Several men’s soccer program awards went unrecognized for nearly a decade following a coaching transition, according to a former player who founded one of those awards, Peter Pakeman ’84.
The awards, some with history dating back 75 years, are given to honor the leadership, ability and improvement of student-athletes on the team and to recognize the legacy of former members of the program.
Among them are the Nicky Bawlf Memorial Award, given across multiple sports to a senior who has contributed the most to the program, and is named for Nicholas Bawlf, a former coach and Cornell Hall of Fame Inductee and the Charles Berman Award, named for Charles Berman ’49, a former All-American and the namesake of the men’s soccer team’s current home field. In addition, the Clive Beckford ’59 Most Valuable Player award is given to the MVP of the team based on the opinion of the other players.
The Berman and Beckford awards were last given to a men’s soccer player in 2015, according to public Cornell Athletics articles. The Bawlf award has continued to be given out among other sports at Cornell, including men’s hockey.
“It has been really disappointing to watch these awards disappear,” Pakeman said. “The legacy of the men’s soccer program deserves to be preserved.”
According to Pakeman, who established the Versatility, Impact and Performance award in 2012 under the assistance of former Athletic Director Andy Noel, to “give back” to the men’s soccer program. Pakeman told The Sun that for three years, the award presentation went “smoothly” right until the arrival of current head coach John Smith.
“When Coach Smith came onboard all of the other legacy awards and my award were dismantled and disappeared,” Pakeman said. “I was never notified by the University directly that they were going to discontinue the presentation of the awards.”
The last announcement on the Cornell Athletics website about Pakeman’s VIP award was made on May 12, 2015. Since then, there is no online public record from Cornell Athletic of any awards being given out to players. According to the Cornell Athletics article, six other awards were given out to players on the team, including the historic Berman, Bawlf and Beckford awards.
Pakeman estimated that roughly “20 to 30 players” missed out on the chance to earn an award. He also explained that the presentation of the awards was a “funded agreement and payment plan” between him and Cornell Athletics.
Pakeman stated that he contributed to the program monetarily by purchasing 15 to 20 physical crystal awards and plaques for the players — which he stated were not physically awarded to student-athletes. Pakeman also said that he attempted to contact head men’s soccer coach John Smith “countless times” over the years to understand what happened to the awards.
“Coach Smith completely avoided me,” Pakeman said. “He told me in a voice mail memo that he had no idea about the awards.”
Pakeman noted that Noel, who instituted the VIP award, held his position while Smith was head coach, fuelling his “doubt” that Smith did not know about the award. He contacted the University in 2022 to check on the award and told The Sun that the University said “no one qualified for his award” so it was not given out.
When asked about what prompted the stop of the awards, a University spokesperson did not directly comment on the situation.
“When concerns regarding certain legacy awards in men's soccer were advanced, the department determined the issue resulted from an onboarding oversight in which coaching staff were not fully aware of the historical award process,” a University spokesperson wrote. “The Pakeman Award has been reinstituted and was presented this past fall. Other historical awards will be reinstated over the next year.”
The VIP award was last awarded to former forward Alioune Ka ’25 in April 2025.
Smith and current Cornell Athletics Director Nicki Moore did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Sun.
A University spokesperson also affirmed Cornell Athletics’ commitment to its student athletes and preserving tradition.
“As always, our focus remains on responsible stewardship of program traditions, on supporting our student-athletes with integrity and care, and on supporting their developmental and competitive excellence,” a University spokesperson wrote to The Sun.
John Bayne ’88, president of the Cornell Men’s Soccer Alumni Committee, did not provide a comment on the situation. He stated that he would not “comment on an issue” that a “single alumni has.” Bayne also stated that the Committee fully supports Coach Smith.
“My experience with Cornell Athletics left me feeling betrayed and disappointed,” Pakeman said. “Speaking out about my experiences hasn’t been easy, especially knowing it has affected relationships with the soccer alumni association, former teammates and supporters, but I felt it was important to bring attention to the decade-long award gap and promote greater accountability and transparency.”
Zeinab Faraj is a member of the class of 2028 in the College of Arts and Sciences. She is the features editor on the 143rd Editorial Board and was the assistant sports editor of the 143rd Editorial Board. You can reach her at zfaraj@cornellsun.com.
