For the first time in MEAC/SWAC Challenge history, the game will be played in primetime on network television.
The Celebration Bowl rematch between SWAC champion Jackson State and South Carolina State in Atlanta will be televised on ABC at 7:30 p.m. EST on Aug. 26.
It will be the first time these two teams have met since South Carolina State beat Jackson State 31-10 in the 2021 Celebration Bowl.
The Bulldogs will be making the program’s fifth appearance in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge, the most of any team in the game’s history.
Although the Bulldogs hold a 3-1 record, they were unsuccessful in their most recent outing, losing 14-8 to Southern in 2017.
Meanwhile, this will be Jackson State’s third MEAC/SWAC Challenge and the first game under new head coach T.C. Taylor.
The Tigers are looking for their first win in the Challenge after losing their previous two appearances to Bethune-Cookman in 2019 and Hampton in 2008.
Jackson State is the first SWAC champion to appear in the game since Grambling State in 2009.
In the game’s history, the reigning SWAC champion has played in the MEAC/SWAC challenge four times and has lost on each occasion.
