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 University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) is a public historically black university in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Founded in 1873, it is the second oldest public college or university in the state of Arkansas. UAPB is part of the University of Arkansas System and Thurgood Marshall College Fund.
Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium is an outdoor football stadium in Jackson, Mississippi, United States. Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium has been the home stadium of the Jackson State Tigers football team since 1970. Originally known as War Veterans Memorial Stadium, it was later known as Hinds County War Memorial Stadium. It was redesigned and enlarged in 1960 and Ole Miss vs. Arkansas dedicated Mississippi Memorial Stadium in 1961 before a capacity crowd of 46,000. With political support from Ole Miss and Mississippi State and leadership from Ole Miss Athletics Director Warner Alford, Mississippi Memorial Stadium was enlarged to 62,500 in 1981 and on September 26, 1981 Ole Miss and Arkansas again dedicated the facility before 63,522.
George Ivory is the head men's basketball coach for Mississippi Valley State University. He was the head men's basketball coach at the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff from 2008 to 2021. Previously, Ivory was an assistant at Mississippi Valley State, his alma mater, from 1998–2002, 2007–2008, and 2021–2022.
The Jackson State Tigers football team represents Jackson State University in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level as a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC).
The Turkey Day Classic is a college football game, traditionally held annually on Thanksgiving Day. Originally, it was played between Alabama State University and Tuskegee University, two historically black universities. The game was originally played in Montgomery, Alabama's Cramton Bowl, but relocated to Alabama State's new Hornet Stadium in 2012. The game is one of two black college football classics to be associated with Thanksgiving weekend; the other is the younger, but more widely known, Bayou Classic, held two days later.
The SWAC Championship Game, officially the Cricket Wireless SWAC Championship Game, is an American college football game that is held annually on the first Saturday in December by the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) to determine its football champion. The game pits the champion of the Eastern Division against the champion of the Western Division in a game that follows the conclusion of the regular season. From 2015 onward, the winner of the game has represented the SWAC in the Celebration Bowl. As of the 2019 season, the game is sponsored by Cricket Wireless.
The 2012 Arkansas–Pine Bluff Golden Lions football team represented the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff in the 2012 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Golden Lions were led by fifth year head coach Monte Coleman and played their home games at Golden Lion Stadium as a member of the West Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). They finished with an overall record of ten wins and two losses and as SWAC champions after they defeated Jackson State in the SWAC Championship Game.
The 2012 Jackson State Tigers football team represented Jackson State University in the 2012 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Tigers were led by seventh-year head coach Rick Comegy and played their home games at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium. They were a member of the East Division Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). They finished with an overall record of seven wins and five losses and lost to Arkansas–Pine Bluff in the SWAC Championship Game.
The 2013 Arkansas–Pine Bluff Golden Lions football team represents the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff in the 2013 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Golden Lions are led by sixth year head coach Monte Coleman and play their home games at Golden Lion Stadium as a member of the West Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). They came into the 2013 season as the defending SWAC Champions.
The 2014 Southwestern Athletic Conference baseball tournament was held at Wesley Barrow Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, from May 14 through 18, 2014. Jackson State won their sixteenth tournament championship, and second in a row, to earn the conference's automatic bid to the 2014 NCAA Division I baseball tournament. The event was originally scheduled for LaGrave Field in Fort Worth, Texas, but was moved due to concerns about player safety.
The Arkansas–Pine Bluff Golden Lions women's basketball team represents the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. The school's team currently competes in the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
The 2019 Southern Jaguars football team represents Southern University in the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Jaguars are led by seventh-year head coach Dawson Odums and play their home games at Ace W. Mumford Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana as members of the West Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC).
The 2019 Grambling State Tigers football team represents Grambling State University in the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Tigers are led by sixth-year head coach Broderick Fobbs and play their home games at Eddie Robinson Stadium in Grambling, Louisiana as members of the West Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC).
The 2020 Southern Jaguars football team represented Southern University in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Jaguars were led by eighth-year head coach Dawson Odums and played their home games at Ace W. Mumford Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana as members of the West Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC).
The 2020 Texas Southern Tigers football team represented Texas Southern University a member of the West Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) during 2020–21 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led second-year head coach Clarence McKinney, the Tigers compiled an overall record of 1–2 with an identical mark in conference play, placing fourth teams in the SWAC's West Division. Texas Southern played home games at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston.
The 2021 SWAC Championship Game was a college football game played on December 4, 2021, at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jackson, Mississippi. It was the 23rd edition of the SWAC Championship Game and determined the champion of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) for the 2021 season. The game began at 3:00 p.m. CST and aired on ESPN2. The game featured the Jackson State Tigers, the East Division champions, and the Prairie View A&M Panthers, the West Division champions. Sponsored by wireless service provider Cricket and by beverage corporation PepsiCo through their Pepsi Zero Sugar brand, the game was officially known as the 2021 Cricket SWAC Football Championship presented by Pepsi Zero Sugar. The winner of the game received a bid to the Celebration Bowl to face the South Carolina State Bulldogs, champions of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC).
The 2021–22 Jackson State Tigers basketball team represented Jackson State University in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Tigers, led by ninth-year head coach Wayne Brent, played their home games at the Williams Assembly Center in Jackson, Mississippi as members of the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
The 2022 Arkansas–Pine Bluff Golden Lions football team represented University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff as a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) during the 2022 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led through the first seven games of the season by head coach Doc Gamble, who was in his third season with the program, until he was fired on October 20, with offensive coordinator Don Treadwell assuming interim head coaching duties for the remainder of the season. The Lions played their home games at Simmons Bank Field in Pine Bluff, Arkansas.
The 2022 SWAC Championship Game was a college football game played on December 3, 2022, at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jackson, Mississippi. It was the 24th edition of the SWAC Championship Game and determined the champion of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) for the 2022 season. The game began at 3:00 p.m. CST on ESPN2. The game featured the Jackson State Tigers, the East Division champions, and the Southern Jaguars, the West Division champions. Sponsored by wireless service provider Cricket and by beverage corporation PepsiCo, the game was officially known as the 2022 Cricket SWAC Football Championship presented by Pepsi. The winner of the game received a bid to the Celebration Bowl to face the champions of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), the North Carolina Central Eagles.
