Both Alabama State and North Carolina Central announced Wednesday that games against Pac-12 member UCLA have been scheduled for the 2022 and 2023 football seasons.
Alabama State will travel to Pasadena, California to face UCLA for the first time in school history on Sept. 10, 2022.
“This is an exciting time for Alabama State and our football program,” Alabams State Athletics Director Jennifer Lynne Williams said in a statement. “When we recruit student-athletes to come to Alabama State we let them know they will have the opportunity to showcase their talents against some of the best competition in the country. In doing so, we don’t just stop at the Southwestern Athletic Conference or FCS for that matter, we go nationwide to display ‘Hornet Pride!’ The pageantry of the Rose Bowl venue and everything that comes along with it is special. This will be something our student-athletes will remember for a lifetime.”
North Carolina Central will travel to Pasadena to face the Bruins on Sept. 16, 2023.
“We are excited about the opportunity to play UCLA, a member of the Pac-12 conference,” said NCCU football head coach Trei Oliver. “For our young men to be able to play in the Rose Bowl, the most storied venue in all of college football, is an experience of a lifetime.”
The 2022 and 2023 contests with UCLA replace a home-and-home scheduled series for the Bruins with Michigan, who terminated the contract. It will be the first time the UCLA Bruins will have faced HBCU opponents.
