The men's Humber Hawks’ basketball team unveiled their new Black Heritage Month uniform last night.
The jersey was highlighted by the players for their last home game of the season in honour of Black History Month.
The Hawks played against the Sheridan Bruins, winning 90-72.
Dave Bathune, the assistant coach of the team who also works at OneTeam Sports, came up with the idea.
This sports group provided the jerseys and worked with Bathune to bring the idea to the athletic director, Ray Chateau, and the rest of the team.
“The guys were all on board,” Brian Lepp, the Coordinator of Sports Information and Marketing, said. “And they wanted to do something to celebrate Black heritage and Black excellence.”
The jerseys are predominantly black with yellow, red and green accents.
The lettering for the number uses those colours, as well as the last names of the players on the back.
Even before the unveiling of the jerseys, the players wore t-shirts designed for Black Heritage Month
Celebrating Black Heritage Month February 2025 was written out with a bit of white font for the first word.
Also, part of the initiative is an auction of the jerseys in collaboration with the Black Student Support and Engagement (BSSE).
BSSE will used the funds raised from bids to help sponsor prospective Black students who are looking to come to Humber.
Every player’s jersey is up for auction and last night’s game also showcased the Black athletes who predominately make up the team.
“Every dollar counts,” Lepp said noting how important financial help can be to students. “Like even a thousand bucks, you buy your textbooks and food.”
The starting bid for each jersey is $50, with 16 of them available to bid on.
The current highest bid on the jersey is Humber Hawks’ number 5, Malik Grant, who is playing the last home game of his basketball career at Humber.
Grant’s jersey is already going for more than $200 with more than a dozen bids to date.
The auction for the Black Heritage Month jerseys will be ongoing until Feb. 7, at 4 p.m.
