This feature originally appeared in the 2022 Fall edition of the Cal Sports Quarterly. The Cal Athletics flagship magazine features long-form sports journalism at its finest and provides in-depth coverage of the scholar-athlete experience in Berkeley. Printed copies are mailed four times a year to Bear Backers who give annually at the Bear Club level (currently $600 or more). For more information on how you can receive a printed version of the Cal Sports Quarterly at home, send an email to CalAthleticsFund@berkeley.edu or call (510) 642-2427.
Leonard Griffin became an inspirational figure in Berkeley long before the new California men's soccer head coach ever coached a game at Cal.
A rising star in the coaching ranks who is a gifted recruiter and mentor, Griffin took over the helm of the Golden Bears on March 31. Griffin followed long-time Cal head coach Kevin Grimes, who retired in February. Previously an assistant coach under Grimes in 2013, when Cal was ranked No. 1 in the nation for much of the season, Griffin rejoined the Bears after head coaching stints with USF (2019-21) and Grand Canyon (2021), which he led to a 15-4-1 record and an at-large berth in the 2021 NCAA Championship.
Griffin is believed to be the first Black head men's soccer coach in the 21-year history of the Pac-12/Pac-10 Conference, a fact not lost on the Bears and in particular on the African-American members of what is an ethnically diverse team.
"Honestly, it's a really great feeling," said Cal senior forward Fahmi Ibrahim, who is of Eritrean descent. "I never had a Black coach growing up playing soccer. It's very comforting to have someone who looks like me coaching me. It's also very inspiring with someone like him in that position. It shows if you work hard for something, you can achieve it."
"It's very important," said Cal sophomore defender Santiago Hopkins, who is half Black and half Asian. "It's super cool to see a Black person in a high position. It's very cool and something you don't see often. Also, he kind of understands you a little bit more."
Added fifth-year Cal senior Christian Gomez, another player of color who is of El Salvadoran descent, "It's a tremendous opportunity and a great example to lead the way in the Pac-12 to have a head coach a person of color, especially a person who's great like Leonard. It's an example of what inclusivity looks like, and it represents Berkeley well. I'm looking forward to this happening more often. I've found in my career, with a vast array of different coaches, diversity has only benefited me. To have Leonard as our coach is just a plus."
Griffin himself didn't have a Black coach growing up. It wasn't until he played professionally for the Chicago Fire in Major League Soccer that he worked with his first Black coach, Denis Hamlett.
He realizes that his post in the Pac-12, a conference in which he won the 2002 NCAA championship as a Bruins player, means a lot to a lot of people.
"Hopefully, I can continue to work hard and be the very best coach that I can and help our program continue to have success," Griffin said. "And in that time hopefully I can continue to be a mirror for other young coaches and players to get opportunities, whether it's in soccer or outside of soccer, or that I can be an inspiration to others so they can work towards achieving their goals.
"Hopefully, also decision-makers take notice, and my example can open doors for many qualified African-American men or women or boys or girls or coaches. There are some very qualified ones out there that can be successful and can push programs forward and can help businesses do well. It's super important for those decision-makers to see us in that light."
After returning to Berkeley, Griffin got his first look at the Bears during the spring season and then spent quality time with them during the team's two-week summer trip to Italy. The thoughtful coach engaged with his new team through a series of team-bonding exercises, including one in which he had groups of players give PowerPoint presentations on different chapters of the book "Legacy," about the New Zealand All-Blacks national rugby team.
"I was impressed with their buy-in and by them not taking it lightly to have thoughtful presentations," he said. "All the guys did a great job. A lot of times in groups like that you have awkward silences, but this is a bright group that did a good job of keeping up conversations."
"I really enjoyed that," Ibrahim said. "You'd think being assigned homework over the summer might be annoying, but reading that book and working together as a team – it was culture building, to build an identity and try to bring the guys closer. It was awesome, and we got something out of it."
After experiencing success in just one season at Grand Canyon, Griffin said it was difficult to consider making the move to Cal. But several factors – including Cal's academic and athletic prowess – attracted him to the University.
Another big factor that he appreciated was Cal's commitment to issues affecting Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging and Justice, as shown in part by celebrating various communities and heritage months – including Black History Month, AAPI Heritage Month, Latinx Heritage Month and Pride Month – and by hiring significant members of its administrative staff in Associate Athletic Director for DEIBJ Dr. Ty-Ron Douglas and Bobby Thompson, Director of DEIBJ Operations & Engagement.
"I haven't been to a university that showed more commitment to DEIBJ," he said. "It's a common thread to talk the talk and not have action, but to see the action that Cal has implemented in the way they operate every day is phenomenal. That's needed at more institutions and more businesses. Actions speak louder than words."
Since rejoining the Bears, Griffin has worked closely with Thompson and Douglas, who is a big soccer fan and has worked as an announcer for Cal's men's and women's soccer live streams. Douglas has visited Cal men's practices and Griffin's summer camps and supported the Bears' recruitment efforts. Griffin and Douglas have also discussed the concept of belonging, and what that means to the Bears as well as to their respective families.
"I'm excited for his leadership," Douglas said. "He not only has excellent credentials and an outstanding background, and he not only is a great person, but from my vantage point, he is a student of DEIBJ. I'm very excited about that. It's one thing to have people of color in various positions, but in Leonard's case you have a person of color who studies DEIBJ issues and is committed to it. He has actively taken the time to learn and is continuing to learn.
"For us to be able to hire an excellent men's head soccer coach who is also Black is a historical moment for our department and the Pac-12. I'm excited for his tenure and leadership, and I support him fully."
