The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) is a collegiate athletic conference headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, which is made up of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the Southern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I for most sports; in football, it participates in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly referred to as Division I-AA.
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) is a collegiate athletic conference whose full members are historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the Southeastern and the Mid-Atlantic United States. It participates in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division I, and in football, in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).
The Bethune–Cookman Wildcats football team represents Bethune–Cookman University in the sport of college football. The Wildcats compete in the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Starting with the fall 2021 season, they compete in the East Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), after having been members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) since 1979. They play their home games at Daytona Stadium. The Wildcats have won two black college football national championships and seven MEAC titles in the history of their football program.
The MEAC/SWAC Challenge is an annual historically black college (HBCU) football game showcasing a team from each of the two NCAA Division I conferences made up entirely of HBCUs—the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). The series began in 2005 and initially paired the defending conference champions, although the selection process was broadened in 2007 to include non-champions as well. Following the 2022 game, the MEAC leads the series with 10 wins to the SWAC's five. The Challenge is televised nationally on ESPN and is owned by ESPN Events. It was historically associated with the Labor Day weekend, but starting in 2021 has instead taken place a week earlier during college football's Week 0.
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference baseball tournament was the conference baseball championship of the NCAA Division I Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. In its final edition in 2022, all four MEAC baseball teams participated in the double elimination tournament at Marty L. Miller Field in Norfolk, Virginia. The winner of the tournament received an automatic berth to the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship. The automatic bid was granted beginning in 1994.
The 2014 North Carolina Central Eagles football team represented North Carolina Central University as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) during the 2014 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by first-year head coach Jerry Mack, the Eagles compiled an overall record of 7–5 with a mark of 6–2, placing in a five-way tie for the MEAC title with Bethune–Cookman, Morgan State, North Carolina A&T, and South Carolina State. Morgan State earned the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs, while none of the other four co-champions earned an at-large bid. North Carolina Central played home games at O'Kelly–Riddick Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.
The 2014 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference baseball tournament began on May 14 and ended on May 19 at Marty L. Miller Field, on the campus of Norfolk State University in Norfolk, Virginia. It was an eight-team double elimination tournament. Bethune-Cookman won their fourteenth tournament championship to claim the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference's automatic bid to the 2014 NCAA Division I baseball tournament. Bethune-Cookman has claimed fourteen of the sixteen tournament championships, with Savannah State winning in 2013 and North Carolina A&T earning the 2005 title.
The 2015 North Carolina A&T Aggies football team represented North Carolina A&T State University as a member of Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) during the 2015 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by fifth-year head coach Rod Broadway, the Aggies compiled an overall record of 10–2 with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, placing in a three-way tie for the MEAC title with Bethune–Cookman and North Carolina Central. North Carolina A&T was invited to inaugural Celebration Bowl, where the Aggies defeated Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), champion Alcorn State, earning the program's fourth black college football national championship. North Carolina A&T played home games at Aggie Stadium in Greensboro, North Carolina.
The 2015 North Carolina Central Eagles football team represented North Carolina Central University as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) during the 2015 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by second-year head coach Jerry Mack, the Eagles compiled an overall record of 8–3 with a mark of 7–1, placing in a three-way tie for the MEAC title with Bethune–Cookman and North Carolina A&T. 2015 was the first season in which the MEAC abstained from the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs. Due to a head-to-head loss to Bethune–Cookman and lack of FCS non-conference victories, the Eagles were not invited to the newly-formed Celebration Bowl. North Carolina Central played home games at O'Kelly–Riddick Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.
The 2015 Bethune–Cookman Wildcats football team represented Bethune-Cookman University in the 2015 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by first-year head coach Terry Sims and played their home games at Municipal Stadium. They were a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). They finished the season 9–2, 7–1 in MEAC play to finish in a three-way tie for the MEAC title with North Carolina A&T and North Carolina Central. 2015 was the first year the MEAC champion abstained from the FCS Playoffs. Due to their head-to-head loss to North Carolina A&T, they were not invited to the newly formed Celebration Bowl and also did not receive an at-large bid to the FCS Playoffs.
The 2015 Celebration Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game played on December 19, 2015 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia. The inaugural Celebration Bowl game pitted the North Carolina A&T Aggies, co-champion of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, against the Alcorn State Braves, champion of the Southwestern Athletic Conference. The event was the finale of the 2015 FCS football season for both conferences as their champions abstained from the NCAA Division I FCS football playoffs.
The 2016 North Carolina A&T Aggies football team represented North Carolina A&T State University as a member of Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) during the 2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by sixth-year head coach Rod Broadway, the Aggies compiled an overall record of 9–3 with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, placing second in the MEAC. North Carolina A&T received an at-large bid to the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs, where the Aggies lost in the first round to Richmond. North Carolina A&T played home games at Aggie Stadium in Greensboro, North Carolina.
The 2016 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football season was the XXIst season for MEAC Football, as part of the 2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season.
The 2017 North Carolina A&T Aggies football team represented North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in the 2017 NCAA Division I FCS football season. This season marked the 94th for the program, and the final season for head coach Rod Broadway, who retired at the season's end. The Aggies finished the season undefeated with a record of 12–0, 8–0 in MEAC play, capturing their ninth conference title. The Aggies also earned an invitation to the Celebration Bowl where they defeated Southwestern Athletic Conference champion Grambling, earning their fifth black college football national championship. The Aggies played their home games at Aggie Stadium and were members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC).
The 2017 Celebration Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game that was played on December 16, 2017 at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. This third Celebration Bowl game matched the champion of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, against the champion of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, the two historically black division I conferences. The event was the finale of the 2017 FCS football season for both conferences as neither had teams earn an at large selections into the NCAA Division I FCS football playoffs and their champions abstain from the tournament.
The 2018 Bethune–Cookman Wildcats football team represented Bethune–Cookman University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by fourth-year head coach Terry Sims and played their home games at the newly renamed Daytona Stadium. They were a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). They finished the season 7–5, 5–2 in MEAC play to finish in a tie for second place.
The 2018 Air Force Reserve Celebration Bowl was a college football bowl game that was played on December 15, 2018, with kickoff at 12:00 p.m. EST. It was the first game of the 2018–19 bowl season, and the only bowl to feature FCS teams. It was the fourth edition of the Celebration Bowl and the final game of the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season for the participating teams. The Air Force Reserve resumed its role as the title sponsor after a one-year absence.
The 2019 Bethune–Cookman Wildcats football team represented Bethune–Cookman University in the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by fifth-year head coach Terry Sims and played their home games at Daytona Stadium. They were a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). They finished the season 7–4, 5–3 in MEAC play to finish in fourth place.
The 2010 Florida A&M Rattlers football team represented Florida A&M University as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) during the 2010 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Rattlers were led by third-year head coach Joe Taylor and played their home games at Bragg Memorial Stadium. They finished the season 8–3 overall and 8–1 in conference play to share the MEAC title with Bethune–Cookman and South Carolina State. However, all of Florida A&M's wins from the 2010 season were later vacated by the NCAA for fielding ineligible students. This was the Rattlers last conference championship before leaving the MEAC in 2020.
The 2022 Celebration Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 17, 2022, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. The seventh annual Celebration Bowl, the game featured the Jackson State Tigers, champions of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) and the North Carolina Central Eagles, champions of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). The SWAC and MEAC are the two prominent NCAA Division I conferences of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs).
