Morehouse’s Boxing Club offers a supportive space for members to train their bodies and combat stress

In September 2021, Morehouse College sophomore Jacobey Bell, searching for supportive fellowship on campus, invited a handful of students to an impromptu sparring session via group chat. Six people attended the first night. By the next evening, more than 200 spectators packed Purdue Hall.

Five years later, that spontaneous gathering has evolved into the Morehouse College Boxing Club. Since its founding, the program has become the first team from a historically Black college or university to compete in the U.S. Intercollegiate Boxing Association National Tournament, produced two national champions, and inspired an Emmy-winning documentary.

Beyond the accolades, members said the boxing club has become more than a place to train. It has evolved into a space where students can build community, manage stress and support one another.

“When I created the club, I couldn’t envision the scale we are on now,” Bell said. “It started as an idea talking to [Morehouse College Chief of Police] Charles Prescott and from watching movies.”

According to Bell, the club emerged during a period when many students were still adjusting to life after the COVID-19 pandemic. He remembers struggling to find a sense of community across the Atlanta University Center (AUC), a consortium of Atlanta HBCUs that includes Morehouse, and believed other students were experiencing the same obstacles.

In Bell’s eyes, the initial turnout was encouraging, but what stood out to him most was the variety of ways students used the boxing area.

“I saw one of our brothers who was battling things mentally not use the club to learn boxing, but to use it as a safe space,” Bell said. “After seeing that and seeing how much students needed it, we said, ‘We can’t let this stop here. We have to make sure that they always have that place to come to.’”

As more students learned about the club, Bell realized it couldn’t continue hosting matches unsupervised. That’s where Prescott came in.

“I heard they were having an illegal boxing event that nobody knew about, and it was packed with people already there,” Prescott said. “So, I let him have it.”

After informing campus officials, Prescott allowed the event to proceed. However, when Bell attempted to organize another event the following year, the college initially declined.

As a former kickboxer, Prescott had concerns about the group’s leadership and safety protocols. He eventually realized Bell was serious about building something sustainable and decided to get involved.

“I said to myself, ‘If they really want to box on campus, they need an adviser,’” Prescott said. “They need someone the school would trust to watch over them, and who else would they trust outside of the chief [of] police?”

Now, Prescott also serves as one of the team’s coaches, working alongside Bell.

Under that structure, many members said the club, which is open to all in the AUC but primarily includes Morehouse students, has become a place where pressure and discipline are processed in real time.

Tina Thompson Grimmett, director of counseling services at the college, said groups like the Morehouse Boxing Club play a fundamental role in men’s well-being.

“Support in a space like this shows up as a distraction from the adversity of life,” Grimmett said. “Having a club of peers sharing similar adversities helps normalize the fact that there are always going to be challenges but with support they can be faced and overcome.”

Senior Elijah McLean, one of the program’s national champions, has a 22-11 record with three knockouts in the 165-pound division during his college career. He believes boxing mirrors life and said the club is integral in recognizing that relationship.

“Life has its ups and downs, and boxing has its ups and downs,” McLean said. “You may have a bad day in school or in relationships, but you go to the gym and have an amazing day, spar well, perform well, and release any negative feelings you may have.”

Grimmett said having that emotional outlet can be valuable for young men.

“Being in a space where anger and aggression are channeled properly versus shamed or frowned upon encourages expression of other vulnerable emotions,” she said.

McLean said the club distinguishes itself by the way members rally around one another during adversity.

“This past spring semester, I needed the club after I had to take time off for an eye surgery,” McLean said. “It was hard to not box for a long period of time, but it was definitely the brothers and sisters in the boxing club that talked to me and prayed for me and reassured me that I would be coming back.”

Teammate Chad Pitts said he relied on the club and boxing to provide structure amid the academic and personal demands of life at Morehouse.

Pitts, who earned a 4.0 GPA this past spring, is pursuing a professional boxing career; instead of viewing boxing and academics as competing priorities, he sees them as complementary pursuits.

“I feel like the discipline that you build from boxing and the critical thinking that you tie in go hand in hand,” Pitts said.

Pitts recalled sitting in biology class and learning how the body functions, from the way the brain processes information to the impact of nutrition on performance. He said those lessons translate directly to the ring and to his success.

“As a boxer or an athlete, you think hard work and more hard work,” Pitts said. “But it’s not enough to work hard if you’re not working efficiently. Boxing and academics tied together has taught me how to be efficient with my energy and not just spending it on extreme effort.”

Whether members are recovering from setbacks or balancing intense demands, many describe the club as a place of stability.

Junior Emmanuel Seifu said that is what keeps students coming back to the club.

“It has given me a home within a home,” Seifu said. “With the big brothers that I have, they made it to where I could be myself and be comfortable.”

Seifu said that when he first entered Morehouse, he felt the need to always perform at a high level, regardless of what he was doing.

Like Pitts, Seifu also wants to pursue professional boxing. Maintaining his Bonner Scholarship, the college’s full scholarship initiative incorporating weekly community service, and his twice-a-day training regimen can be challenging, he said, but his teammates in the club help him manage everything.

“The support system is amazing,” Seifu said. “I’m beyond blessed to have this group to support me.”

He also noted the organization’s efforts to take its mission off campus and give others in the community a chance to experience the positives that boxing can bring.

“We go to different local high schools and join service initiatives, and we teach free boxing classes and the benefits of boxing,” Seifu said. “The things we do are not only to help the community, but [help us] to feel our own intrinsic value. Boxing has changed our lives, and we want to share that same joy with the community.”

Those moments, he said, reinforce the sense of purpose that many students find in the club while helping reshape conversations around support and well-being among young men.

“It kept me focused and increased my confidence,” Seifu said. “Boxing can solve any problem, and I want people to know that boxing is great, but Morehouse boxing is great because it is a home for everyone.”

Others in the Morehouse community share those sentiments.

Tyler Lewis, senior sports editor for The Maroon Tiger, Morehouse’s student-led newspaper, has covered Morehouse athletics since his freshman year. He said the boxing club stands out because its members understand the importance of unity.

“I think this might be one of the most unified groups in terms of sports teams that we have,” Lewis said. “Sports is a big thing to look at and success is measured usually by championships, but in terms of the community that they’ve been able to pull together throughout the AUC, it is an amazing job.”

Bell the greatest achievements of the club he founded are the relationships and life lessons that are found inside the gym. Inside that space, students learn more than just technique, he said; they develop critical thinking skills and learn how to slow down, take a breath, and not rush into the next moment.

“Boxing is a sport where once you’re in the ring, you’re by yourself,” he said. “But you always have people in your corner, and the things you were taught.”