HOUSTON -- Eight hundred and twenty miles from where they work, some Houston Texans players noticed what was happening. The University of Missouri football team went on strike, joining others in protesting a climate of racism on the campus. First a few players, then Missouri coach Gary Pinkel got involved, at which point some started to think that maybe the protest they joined would ultimately lead to the resignation of both the university's president and chancellor.
Their actions prompted a message of support from Texans receiver DeAndre Hopkins, a former Clemson star who often uses his Twitter account to encourage social causes.
I salute Mizzou!
— Deandre Hopkins (@Nukdabomb) November 9, 2015"We got a lot of pull that we don't know we have, especially in college," Hopkins said. "You're doing something that you love, but you're also not getting paid the way that you should. When you got a chance to speak out about something, I feel like you should, and a lot of people will follow you around the country."
The protest at Missouri began before the football team got involved, but the players' power in the situation was undeniable.
"If football players only knew the power that they have through unity," Texans guard Brandon Brooks said. "Whether it's this situation or whether it was athletes getting paid in college, if more athletes would band together through thick and thin no matter what the consequences were, you could have whatever you want."
Hopkins also alluded to the subject of college athletes being paid when speaking of their clout.
Clemson, Hopkins' alma mater, has had its own issues, most recently with a controversy about several of its buildings that were named after white supremacists or slavery advocates. Tillman Hall, one of Clemson's most recognizable buildings, is named for Benjamin Tillman, a former South Carolina governor and white supremacist.
"South Carolina is one of the most racist states in America," Hopkins said. "John C. Calhoun is the name of a building at our school and he was a slave owner. Clemson, the name Clemson itself, was like a guy who was a slave owner. South Carolina, their whole history is messed up.
"Yeah, of course there are things a school can do, but when they're funded by people who, that was their father and their grandad who support that, it's kind of hard for a school to change that when people who donate money have that train of thought."
Hopkins remembers racism affecting his daily life. He said a girl he knew in high school had parents who didn't want him involved with their daughter because he was black. Brooks attended Miami University (Ohio) and noted its predominantly white population when asked about racism on campus there.
"I experienced racism," Brooks said. "Some things here and there. But you can experience it anywhere."
The students protesting at Missouri wanted the university system president to do more to combat racism on campus, but Brooks isn't so sure that's something a school can accomplish.
"You can sit here and say you can implement programs and some type of diversity deal, but it's more of a bigger issue than just at schools," Brooks said. "It's how kids are brought up. If you want to change something society-wise, you've got to look at yourself and make the change yourself."
As for Pinkel's support of his players?
"I feel like if he wouldn't have stuck by them, he would have lost his program," Brooks said. "It's good to see he stuck by them. I hope that he stuck by them because he wanted to, not because he was thinking about football. And that situation is bigger than football."
Hopkins said he doesn't know what he would have done in the same situation, but he supports the efforts of the players at Missouri and their willingness to speak out.
After all, the consequences Brooks mentioned deter many.
"In college, what if the coach disagrees with you and you don't play again," Brooks said. "He could get you out of the program."
Those consequences have sometimes served to prevent the kind of unity for which he called. They didn't in Missouri this week.