The Alford Brothers Have Always Paved Their Own Path Together

As the game clock hit 0:00 at Maryland’s Byrd Stadium, eager children began shuffling across the bleachers toward the home and away tunnels. The goal was to snag a piece of equipment from members of the Princeton men’s lacrosse program — a team on its way to another national title game in the 2000 final four.

Among the hordes of youth lacrosse players were Harry and Thomas Alford, natives of Washington, D.C., looking for gloves from Tigers’ star Damien Davis — one of NCAA lacrosse’s lone Black stars — or anyone that would offer up some of their gear.

“We’d run to the end of the bleachers next to the locker room and scream for pads,” Thomas Alford said. “Oftentimes, the players would just give up their arm guards. Harry and I would cherish those things.”

In the years that followed, the Alford brothers made College Park a frequent destination. Harry Alford waited after games, clutching his goalie stick and hoping he’d have a chance to meet the stars he looked up to.

The St. Alban’s (D.C.) High School lacrosse players were emerging as college recruits and yearned to have the same impact as names like Bill Daye, Rodger Colbert and Davis had on them. Harry Alford was the starting goalie for the 2003 U.S. U19 team that captured a gold medal.

By 2005, Harry and Thomas Alford had earned a platform to inspire Black children to pick up a stick. They knew they couldn’t take the opportunity for granted.

“We were the kids asking for equipment from all of our idols,” Harry Alford said. “Once I got to start in college, kids were asking for our gear. We realized that we were in a position where other people were looking at us. We tried our best to be the best role models and representatives of the sport, particularly for Black lacrosse players.”

Harry and Thomas Alford were part of a Maryland men’s lacrosse program that won two ACC titles and went to multiple final fours between 2005-08. As the Terps continued winning, the exposure rose for the Alfords, who helped carry the torch as two of the most prominent Black lacrosse players in the game.

Over 20 years since they first laid eyes on lacrosse sticks (and thought they were fish nets), Harry and Thomas Alford have not lost their passion for growing the game. Together, they’ve tried to both inspire a new generation of Black players and make sure the current generation has everything it needs to succeed.

Through a Bitcoin-funded scholarship, equipment drives for local teams in D.C. and grassroots coaching, the Alfords have spent the past decade creating a better future for lacrosse.

“We’re the undone work of our ancestors and those that came before us that paved the way,” Harry Alford said. “Whether we actually saw it or we feel it through different forms or ways today. There are so many kids out there that, if they found this sport, it could take them so many places.”

If lacrosse was the biggest constant in the Alfords’ lives, then the other was the camaraderie that came with doing everything with your brother. From grade school and then throughout their respective careers, Harry and Thomas Alford haven’t strayed too far from one another.

As the Alfords were getting interest from colleges, the mission was clear — only speak with those that wanted them both. If coaches came out to see one brother and didn’t have the other in his plans, it was a wasted trip.

Harry Alford remembered a conversation about Duke’s interest in him with a fellow coach.

“Duke was a recruiting me and sending me notes, and my high school coach was like, ‘What are you doing? You have to respond to them.’” Thomas Alford said. “I said, ‘I don’t care. I’m not going there. We’re a team package.’”

The recruiting process changed when then-Maryland coach Dave Cottle first showed interest in them both. He was upfront about his intentions — he wanted both Alfords to join his program.

“Your dream is my dream,” Cottle told Harry and Thomas Alford.

After meeting with Cottle, the Alfordss knew they’d be headed to Maryland. Four seasons and two trips to the final four later, the twins made an impact on the next generation.

Harry Alford, the All-American goalie, routinely saw Black boys and girls waiting for him in the stands of Byrd Stadium after games. Thomas Alford watched his brother with pride, knowing that they’d become everything of which they’d dreamed.

“Harry and I would look for little Black kids in the stands and we would give items to them,” Thomas Alford said. “I have to give a big shout out to our equipment manager, Tim Ahner. Every game, I’d ask him for new gloves to give to kids.”

The Alfords continued to give back even after their careers in College Park ended. Thomas Alford spent time coaching at Gonzaga (D.C.), and Harry Alford helped build a program at Wilson (D.C.) High School. They routinely arranged equipment drives to make sure everyone who wanted to play the game had an opportunity.

Together, the Alfords wanted to make a lasting impact on the Maryland lacrosse program. Through their involvement with the crypto currency industry — Thomas works in Product Marketing at Anchorage Digital, the first federally chartered crypto bank, and Harry is a Senior Cloud Sales Specialist at Coinbase Cloud — they launched a $50,000 bitcoin scholarship to a Maryland men’s or women’s student-athlete.

The Kay DeBow Alford and Harry Alford Jr. Endowed Scholarship is named after the Alfords’ parents, both of whom gave their time to raising awareness of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion across the country. Kay DeBow Alford and Harry Alford Jr. launched the National Black Chamber of Commerce and paved the way for more Black-owned businesses to succeed.

“We’ve always kind of been at the intersection of diversity and financial inclusion, and lacrosse has also been at the heart of that, too,” Thomas Alford said. “We like being first. We don’t like to follow the path, and that just doesn’t start with our parents. Our grandfather was a Tuskegee Airman. There are a lot of firsts in our family, just trying to create a legacy and leave something behind.”

The legacy that the Alfords are leaving in lacrosse is one of opening doors and providing inspiration for those that come after them. They’ve built a foundation for the future, and they’ve done it together.

“Our mom used to always joke around and say we’re ‘wombmates,’” Harry Alford said. “We weren’t apart. We were going to find a spot to grow, learn and excel.”

Kay DeBow Alford used to find her children on the lacrosse field by looking for the only “Black legs.” Now, the sight of multiple Black lacrosse players on a team is not foreign.

She made sure her boys stuck together. The Alford twins have built a life around lacrosse alongside each other, and they’d have it no other way.

“You grow up and you try to accomplish things to make your parents proud,” Harry Alford said. “Now, I have two kids of my own. Every single decision I make is trying to make sure they’re proud. When they’re older kids, they can see that their dad stood for something.”