Off The Field: Maryland Student-Athletes Work For Change

Maxwell Costes and Taylor Wilson have a lot in common. When they put on their uniforms, they are players that represent Maryland’s baseball and softball teams, respectively.

But they are more than players.

While their talents are showcased on the field, the positions they’ve obtained off the field give them a platform to take a stand. They are student-athletes that represent the entire University of Maryland on the conference’s newly-established Big Ten Anti-Hate and Anti-Racism Coalition. The Coalition includes student-athletes, coaches, administrators, presidents and representatives from all 14 Big Ten institutions.

“The Coalition is important to me because we are using sport as a vehicle for social justice and positive change,” Wilson said. “It’s exciting to see university presidents, athletic directors, student-athletes, and staff come together to fight hate and racism around the country. As members of the Coalition, our role is to represent our fellow student-athletes and ensure we are moving in a direction that creates a lasting change for ourselves and the student-athletes to come.”

The Coalition aims to find tangible ways to actively and constructively combat racism and hate around the world while also empowering student-athletes to express their rights to free speech and peaceful protest.

Costes, a two-time All-American on the baseball team, feels strongly that the Coalition is a way to express himself while advocating on behalf of his fellow student-athletes. Costes’ story The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Social Consciousness—and poem White Silence—aimed to help readers become aware of the injustices that Blacks face while suggesting actionable steps they can take.

“Coach Vaughn has always told us that baseball is what we do, but it’s not who we are,” Costes said. “For me, this Coalition is a concrete, actionable step towards my desire to help people and how I wish for the world to be one day.”