The 2022 Celebration Bowl was a

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

bowl game In North America, a bowl game, or simply bowl, is one of a number of postseason college football games primarily played by NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams. For most of its history, the FBS did not use a playoff tourname ...

played on December 17, 2022, at

Mercedes-Benz Stadium Mercedes-Benz Stadium is a retractable roof multi-purpose stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Opened in 2017 as a replacement for the Georgia Dome, it is the home of the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) and Atlanta ...

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

. The seventh annual

Celebration Bowl The Celebration Bowl is a postseason college football bowl game, first played in the 2015 NCAA Division I FCS football season, 2015 season, contested between the champions of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and the Southwestern Athlet ...

, the game featured the Jackson State Tigers, champions of the

Southwestern Athletic Conference The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, which is made up of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the Southern United St ...

(SWAC) and the

North Carolina Central Eagles The North Carolina Central Eagles refer to the 14 sports teams representing North Carolina Central University (NCCU) in Durham, North Carolina in intercollegiate athletics, including men and women's basketball, cross country, tennis, and track and ...

, champions of the

Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC ) is a List of NCAA conferences, collegiate athletic conference whose full members are historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and the Mid-A ...

(MEAC). The SWAC and MEAC are the two prominent

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

conferences of

historically black colleges and universities Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of serving African Americans. Most are in the Southern U ...

(HBCUs). The game began at 12:07 p.m. EST and aired on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

. It was the only

Football Championship Subdivision The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Bowl Subdivision (F ...

(FCS) contest of the 2022–23 bowl games. Sponsored by wireless service provider

Cricket Wireless Cricket Wireless LLC is an American prepaid wireless service provider, wholly-owned by AT&T. It provides wireless services to thirteen million subscribers in the United States as of 2022. Cricket Wireless was founded in March 1999 by Leap Wir ...

, it was officially known as the Cricket Celebration Bowl.

Teams

The Celebration Bowl featured the Jackson State Tigers, champions of the

and

, champions of the

(MEAC). This was North Carolina Central's second Celebration Bowl appearance following their one-point loss to

Grambling State Grambling State University (GSU, Grambling, or Grambling State) is a public historically black university in Grambling, Louisiana, United States. Grambling State is home of the Eddie G. Robinson Museum and is listed on the Louisiana African A ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

. The Celebration Bowl is viewed by some as the ''de facto''

black college football national championship The Black college football national championship, also named the HBCU football championship, is a National championship#Football, national championship honor that, since 1920, has been regularly bestowed upon the best College football teams among ...

game, though not unanimously; North Carolina Central claims one

: in

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, as a member of the

Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (originally and through 1950 known as the Colored Intercollegiate Athletic Association — CIAA) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NC ...

. Jackson State claims four, most recently in

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

despite their loss in the

South Carolina State South Carolina State University (SCSU or SC State) is a public, historically black, land-grant university in Orangeburg, South Carolina. It is the only public, historically black land-grant research university in South Carolina, is a member o ...

, which was also their only previous Celebration Bowl appearance. This was the fourth meeting between Jackson State and North Carolina Central; Jackson State entered leading the series 3–0. The teams had last played in

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

, when the Tigers defeated the Eagles 10–9.

Jackson State

In their third season under head coach

Deion Sanders Deion Luwynn Sanders Sr. (born August 9, 1967) is an American American football, football coach with the Colorado Buffaloes football, Colorado Buffaloes. Sanders is also a former professional football and baseball player, having played in the N ...

, the Jackson State Tigers began the year with a dominant win over

Florida A&M Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), commonly known as Florida A&M, is a Public university, public Historically black colleges and universities, historically black land-grant university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. ...

in the

Orange Blossom Classic The Orange Blossom Classic is an American annual college football game first held from 1933 to 1978 and again since 2021. Starting back up in 2021 the game has been played on Labor Day weekend. History In its first incarnation, the Classic featu ...

, played at

Hard Rock Stadium Hard Rock Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in the Southeastern United States, located in Miami Gardens, Florida. The stadium is the home field for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL) and the Miami Hurricanes, the Univers ...

. Their second game was also a neutral site contest, as they defeated Tennessee State in the

Southern Heritage Classic The Southern Heritage Classic presented by FedEx is an annual historically black college football game between the Golden Lions of University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) and the Braves of Alcorn State University. UAPB replaced Jackson ...

by thirteen points. The Tigers played their home opener the following week, against

, and defeated

Mississippi Valley State Mississippi Valley State University (MVSU, The Valley or Valley) is a public historically black university in Mississippi Valley State, Mississippi, adjacent to Itta Bena, Mississippi.bye week In sport, a bye is the preferential status of a player or team that is automatically advanced to the next round of a tournament without having to play an opponent in an early round. In knockout (elimination) tournaments, byes may be assigned ei ...

. Now ranked in the top 10 by the STATS FCS Poll, the Tigers continued their good form in a pair of road contests, first defeating Alabama State by fourteen points and then beating Bethune–Cookman by forty. Jackson State's

homecoming Homecoming is the tradition of welcoming back alumni or other former members of an organization to celebrate the organization's existence. It is a tradition in many high schools, colleges, and churches in the United States and Canada. United St ...

game followed, as the Tigers hosted the

Campbell Fighting Camels The Campbell Fighting Camels are the athletic teams that represent Campbell University, located in Buies Creek, North Carolina, in intercollegiate sports at the Division I level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily ...

from the

Big South Conference The Big South Conference is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I. Originally a non-football conference, the Big South began sponsoring football in 2002 as part of the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), ...

, and won by eight. The following weekend, on October 29, Jackson State played host to '' College GameDay'' for the first time as the Tigers defeated Southern in a shutout, 35–0. That game was their final home contest of the season, as the followed it up with a road win at

Texas Southern Texas Southern University (Texas Southern or TSU) is a public historically Black university in Houston. The university is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schoo ...

, a neutral-site contest in

Mobile, Alabama Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. After a successful vote to annex areas west of the city limits in July 2023, Mobil ...

, against

Alabama A&M Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University (Alabama A&M or AAMU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Normal, Huntsville, Alabama. Founded in 1875, it took its present name in 1969. It was one of about 180 " normal s ...

, and another road win over

Alcorn State Alcorn State University (Alcorn State, ASU or Alcorn) is a public historically black land-grant university adjacent to Lorman, Mississippi. It was founded in 1871 and was the first black land grant college established in the United States. T ...

to cap their undefeated regular season. This undefeated season also guaranteed them a bid to the

SWAC Football Championship Game The SWAC Championship Game, officially the Cricket Wireless SWAC Championship Game, is an American college football game that is held annually on the first Saturday in December by the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) to determine its foot ...

, where they defeated Southern for a second time to win their second consecutive SWAC championship. The Tigers entered the game with a 12–0 record, and an 8–0 mark in conference play, and ranked No. 10 by the STATS Poll and No. 5 by the

Coaches' Poll In the United States, the Coaches Poll is a weekly ranking of the top 25 NCAA Division I (NCAA), Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football, Division I (NCAA), Division I college basketball, and Division I college baseball teams. ...

. On December 3, 2022, following the conclusion of the SWAC championship game, it was announced that Sanders would accept the head coaching position at

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

. He arrived in Boulder to take the job the following day, but clarified that he would remain with Jackson State through the end of the season, making the Celebration Bowl his last game at Jackson State.

North Carolina Central

In their third season under head coach Trei Oliver, the North Carolina Central (NCCU) Eagles began their 2022 campaign with a neutral site

rivalry game Pairs of schools, colleges and universities, especially when they are close to each other either geographically or in their areas of specialization, often establish a university or college rivalry with each other over the years. This rivalry, whic ...

against North Carolina A&T, which they won, marking their first win over the Aggies since 2016. NCCU's home opener played to a shutout victory over Winston-Salem State, an

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is the intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environment ...

school which is also an

HBCU Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of serving African Americans. Most are in the Southern U ...

. NCCU pulled an upset the next week, defeating No. 25

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

on the road and taking their spot at No. 25 in the

rankings A ranking is a relationship between a set of items, often recorded in a list, such that, for any two items, the first is either "ranked higher than", "ranked lower than", or "ranked equal to" the second. In mathematics, this is known as a weak ...

the following week. After a sound defeat of Virginia–Lynchburg the following week, NCCU suffered their first defeat of the season at Campbell in their fifth game. Following a

bye week In sport, a bye is the preferential status of a player or team that is automatically advanced to the next round of a tournament without having to play an opponent in an early round. In knockout (elimination) tournaments, byes may be assigned ei ...

, they opened conference play with a 39-point defeat of Morgan State, but were defeated on the road the following week by defending Celebration Bowl champions

. NCCU returned to winning ways with a victory over

Delaware State Delaware State University (DSU or Del State) is a privately governed, state-assisted historically black land-grant research university in Dover, Delaware. DSU also has two satellite campuses: one in Wilmington and one in Georgetown. The un ...

, and won their

game against

Howard Howard is a masculine given name derived from the English surname Howard. ''The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names'' notes that "the use of this surname as a christian name is quite recent and there seems to be no particular reason for ...

. The Eagles clinched the MEAC Championship and their bid to the Celebration Bowl on November 12, 2022, after defeating Norfolk State, 48–14. They finished their regular season on with an away victory against

Tennessee Tech Tennessee Technological University (commonly referred to as Tennessee Tech) is a public research university in Cookeville, Tennessee. It was formerly known as Tennessee Polytechnic Institute, and before that as University of Dixie, the name unde ...

by virtue of a

field goal A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. Consequently, ...

as time expired. NCCU entered the game with an overall record of 9–2 and a MEAC record of 4–1. They were ranked No. 21 in the Coaches' Poll but were unranked in the STATS Poll prior to the game.

Game summary

The Celebration Bowl was televised by

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

, with a commentary team of

Tiffany Greene Tiffany may refer to: People * Tiffany (given name), list of people with this name * Tiffany (surname), list of people with this surname * Tiffany Darwish, (born 1971), an American singer, songwriter and actress known mononymously as Tiffany * Ti ...

, Jay Walker, and Tiffany Blackmon. The

ESPN Radio ESPN Radio, which is alternatively branded platform-agnostically as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the banner "SportsRadio ESPN". The netw ...

broadcast of the game featured commentators

Anish Shroff Anish Shroff (born 1982) is the radio play-by-play man for the Carolina Panthers and a play-by-play announcer and on-air host at ESPN. Early life and education Shroff was born in Bloomfield, New Jersey to Hitesh and Nikita Shroff who are both fro ...

Max Starks Maximillian Weisner Starks IV (born January 10, 1982) is an American former professional American football, football player who was an offensive tackle for 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Flo ...

, and Harry Lyles Jr. The game was officiated by a

Mid-American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region (North America), Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Its members co ...

crew led by referee Billy Williams and umpire Tony Day. The game was played indoors at

Scoring summary

Statistics

References

{{North Carolina Central Eagles bowl game navbox

Celebration Bowl

Jackson State Tigers football bowl games North Carolina Central Eagles football bowl games