More Than the Game: UE Soccer Player Lloyd Robinson Finds Purpose, Representation, and Community

By Austin McKimmy

Editor’s Note: This story is part of an ongoing reporting collaboration between Our Times and the University of Evansville’s News Lab. Developed as a semester-long reporting project by UE student Austin McKimmy, the series explores the experiences of Black student-athletes and coaches at the University of Evansville through conversations about identity, representation, belonging, and opportunity on a predominantly white campus.

University of Evansville soccer player Lloyd Robinson is a young and upcoming Black student athlete who comes from a close-knit family.

Robinson is a Freshman Criminal Justice and Pre-Law Major from Florida. Coming to the university was a big moment for Robinson and his family as there are not many people of color on the soccer team.

Robinson made the decision to commit to UE after seeing the criminal justice program and seeing how the UE soccer team was performing. I asked him why he came all the way from Florida to southern Indiana to continue his athletic and academic career. He responded with, “I didn’t care how good they were at that point. I just liked Evansville. I came and visited and I just liked the little town vibe.”

 The road to becoming a soccer player at UE hasn’t always been a smooth one. Robinson said playing high school club soccer in the area where he grew up, there were a few instances of being called racial slurs. He looked to his father for advice, who told him, “You got to stay calm, you just got to tell the ref. You can’t retaliate because it’s just going to make you look as bad as him.”

As for what he wants to do with the criminal justice and pre-law degree he said, “I want to be a lawyer when I’m older, so I want to do criminal defense.” A lot of this was driven by his mom as they watched various crime shows and documentaries. That’s what drove him to fall in love with helping others in their cases.

The racial distribution at the University of Evansville is 73% white, 13% international, and only 3% black. As the numbers show, the University of Evansville is a predominantly white campus. Coming from Florida and being a black athlete, finding representation for yourself can be difficult.

Robinson is of Jamaican descent. On the soccer team, he played with various players from other countries. The language barrier was a big one, specifically, communicating when they want the ball, when they want to shoot, and so on.

He feels very represented within the community of Evansville, even outside the soccer team. “But I do feel like I need to represent more than just the team and myself,” he said, “Like I feel like I represent my country, and like my family back home and stuff like that.”            

The next big thing is coaches, staff, and other students not on the team. I asked Robinson if he felt welcomed by everyone on campus and he said UE did a great job. On campus, there are a lot of international students, but he doesn’t consider himself international as he was born and raised in the U.S. Robinson said the coaches on his team were great, being inclusive to all cultures. They had various nights where they would meet to learn about each other’s culture and the true meaning of being a Purple Ace.

As for UE he has felt very represented and loves the community that surrounds him. He said, “I think at UE is a really good culture. You make friends with everyone here. Like everyone’s amazing, like, and I would just say to be open to everyone, be kind.” 

So, even with the campus being a predominately white campus, Robinson still finds a way to share his story and have an amazing experience.