ORLANDO, Fla. — When David Parks looks at people, that’s all he sees. People.
He sees human beings. That’s why it wasn’t difficult for the Sanford Seminole High senior to commit to playing football at Howard, one of 107 Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the United States.
Parks is white. And he had plenty of considerations from predominantly white colleges, such as a scholarship offer from Liberty and talks with other coaches at schools including Duke and N.C. State. But he was sold on Howard, one of the top-rated HBCUs in the nation.
“I just looked at it as an opportunity to go play football and get a really good education,” Parks said.
For Parks (6-foot-1, 210 pounds), who is the No. 16-ranked player in the Orlando Sentinel’s 2025 Central Florida Super60, there is no mystique or stigma surrounding his decision. He said it was simple.
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“It’s, honestly, a really good fit for me and I was talking to the coaches a lot [before committing] and I have a really good connection with them,” Parks said. “At Howard, I think I can really fit into the offense and really excel there as a football player.”
He was recruited by Howard tight ends coach Tory Woodberry, and it helped that former Seminole teammate Josiah Chenault, a first-team all-state selection in 2022, is a sophomore at Howard.
Parks is not concerned about being a minority on campus. Whites make up about 4% of Howard’s 10,000 students. He said that hasn’t entered his train of thought.
“I don’t think there is any issue at all,” Parks said. “I just really don’t have an issue with race in general. I really feel comfortable with where I’m headed and I think going to an HBCU is a good fit for me.
“I’m just excited to be going to college in Washington, D.C., and being in the nation’s capital and all the opportunities that come along with it business-wise, like internships and things outside of football. I’m excited about the future connections I will be able to have in D.C., and just going to one of the most well-known universities in the country.”
He’s going into business management. Parks carries a 3.6 GPA at Seminole.
On the field, Howard gains a player who can do a a number of things, and do them well.
“They’re looking at me as a receiver and also as a wildcat, read-option-type quarterback,” Parks said.
Parks is also one of the best punters in Central Florida, but he said that has yet to come up in conversations with Howard.
“I think Duke and N.C. State were the two schools talking to me about only being a punter. Duke was also talking a little bit about possibly quarterback. Arkansas State wanted me to come punt there,” Parks said. “With me, I’m really competitive, so being able to get on the field and make plays instead of just punt the ball is what I want to do. I like being able to make a play with the ball in my hands.”
Among the more notable names produced by Howard: late actor Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther), former New York City Mayor David Dinkins, former Virginia Gov. Douglas Wilder, actresses Phylicia Rashad and Taraji P. Henson, first Black Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall, Grammy winner Roberta Flack, Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winning novelist Toni Morrison and Democratic presidential candidate and current VP Kamala Harris.
