The Fort Valley State Wildcats football team is honored to be the SIAC’s representative in the first-ever Florida Beach Bowl.
Having finished the regular season with a 7-3 overall record, the Wildcats were among a loaded field of SIAC contenders in line for selection.
Other teams considered were Miles, Albany State, Allen, and Edward Waters (Tuskegee was ineligible due to its participation in the Turkey Day Classic).
Fort Valley State athletic director Dr. Renae Myles Payne explained how the program got here to what she described as an “exciting” time.
“When I got the call on [November 12] after the [NCAA Division II Playoff] selection show happened, we got the call, and it was exciting,” Payne said. “Most importantly, because our student-athletes get another shot. We get more practices, we get exposure, and we get guaranteed finances that will go into helping us with our scholarships.”
When assessing what made Fort Valley State the best candidate for the Florida Beach Bowl, she pointed to the school’s unique relationship with the game’s host city and alumni engagement in the surrounding area.
“There’s a very long history of students coming from the South Florida area to Fort Valley. So there’s like a pipeline there of students coming from that area [dating back to] the ’60s,” Payne said. “Our alumni association in the area is very active. There are stories about how they would bring two or three buses from South Florida to homecoming here at Fort Valley every year.
Fort Valley State Florida connection
“We have a fan base that travels. Even with the game being announced, the calls started to come in, ‘Hey, when are tickets going on sale? What is the host hotel?’ All of those things they are used to doing and being excited about as a ‘Classic’ per se, they are [just as] excited about this Bowl game. So, we knew we could bring a fan base that would make good business sense.”
About 17 members of the Wildcats football team are from the state of Florida, including SIAC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year selection Kelvin Durham.
Payne herself is a part of the South Florida to Fort Valley State pipeline, having previously worked for the University of Miami.
Because of this connection, she is confident that the Wildcats will set the bar for teams that will follow them in being selected to play in the Florida Beach Bowl.
“We’re going to make the game so great, in my opinion, that if another team does get in at another time, we’ll have the blueprint for what’s needed to make certain that the game goes off without a hitch and is attended by lots of people, “she said.
Payne has also said she is willing to go to great lengths to add to an experience the team can cherish for the rest of their lives.
One of the ways she plans to do that is by giving the team a new method of travel, flying the team out rather than taking an eight-hour bus trip.
Bowl trip presents school brand expansion
In addition, Payne looks at this as a mutually beneficial opportunity for the school to recruit potential Fort Valley State students and athletes.
“These are once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. So they can cherish this; they can tell each other about it,” said Payne. “They won’t have any regrets [of] not being a member of this football program. This is a recruiting tool for us. They will tell other student-athletes about Fort Valley.
“The ones who are right there in the state of Florida get the chance to see another HBCU institution. They have a Florida Memorial in the city, but now they can also see another HBCU institution that can be an option for them if they are looking to play football at the next level.”
The Florida Beach Bowl is set to be played on Dec. 13 at DRV Pink Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The game will air on the HBCU Plus app.
