You may be curious about what I learned now that the 2024 HBCU FCS Football season has ended and the crowning of a new champion.
This campaign could be titled “The Year of the Underdog,” as three FCS conferences with an HBCU member would crown an unexpected champion.
FCS HBCUs are still searching for quality out-of-conference victories, while the SWAC seemingly turns the tide of dominance against the MEAC.
Additionally, seats would get hot as the coaching carousel continued to go ’round.
Here are my key takeaways from the 2024 season.
Surprise, Surprise!
Two fourth-place and a third-place divisional finish are where South Carolina State, Tennessee State, and Jackson State were predicted to finish in their corresponding preseason conference polls. Running Back Irv Mulligan and quarterback Eric Phoenix weren’t selected as their league’s preseason offensive players of the year, let alone named to their all-conference preseason teams. Nevertheless, these three programs would exceed expectations and win respective league titles.
First-year head coach Chennis Berry brought 15 transfers from Division II Benedict to revamp an SC State program that posted eight combined wins in Buddy Pough’s final two seasons in Orangeburg. All he managed to do was lead the Bulldogs to their first nine-win season in 11 years on their way to earning the program its 19th conference championship.
After ending 2023 with a plus-.500 for the first time in six seasons, TSU would lose Buchanan Award winner Terrell Allen to the transfer portal. But thanks to an all-conference performance from kick returner CJ Evans and Defensive Freshman of the Year Sanders Ellis, Eddie George would lead the Tigers to their first league title since 1999 and the program’s first FCS Playoff berth since 2013. The fourth-year head coach would earn Big South-OVC Coach of the Year honors and finish as runner-up for the Eddie Robinson Award.
In Year 2 of being at the helm at his alma mater, T.C. Taylor would lead JSU to their third Cricket Celebration Bowl appearance in four seasons thanks to the historic performance by SWAC Offensive Player of the Year Irv Mulligan and the Tigers’ Darkside Defense. Jackson’s defensive unit limited teams to 20 points in the second half of their last eight contests while the running back from Beaufort, S.C., would surpass Walter Payton’s JSU single-season rushing yards record with 1,245 yards.
Defense wins Championships
I have a healthy disdain for several sports clichés, and this might be #1 on my list. However, Jackson State’s defense has been key to their title run this season. South Carolina State came into Saturday’s matchup averaging 425 yards and 36 points per contest. Still, the Tigers held the Bulldogs to historic lows in the Celebration Bowl.
From quarterback changes to a fake field goal attempt, Chennis Berry’s offense would struggle to move the ball against JSU, limited to 178 total yards, ten first downs, and seven points. All of which are the lowest in Celebration Bowl history.
Of the 12 Bulldog offensive drives, nine ended in five plays or less, with seven resulting in punts. Led by Defensive MVP Jeremiah Williams (3 total tackles, sack), Jackson State would contain SC State to 2-of-13 on third downs and 30 yards rushing as they defeated SC State by 21 points, tying the game’s most significant point deficit. The last team to win the Celebration Bowl by 21, the 2021 South Carolina State Bulldogs against … a Coach Prime-led Jackson State (31-10).
Other Celebration Bowl Records set
Fewest Combined Points Scored (Quarter): 0 (1st Qtr), T-2016 (NCCU v. Grambling), 2017 (Grambling v. NC A&T), 2023 (Howard v. FAMU)
Jackson State
Most Rushing Attempts: 51, Longest Possession Drive: 11:26, Longest Drive (Plays): 19,
South Carolina State
Most Total Tackles: 82, Most Tackles (Individual): Aaron Smith, 17.0
Out of Our League?
What if I told you this year’s most impressive regular season non-conference win for an FCS HBCU program was eventual 5-7 Grambling State defeating Black College Football National Champion Jackson State, 41-20? Yes, they are both members of the SWAC, but this Week 4 matchup was scheduled as a non-league contest.
The conversation about strength of schedule doesn’t happen within FCS HBCU football circles until November when a MEAC or SWAC team has at least eight wins but falls short of winning a conference championship. See North Carolina Central.
On average, these non-conference slates consist of an FBS opponent, a regional FCS opponent, and at least two HBCU rivalry games (one FCS, one Division II). In 2024, the MEAC and SWAC have a combined record of 21-52 versus Division I opponents with an average strength-of-record of 43%. Grambling State (2-1), Jackson State (4-2), and North Carolina Central (3-2) are the only teams that have above—.500 records, while 13 teams have faced at least one non-Division I opponent. Alabama State and Morgan State would play two.
I understand that schedules are set years in advance. However, of the 62 games played against FCS opponents, ten were against eight teams that have participated in the playoffs over the past three seasons (Elon, Incarnate Word, North Dakota State, North Carolina Central, Sacred Heart, St. Francis (PA), Richmond, Nicholls State).
Unfortunately, FCS HBCUs face a conundrum. Do you continue to schedule “money games” against FBS and rival Division II opponents for the financial benefit of your programs, or do you play an intense FCS non-conference schedule with the hopes of earning dwindling at-large bids in the playoffs with the Ivy League set to participate in the NCAA Division I FCS playoffs starting in 2025?
At some point, leadership within HBCU athletics departments and conferences will need to be more honest with their fan bases regarding scheduling games and the potential for postseason appearances. Making the playoffs would be nice. But if you analyze their schedules, their biggest concern is generating revenue. Which also includes the Cricket Celebration Bowl.
SWAC on Top
Speaking of the Cricket Celebration Bowl, SWAC commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland criticized the game’s decision to move their schedule up one week to avoid viewership competition with the first round of the College Football Playoff and two scheduled NFL matchups.
“From a Southwestern Athletic Conference perspective, participating in the Celebration Bowl the week following our championship game will pose additional challenges for our championship team to be at their optimal capacity to perform at the highest level for such a prestigious event. However, we will look to see what, if any, adjustments the Conference Office can make to help our representative have the best opportunity to be successful on the new date and time.”
Jackson State would put a hole in that theory, winning the first Celebration Bowl post-date change and giving the conference its first back-to-back winners since the event’s inception.
The SWAC has narrowed the MEAC’s lead in the postseason contest to 6-3, and the SWAC is now 5-2 versus the MEAC since 2023, including winning the last two MEAC/SWAC Challenges.
Coaching Carousel Seat gets hot
One-third of the FCS HBCU fanbases were introduced to new head coaches this July. As the season ended, six programs would search for new leadership.
Delaware State and Mississippi Valley State have seen their share of struggles. The Hornets have produced one winning season since being crowned MEAC champions in 2007, while the Delta Devils are in search of their first winning season since 2006. Unfortunately for head coaches Lee Hull and Kendrick Wade, the floundering has continued during their two-year stints. It’s unsurprising that a combined 2-21 record during their respective stints would have their jobs in question. However, Wade’s tenure would include a victory over Florida A&M that ended the Rattlers’ 23-game home winning streak.
There was speculation that Connell Maynor might be on the hot seat at Alabama A&M entering the 2024 season. Three seasons removed from a SWAC title in Spring 2021, Maynor’s Bulldogs compiled a record of 15-19 between 2022-2024 resulting in three Fourth Place finishes in the SWAC East. Unfortunately, a 6-6 season highlighted by a 3-1 finish in his final four games wasn’t enough to keep Maynor in Huntsville.
After winning two division titles in three seasons at Prairie View A&M, Bubba McDowell’s firing as head coach might be the most shocking of the coach dismissals. On the Panthers’ staff since 2012, McDowell would end his head coaching tenure with a record of 17-18. However, having their nine-game win streak against rival Texas Southern and their first-year head coach Cris Dishman and finishing the season 3-5 in conference play was enough for Prairie View to move on from McDowell. His replacement is Tremaine Jackson, 2024 AFCA Division II National Coach of the Year. From 2022-24, Jackson served as head coach of Valdosta State, amassing an overall record of 30-9 in his three seasons, guiding the Blazers to an undefeated regular season in 2024 en route to the NCAA Division II National Championship game.
In 2021, Norfolk State would hire Dawson Odums with the hope that he would lead them to their first MEAC title since 2011. Odums would previously spend nine seasons at Southern, winning four SWAC West division titles and compiling an overall record of 63-32. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t come close to obtaining that type of success in Virginia, putting together a record of 15-30 over four seasons, including a 4-8 finish in 2024. His replacement? Former No. 1 overall NFL draft pick and four-time Pro Bowl selection Michael Vick. A native of nearby Newport News, Vick has no previous college coaching experience. Still, his name carries weight in the Hampton Roads area, which could be beneficial in attracting local talent to Norfolk State.
When North Carolina A&T decided to move to the Coastal Athletic Conference in 2023, the belief was that a coach familiar with the conference would be beneficial in leading the Aggies transition to a new and assumed tougher league. Two years later, the Vincent Brown experiment proved to be a failure. Along with tallying a 2-21 record during his tenure, Brown’s teams ranked 101 or worse in at least 12 statistical categories, averaging just under 16 points and 279.2 yards per game while allowing 34.3 points and 421.9 yards per contest. In an attempt to return to their glory days, A&T has brought back a familiar face. Shawn Gibbs, the running backs coach and special teams coordinator from 2011-21 under Rod Broadway and Sam Washington, has been tabbed as the 23rd head football coach in program history. Before returning to Greensboro, Gibbs spent three seasons as the head football coach at Division II Fort Valley State. During his tenure, FVSU had an overall record of 22-9 football while going 17-6 in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC).
