Though we usually have a pretty good sense of which teams are built to reach the Celebration Bowl, every year there’s at least one sleeper that pops up and changes the race to Atlanta.
Prairie View A&M did it in 2025, and Howard pulled it off two years earlier, so the question for 2026 is simple: who is ready to break through from the MEAC or SWAC?
SWAC Celebration Bowl sleepers
Grambling State: The Tigers look like one of the better surprise candidates in the league after posting the most wins in a season since the program took the HBCU national championship in 2017. Mikey Joseph called 2026 a year GSU should be in the running to win the SWAC. Though the Tigers are set at QB with Jacobe Robinson and RJ Johnson III, who calls the plays? Who runs the ball? And do they have enough depth on defense to challenge Prairie View for the SWAC West crown? Grambling was picked to finish second in the division. A jump to No. 1 isn’t totally unrealistic if they can answer some important questions.
Alcorn State: The Braves still feel like a team with more upside than outside attention after a disappointing 2025 season. With preseason recognition and enough veteran talent to compete, Alcorn State has the profile of a team that could bounce back fast and become a spoiler in the SWAC West and beyond. How far the Braves go will rest on the shoulders of quarterback Jaylon Tolbert, who coach Cedric Thomas indicated should be considered among the top signal-callers in HBCU football. What could favor Alcorn State is a having a favorable schedule that features an opponent winning percentage of .413.
MEAC Celebration Bowl sleepers
Delaware State: The Hornets snuck up on everyone with a magical run up the MEAC standings in 2025 under first-year coach DeSean Jackson. While few are taking DSU lightly in 2026, the Hornets were picked to finish third in the MEAC preseason poll. And for good reason. The Hornets lost its top running back to the transfer portal and need to start all over again at quarterback. But there is just something about the culture change Jackson has influenced that makes the Hornets a team that should continue to contend.
Morgan State: This has to be the year, right? The Bears enter 2026 with probably the deepest roster its had since Damon Wilson took over as head coach. Keith Jenkins Jr. might be the Bears best overall offensive player while Justin Perry, an All-MEAC selection, gives Morgan State explosion on the outside at wide receiver. The defense sustained a big-time loss in Erick Hunter. That void will need to replaced by multiple contributors. To be in the running for Atlanta, the Bears need good fortune and players having close to career years.
Top Celebration Bowl contenders to monitor
In the SWAC, the teams to beat still look like Jackson State, Prairie View and Alabama State, while the MEAC race still runs through defending champion South Carolina State and longtime power North Carolina Central.
But if a sleeper team sneaks into the Celebration Bowl picture, Grambling State and Alcorn State in the SWAC, along with Delaware State and Morgan State in the MEAC, are worth a closer look.
