Saturday's Celebration Bowl between Jackson State and North Carolina Central represents the final game of the season for HBCUs in the 2022 college football season.
Though it is a relatively new game, having been reinstated as recently as the 2015 season, the Celebration Bowl serves as the de facto Black national championship game. How important is it to FCS HBCUs? The representatives from the SWAC and MEAC, the conferences that play in the game, forgo playing in the FCS playoffs for the chance to play in it.
The chance to claim supremacy among HBCUs is a longstanding endeavor, but one that only recently has included a formal championship game. Currently, that role is filled by the Celebration Bowl — but it hasn't always done so. In fact, it is only the latest means of crowning a Black national champion.
MORE: Why Deion Sanders is leaving Jackson State for Colorado
The Sporting News looks at the Celebration Bowl and its place in the broader history of the Black national championship:
What is the Celebration Bowl?
The Celebration Bowl is the de facto Black national championship game, held between the champions of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) and Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), the premier conferences among HBCU programs.
How did the Celebration Bowl start?
The Celebration Bowl is owned and operated by ESPN Events, a subsidiary of ESPN that is also in charge of the MEAC/SWAC Challenge, traditionally played on Labor Day weekend. It is a successor to the Pelican Bowl of the 1970s and the Heritage Bowl of the 1990s, in that it attempts to crown a non-mythical champion among the HBCU programs.
"The Celebration Bowl is committed to providing the champions of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and the Southwestern Athletic Conference, and their alumni, fans and sponsors a first-class bowl experience while continuing to celebrate the legacy, values and traditions of Historically Black colleges and universities," ESPN said in a 2015 statement.
Who goes to the Celebration Bowl?
The Celebration Bowl pits the champions of the SWAC and MEAC, the only two HBCU conferences at the Division I level of college football (FCS). The champions of the respective conferences typically forgo the right to play in the FCS playoffs for the chance to play a single-game championship.
MORE: FCS playoff bracket 2022: Schedule, TV, scores for semifinal games
Why Celebration Bowl is called 'Black national championship'
The Celebration Bowl is known as the Black national championship game because it pits the champions of the two Division I HBCU conferences against each other. It is a successor to similar games: the Pelican Bowl (1972-76) and Heritage Bowl (1991-99) also pitted the conferences' champions against each other.
That said, there have been issues with attempts to declare a Black national championship — which began in earnest in 1920. Not least is the fact that HBCUs don't compete only at the Division I level, but also in Division II, Division III and the NAIA.
MORE: Deion Sanders has heated handshake with Alabama State coach Eddie Robinson Jr. after Tigers win
The Celebration Bowl also isn't fully representative of Division I HBCU teams: it omits three FCS-level HBCUs in Tennessee State, Hampton and North Carolina A&T. The latter two programs left the MEAC following the 2017 and 2019 seasons, respectively.
Hampton plays in the Colonial Athletic Association, while North Carolina A&T plays in the Big South. Tennessee State has played out of the Ohio Valley Conference since the 1998 season.
History of Celebration Bowl winners
Below is the full rundown of Black national championship games, including the Celebration Bowl and its predecessors, the Pelican and Heritage bowls:
Pelican Bowl (SWAC leads 3-0)
| Date | SWAC representative | MEAC representative | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec. 2, 1972 | Grambling | North Carolina Central | Grambling 56, NCCU 6 |
| Dec. 1, 1973 | — | — | Canceled |
| Dec. 7, 1974 | Grambling State | South Carolina State | Grambling State 28, SCSU 7 |
| Dec. 27, 1975 | Southern | South Carolina State | Southern 15, SCSU 12 |
| Dec. 11, 1976 | — | — | Canceled |
Heritage Bowl (SWAC leads 6-3)
| Date | SWAC representative | MEAC representative | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec. 21, 1991 | Alabama State | North Carolina A&T | Alabama State 36, NCAT 13 |
| Jan. 2, 1993 | Grambling State | Florida A&M | Grambling State 45, FAMU 15 |
| Jan. 1, 1994 | Southern | South Carolina State | Southern 11, SCSU 0 |
| Dec. 30, 1994 | Grambling State | South Carolina State | SCSU 31, Grambling State 27 |
| Dec. 29, 1995 | Southern | Florida A&M | Southern 30, FAMU 25 |
| Dec. 31, 1996 | Southern | Howard | Howard 27, Southern 24 |
| Dec. 27, 1997 | Southern | South Carolina State | Southern 34, SCSU 28 |
| Dec. 26, 1998 | Southern | Bethune-Cookman | Southern 28, Bethune-Cookman 2 |
| Dec. 18, 1999 | Southern | Hampton | Hampton 24, Southern 3 |
Celebration Bowl (MEAC leads 5-1)
| Date | SWAC representative | MEAC representative | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec. 19, 2015 | Alcorn State | North Carolina A&T | NCAT 41, Alcorn State 34 |
| Dec. 17, 2016 | Grambling State | North Carolina A&T | Grambling State 10, NCAT 9 |
| Dec. 16, 2017 | Grambling State | North Carolina A&T | NCAT 21, Grambling State 14 |
| Dec. 15, 2018 | Alcorn State | North Carolina A&T | NCAT 24, Alcorn State 22 |
| Dec. 21, 2019 | Alcorn State | North Carolina A&T | NCAT 64, Alcorn State 44 |
| 2020 | — | — | Canceled due to COVID-19 |
| Dec. 18, 2021 | Jackson State | South Carolina State | SCSU 31, Jackson State 10 |
| Dec. 17, 2022 | Jackson State | North Carolina Central | TBD |
