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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 Heritage Bowl was a NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) bowl game held by the National Collegiate Athletic Association. The bowl pitted a team from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) against a team from the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). It was hoped that it would become a true national championship game for historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). It was a successor to the Pelican Bowl, which matched MEAC and SWAC teams during the 1970s, and a predecessor to the Celebration Bowl of the 2010s.
The black college football national championship is a national championship honor that, since 1920, has been regularly bestowed upon the best football teams among historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) within the United States.
The Florida Classic is the annual college football rivalry game between Bethune–Cookman University and Florida A&M University. The game has been televised nationally by ESPN Classic as a part of a multi-year contract with the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), which had been both schools' home conference until their July 2021 departure for the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). The game is operated by Florida Citrus Sports, a non-profit group that also organizes the Pop-Tarts Bowl and Citrus Bowl. The Classic has approximately a $31 million impact on Orlando's economy; it was the largest MEAC conference football game before the schools left for the SWAC, and remains the largest Division I FCS football game in Florida.
The Florida A&M Rattlers football team represents Florida A&M University in the sport of American football. The Rattlers compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Starting with the fall 2021 season, the Rattlers will compete in the East Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), after a long tenure in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). They play their home games at Bragg Memorial Stadium in Tallahassee. The Rattlers have won 16 black college football national championship, 29 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) titles, eight MEAC titles, one SWAC title and one I-AA national title in the history of their football program. During the 2004 season, the Rattlers briefly attempted to move up to Division I-A and become the only HBCU at college football's highest level, but the team was forced to abort its bid.
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.
Willie Simmons is an American college football coach who is the running backs coach at Duke University. He was most recently the head coach at Florida A&M from 2018 to 2023. Simmons was previously the head coach at Prairie View A&M from 2014 to 2017. He has also served as offensive coordinator of the Alcorn State Braves as well as the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders football teams. Simmons played college football at Clemson and The Citadel as a quarterback.
The Celebration Bowl is a postseason college football bowl game, first played in the 2015 season, contested between the champions of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC)—the two prominent conferences of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in NCAA Division I. It serves as the de facto national championship of black college football. The game is held annually in Atlanta on the third weekend of December, and has been played at the Georgia Dome and Mercedes-Benz Stadium. It is currently the only active bowl game to feature teams from the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).
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 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 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 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 North Carolina A&T Aggies football team represented North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) in the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. This marked the 96th season for the program, and the Aggies were led by second-year head coach Sam Washington. The Aggies finished the season with a record of 9–3 overall and 6–2 in MEAC play, capturing their 11th conference title. The Aggies also earned an invitation to the Celebration Bowl where they defeated Southwestern Athletic Conference champion Alcorn State, earning their seventh black college football national championship. The Aggies played their home games at BB&T Stadium.
The 2019 Celebration Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 21, 2019, with kickoff at 12:00 p.m. EST on ABC. It was the 5th edition of the Celebration Bowl, and the only one of the 2019–20 bowl games to feature FCS teams.
The 2022 HBCU Legacy Bowl was a post-season college football all-star game played on February 19, 2022, at Yulman Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was the inaugural edition of the HBCU Legacy Bowl, whose founding was announced by the Black College Football Hall of Fame on March 18, 2021. The game was the last of the all-star games that concluded the 2021–22 bowl games. Television coverage was provided by NFL Network.
The 2021 Celebration Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 18, 2021, with kickoff at 12:00 p.m. EST at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, with television coverage on ABC. It was one of the highest attended and sixth edition of the Celebration Bowl, and was the only one of the 2021–22 bowl games to feature FCS teams. Sponsored by wireless service provider Cricket Wireless, the game was officially known as the Cricket Celebration Bowl.
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).
The 2023 Howard Bison football team represented Howard University as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) during the 2023 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Larry Scott, the Bison finished with an overall record of 6–6 with a mark of 4–1 in conference play, winning the MEAC title outright and a invitation to the Celebration Bowl.
The 2023 SWAC Championship Game was a college football game played on December 2, 2023, at Bragg Memorial Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida. It was the 25th edition of the SWAC Championship Game and determined the champion of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) for the 2023 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 Prairie View A&M Panthers, the West Division champions. Sponsored by beverage corporation PepsiCo and automotive manufacture General Motors, the game was officially known as the 2023 Pepsi SWAC Football Championship presented by General Motors. By virture of winning the game, Florida A&M received a bid to the Celebration Bowl to face the champions of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), the Howard Bison.
References
- ↑ @AlisonPosey14 (December 16, 2023). "No surprise that @Rhsathletics1 product Kelvin Dean is your Offensive MVP of the 2023 Celebration Bowl. Isaiah Major is your defensive MVP" (Tweet). Retrieved December 16, 2023– via Twitter.
- ↑ Austro, Ben (December 3, 2023). "2023-24 bowl officiating assignments". footballzebras.com. Retrieved December 5, 2023.
- ↑ Woodroof, Cory (December 16, 2023). "The Howard and Florida A&M marching bands wowed during Celebration Bowl halftime performances". usatoday.com. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
- ↑ Straka, Dean (May 31, 2023). "2023-24 college football bowl schedule, games, dates, locations, kickoff times, TV channels". CBS Sports. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
- ↑ Lewis, Barry. "2023-24 College Football Bowl Schedule, Dates, Times Announced". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
- ↑ Hofheimer, Bill (November 2023). "Howard University Qualifies for the Cricket Celebration Bowl for the First Time". espnpressroom.com (Press release). Retrieved November 26, 2023.
- ↑ Stevens, Chris (November 12, 2023). "The MEAC is up for grabs after Howard blows out NC Central. What happens now?". hbcusports.com. HBCU Sports. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
- ↑ "Florida A&M Wins Its First SWAC Championship, Advances to Celebration Bowl". WTXL. Associated Press. December 2, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2023.