Several Grambling State University sporting events have been streamed on HBCU Plus in recent seasons, which has now drawn the ire of the Southwestern Athletic Conference’s boss.
SWAC commissioner Charles McClelland issued a letter to Grambling interim president Connie Walton this past Friday, warning the university that a game that was scheduled to be streamed Saturday, Jan. 6, would possibly result in sanctions from the league office, including “forfeiture of conference distributions, ineligibility for the remaining SWAC-sanctioned championships for the season and pursuit of damages, expenses, and costs incurred by the conference from third-party media partners.”
“Grambling is well aware that the SWAC bylaws grant the SWAC the exclusive right to negotiate national broadcast rights on behalf of SWAC member schools,” McClelland wrote. “If you are not already aware, HBCU Plus is a national broadcasting platform. As such, Grambling is prohibited from negotiating such a broadcast agreement.”
Commissioner Dr Charles McClelland (@theswac) sends a letter to Grambling State’s interim president (Dr Gallot is gone) threatening sanctions if games are streamed on @HBCU_Plus…UEN/@vicpelt attorney sends a response asking for clarification…#HBCUs pic.twitter.com/Sks6EnSgXL
— yardtalkhbcu (@yardtalkhbcu) January 8, 2024
A response was then drafted by Prometheus Partners, a law firm that represents Urban Edge Network, the parent company of HBCU Plus.
Eduardo G. Roy, an attorney who represents UEN wrote, “Your letter asserts that Grambling is a member of the SWAC and subject to its constitution, Bylaws, and Sports Regulation. Unfortunately, you did not identify any language in the identified documents that support your position. In order for Grambling to consider your letter properly, please provide citations to each document that supports your position.”
Prometheus Partners also requested those documents be made available before Grambling’s next basketball game, which would be tonight. HBCU Plus did not stream Grambling’s Jan. 6 basketball games in response to the commissioner’s letter.
In 2023, Urban Edge Network, a broadcast entity that has televised HBCU sporting events and programming, filed a $250 million lawsuit against the SWAC for what it called “unfair business practices” regarding interference with media rights.
The lawsuit filed in the Northern District of Texas Dallas Division court in January 2023 claimed that the SWAC’s bylaws indicated that the league didn’t own exclusive rights. Urban Edge Network, according to the lawsuit, previously negotiated a deal with Grambling State.
