VIRGINIA STATE UNIVERSITY CHEERLEADERS, AT THE BLACK COLLEGE FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME CLASSIC IN CANTON, OHIO, SEPT. 1, 2024. (PHOTO BY ROB TAYLOR JR.)
BLACK COLLEGE FOOTBALL—THE TRADITION, THE PAGEANTRY, THE BANDS
Virginia State upsets Benedict College, 23-7
See the Courier’s exclusive video from the Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic 2024….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdjKvvEj9ik
by Rob Taylor Jr., Courier Staff Writer
The heart and soul of Columbia, South Carolina; Benedict College, which has been around since 1870, a highly respected and valued Historically Black College, with its own “Benedict College Historic District,” which is part of the National Register of Historic Places. It’s comprised of five on-campus buildings that were built between 1895 and 1937.
Their athletics nickname is the “Tigers,” and when they accepted the invitation to play in the Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic in Canton, Ohio, Sept. 1, 2024, they brought the cheerleaders, the “Marching Tiger Band of Distinction,” tons of fans, and the heralded football team, which had won 20 regular season games in a row.
But it was their opponent, Virginia State University, the Trojans, who took the 463-mile trek to Canton, with upset on their minds.
Mother Nature came to play, too, throwing rain showers and storms onto Tom Benson Stadium at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, delaying the game by an hour midway through the tilt.
BENEDICT COLLEGE JUMPED OUT TO AN EARLY LEAD, BUT AFTER THAT, IT WAS ALL VSU TROJANS. (PHOTO BY MIKE PATTON)
In the end, though, Virginia State brushed off Mother Nature and then dominated Benedict College, a 23-7 upset victory in the fifth Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic.
Fans from Pittsburgh were in attendance at this year’s game, although attendance dipped overall to under 5,000. Fans watched Benedict score first on a blocked punt, but VSU put up 23 unanswered points, led by running back Jimmyll Williams, who rushed for two touchdowns. Kevin Gayles caught a 51-yard touchdown pass as well for the Trojans.
The Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic has become a destination event for African Americans in the region and beyond, depending on the teams that play. It’s become a week full of events, including job fairs, concerts, and the acknowledgement of players who went into the Black College Football Hall of Fame for 2024. This year’s inductees were Joe “747 Adams (Tennessee State University), Antoine Bethea (Howard University), Waymond Bryant (Tennessee State University), Kevin Dent (Jackson State University), Richard Huntley (Winston-Salem State University), Lemar Parrish (Lincoln University), and Coach Eddie Hurt (Morgan State University).
THE PITTSBURGH CREW, MAKING THE TRIP TO CANTON!
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