THAT'S A SITUATION WHERE WE COULD'VE EASILY WENT DOWN AND SAID, WELL, WE LOST THE LAST TWO YEARS, WE LOST, WE'LL PROBABLY DO THE SAME THING.

WE WERE DETERMINED TO GO DOWN THERE AND WIN THAT GAME.

>> THAT'S WHY YOU PLAY.

I MEAN, THAT'S WHY YOU GEAR UP.

THAT'S WHY YOU PLAY.

I MEAN, THAT'S THE FUN OF THIS WHOLE THING.

EVERY TIME, IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE WHO YOU ARE, IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE WHAT LEVEL YOU ARE, YOU GET ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY TO GO OUT THERE AND PROVE TO SOMEBODY WHO YOU ARE, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS A GROUP.

AND IN REALITY, THAT'S WHAT MORGAN STATE DID.

THEY DID IT FOR A YEAR.

THEY SAID "BRING IT ON," AND THEY PROVED TO EVERYBODY THAT THEY COULD GET IT ON.

AND THAT IS WHY YOU PARTICIPATE IN SPORTS.

>> IN 1975, SILVERMAN LEFT MORGAN STATE TO PURSUE A CAREER WITH THE STATE OF MARYLAND, BUT REMAINED CLOSE TO THE TEAM IN THE YEARS TO COME.

BUDGETARY CONSTRAINTS AND WANING INTEREST IN THE SPORT FORCED THE UNIVERSITY TO CANCEL THE PROGRAM IN 1980.

THE FIRST AND ONLY VARSITY PROGRAM AT A HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGE BECAME A BALTIMORE LEGEND.

IN 1990, THE MARYLAND STATE LEGISLATURE RECOGNIZED THE BEARS WITH A RESOLUTION HONORING THE TEAM AND THEIR HISTORIC UPSET OF WASHINGTON AND LEE.

>> I LIKE TO THINK THAT WHAT THEY WENT THROUGH...

THE EXPERIENCE OF PLAYING ON THE FIRST AND ONLY BLACK SCHOOL TO EVER HAVE LACROSSE, THE FIRST AND ONLY BLACK SCHOOL TO EVER PLAY OTHER WHITE COLLEGES.

IT WAS AN EXPERIENCE THAT GAVE THEM TREMENDOUS CONFIDENCE.

>> IT GAVE THEM A FEELING OF EMPOWERMENT THAT THEY MAY NOT HAVE HAD BECAUSE THEY DID SOMETHING DIFFERENT AND THEY DID IT WELL >> IN 1991, CHIP SILVERMAN ENTERED THE MORGAN STATE HALL OF FAME...

HE WAS THE FIRST WHITE MAN TO BE INDUCTED.

>> AND THAT'S THE KIND OF RESPECT THAT WE HAVE FOR HIM AS A TEAM AND AS AN INSTITUTION AT MORGAN AS A PERSON...

IN YIDDISH, HE'S A "MINCH"... A GOOD PERSON >> CHIP, AS A COACH, NEVER TALKED DOWN TO US.

I MEAN, I AM NOT PAINTING A PICTURE OF EVERYTHING BEING OKAY.

THERE WERE TIMES THAT WE HAD OUR CONFLICTS, BUT THERE WAS NEVER A TIME THAT- THAT CHIP MADE US FEEL LESS THAN LACROSSE PLAYERS, LESS THAN WANTING TO GO OUT AND DO OUR BEST.

[SPEECH AND APPLAUSE] >> THREE TIME ALL-AMERICAN, WAYNE JACKSON, HARRISON AND SILVERMAN IN MORGAN STATE'S HALL OF FAME.

HIS TEAMMATES, AND HIS FORMER COACH, WERE THERE TO CELEBRATE.

>> I THINK IT WAS A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE AND ONE I WOULDN'T TRADE FOR ANYTHING.

YEAH, WE SEE EACH OTHER NOW AND IT'S GRINS ALL OVER THE PLACE, EVERY TIME WE SEE ONE OF THE GUYS WE PLAYED WITH, WE JUST GRIN.

THAT'S HOW IT IS, MAN.

SWEET.

>> MILES HARRISON GRADUATED FROM MEDICAL SCHOOL AND BECAME A SURGEON IN THE BALTIMORE AREA.

>> AND THE WINNER IS... KYLE HARRISON.

[APPLAUSE] >> IN 2005, HIS SON, KYLE, A MIDFIELDER AT JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY WAS NAMED THE BEST PLAYER IN COLLEGE LACROSSE.

>> THE SECOND GENERATION HAS LIVED UP TO THE PROMISE.

AND THAT'S WHAT WE SAID TO EACH OTHER WHEN WE LEFT, OUR SONS ARE GOING TO DO THIS AND TAKE IT TO ANOTHER LEVEL.

AND MY SON WAS THE FIRST ONE TO DO IT, SO I'M REALLY PROUD OF THAT.

[PLAYERS ARGUING] >> YEARS AFTER THE PROGRAM WAS CANCELED, SEVERAL MORGAN PLAYERS STARTED "BLACKS LAX", AN ORGANIZATION THAT BUILDS INTEREST AND INCREASES EXPOSURE TO LACROSSE IN BALTIMORE'S AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY.

>> AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE ALL DEVELOPED RESPECT FOR EACH OTHER.

AND THAT'S PROBABLY WHY I LOVE THE SPORT SO MUCH, BECAUSE IT ALLOWS YOU TO REALLY ASSIMILATE FURTHER INTO SOCIETY.

>> MORGAN STATE LACROSSE PLAYERS HAVE BECOME COACHES, TEACHERS, LAWYERS, POLICEMEN, PARAMEDICS, STATE LEGISLATORS, HUSBANDS AND FATHERS.

THROUGHOUT THEIR LIVES, THEY HAVE CONTINUED THE WORK OF HEALING THE COMMUNITY.

>> NEVER WALK OFF THE FIELD SAYING "WISH I COULD OF, SHOULD OF HAD."

YOU LEAVE IT OUT THERE.

AND IF GOD BLESS YOU WITH THE OPPORTUNITY TO PLAY, WIN OR LOSE, THERE ARE NO LOSERS IN PARTICIPATING.

>> IF YOU PERSEVERE, YOU KNOW, THE OUTCOME CAN BE WHAT YOU DESIRE IT TO BE.

YOU JUST HAVE TO DO THE THINGS THAT YOU HAVE TO DO TO GET WHERE YOU WANT TO GO, OKAY.

YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE SOME ADVERSITY DURING A GAME, AFTER THE GAME, BUT YOU STAY FOCUSED AND KEEP YOUR GOAL IN MIND... AND MAKE IT HAPPEN.

[MUSIC] "THE MORGAN LACROSSE STORY" IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY CONSTELLATION ENERGY COMMITTED TO ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND, ENERGY EFFICIENT AND SUSTAINABLE ENERGY SOLUTIONS.

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