A change in the college football postseason schedule thanks to expansion of the College Football Playoff will impact the Division I HBCU national championship game.
The annual Celebration Bowl now moves from the third Saturday in December to the second weekend. The title game, featuring champions of the SWAC and MEAC, will be played at noon EST on Dec. 14 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta and televised on ABC.
The only other bowl game held that day will be the Camellia Bowl played in Montgomery, Alabama.
“The decision to move the Cricket Celebration Bowl to the second Saturday in December is truly a game-changer,” John T. Grant, executive director, said in a statement. “By aligning with the start of the college football bowl season and avoiding the expansion games of the college football playoffs and NFL, the Celebration Bowl has carved its own niche in the bowl season calendar.”
The move comes months after the College Football Playoff expanded from four to 12 teams, which created additional games on the postseason schedule.
The shift in when the Celebration Bowl is played will impact the SWAC champion. The conference championship game is scheduled for Dec. 7. That means the winner will have no break between that game and the Celebration Bowl.
The lack of rest between games has long been considered a disadvantage for the SWAC by league stakeholders despite Florida A&M beating Howard in last season’s Celebration Bowl.
The MEAC, which does not have a conference championship game and holds a 6-2 edge over the SWAC, ends its regular season on Nov. 23.
