2026’s Division I HBCU football conference races promise to be interesting from start to finish, but who in the MEAC and SWAC needs at least a good showing, if not a conference championship?
HBCU Sports gives you two teams from each conference who must make a move up in the standings this coming season.
Alabama State (10-2 overall, 7-1 SWAC in 2025)
The chances don’t come any better than 2026 for the Hornets.
After their best season in 21 years, all-world quarterback Andrew Body returns to the Hornets, as well as many pieces of an ASU offense that ranked second in all of NCAA FCS in points per game.
The Hornets had a chance to snatch the SWAC East title from Jackson State in one of the more memorable games in recent memory last year but came up just short.
The Tigers have to go to ASU Stadium Nov. 14, and provided most of the division (Florida A&M, Bethune-Cookman, Mississippi Valley State and Alabama A&M) will be looking towards the future, it appears we could have another winner-take-all situation in the East.
Alabama State won’t run from or dodge the expectations, but the time to fulfill the promise of a trip to the Celebration Bowl is now.
Grambling (7-5 overall, 4-4 SWAC in 2025)
The Tigers had another up-and-down year under Mickey Joseph in 2025, ending with a last-second loss to Southern in the Bayou Classic.
In between, there was a field trip to Ohio State, a big win over Jackson State in Las Vegas, a baffling home loss to Texas Southern, and the Bethune-Cookman dustup that ultimately was the nail in the coffin for their season.
Looking at the SWAC West in 2026, it’s clear that Prairie View will be the favorite, but there isn’t much else standing between The G and a clear shot at PV in the annual State Fair Classic.
They host SIAC members Clark Atlanta and Central State before a trip to TCU, then a bye heading into the State Fair.
If Grambling can beat Prairie View, that sets them up for a SWAC West title run…if they don’t get in their own way, that is.
Morgan State (4-8 overall, 1-4 MEAC in 2025)
The Bears have had some hard luck in recent years, but the time for a turnaround has come.
Of their eight losses in 2025, five came by seven points or less, meaning they were in several ball games right down to the wire. Finishing those games will be key if they are to compete for a MEAC title this season.
Losing linebacker Erick Hunter to the NFL and quarterback sensation Raymond Moore III to UTEP will be two tough departures to overcome, but in a league as thin and competitive as the MEAC, the Bears will still have opportunities to succeed.
Morgan State’s out-of-conference schedule features FCS contenders (Towson and Villanova), an FBS bowl participant (Arizona State) and Virginia-Lynchburg, so they will have seen a little bit of everything before starting conference play.
Hopefully that can help them get over the hump.
Norfolk State (1-11, 0-5 MEAC in 2025)
No, we are not pressing the panic button on Michael Vick in Year Two, but the Spartans must be better in 2026.
Norfolk State had as many close losses as Morgan State (five by seven points or fewer), but when it went wrong (60-10 at Rutgers, 51-20 vs. South Carolina State and 44-15 at Howard), it went way left.
The key for Vick and his revamped coaching staff is to solidify an offense that lost more than a few kids to graduation and continue building a defense that played very well despite being put in challenging situations in 2025.
Vick brought a lot of positive attention to Norfolk State, which is why you make a hire of that magnitude.
The wins must come next for a team that seemed so close, yet so far away from contending for a MEAC title.
