Hampton DB becomes first HBCU football player to come out as gay

Byron Perkins, a defensive back at Hampton University, came out as gay, and he is believed to be the first football player from a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) to come out publicly.

“I’ve been self-reflective and trying to prioritize what makes me happy and makes me feel alive,” Perkins said on social media. “I thought it could be just football and school, but there was a component missing. And recently I’ve been able to figure out that I haven’t been fully happy because everyone didn’t know who I was. Authenticity is everything to me.”

Perkins said the decision to come out was about making a change and to “stop running away from myself.”

“I’m gay, let it be known that this is not a ‘decision’ or a ‘choice.’ Yes, this is who I am, this is who I’ve been, and this is who I’m going to be. Simply put, I am who I am,” he said.