BIG NEWS from the MEAC SWAC Challenge. Mercedes Miller, president of the ATL Airport District, said “he’s honored” to host the 2025 20th Annual Cricket MEAC/SWAC Challenge. Assuming he will say the same “in future” because he might soon get the opportunity to welcome NFL greatness and welcome former Eagles legend Michael Vick as a CFB coach of Norfolk State Spartans. Against another NFL player, also a coach and the defending HBCU national champion, in his city.

That’s the teaser. John Grant, Executive Director of the Cricket MEAC/SWAC Challenge and Celebration Bowl, confirmed that Jackson State University will face Norfolk State University in the 2028 HBCU conference clash. The matchup carries more than just bragging rights. It’s the convergence of two NFL icons now leading programs from opposite ends of the HBCU spectrum. Michael Vick will command the Spartans, a MEAC program searching for a definitive breakthrough, while JSU comes in as the SWAC powerhouse with a new standard to uphold. For the MEAC/SWAC Challenge, now entering its 20th year, this is the kind of box-office storyline the event was built to showcase.

Jackson State brings a reputation forged by dominant fronts and relentless tempo, while Norfolk State enters this stage as a program reborn under Vick’s leadership. The Spartans last featured in the Challenge in 2024 against Florida A&M. A bruising battle that revealed their defensive grit but also underscored the need for a consistent offensive identity. Michael Vick, entering his debut season, represents that new identity. The former Eagles QB is preaching pace, precision, and improvisation. A style befitting his own NFL highlight reel.

Across the field, Jackson State is led by a short lived pro in former Patriots and Lions, T. C. Taylor. Coach Taylor was a stud in his time, played both QB and WR for a short period during his high school days. His Tigers just had their first preseason scrimmage, and it’s “looking good” for them. JSU last appeared in the Challenge in 2023 against South Carolina State and is the defending HBCU national champion. A team with size in the trenches and swagger on the perimeter. The contrast? Norfolk’s retooling speed versus Jackson State’s entrenched power makes this a collision of philosophies as much as programs.

Ahead of his highly anticipated coaching debut, NFL legend Michael Vick met DeSean Jackson and appeared at a press conference in Philadelphia on Tuesday to promote the October 30th matchup between Norfolk State and Delaware State. The two stars spoke following the Eagles’ practice alongside team officials and dignitaries, turning what could have been a routine presser into a reunion show. Vick, smooth in a green polo and cap, zipped short passes to DeSean Jackson outside the Philadelphia Eagles’ complex. After laughing through a few light routes, Jackson eventually traded his T-shirt for a sports coat. Not for game day, but for the press conference podium. The clip felt like a throwback to their Philadelphia glory days. But this wasn’t nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake. It was a teaser for another history-making moment in HBCU football.

In the same way, the MEAC/SWAC Challenge isn’t just about one game. It’s a tradition that continues to deepen. The 2025 edition will feature the North Carolina Central Eagles, the 2022 HBCU national champions, squaring off against the Southern University Jaguars. Then the carousel spins forward: 2026 brings Howard University (MEAC) against Alabama A&M (SWAC). In 2027, South Carolina State (MEAC) faces Alabama State (SWAC). And finally, the 2028 stage, where Vick’s Norfolk State Spartans meet Jackson State in what already feels like a watershed clash for the culture. Under Grant’s watch, the MEAC/SWAC Challenge has grown from an intriguing exhibition into a platform where storylines like Vick’s come to life.

T.C. Taylor’s celebration bowl moment

T.C. Taylor finally got around to checking his cell phone after the confetti settled on another SWAC championship trophy at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Coliseum in 2024. Waiting for him was a message from a familiar name. It was Deion Sanders, the man who set the modern Jackson State machine in motion.

Sanders, who coached the Tigers to two SWAC titles before leaving for Colorado after the 2022 season, wanted to make sure his former offensive coordinator knew he was still in his corner. “He’s always supported me,” Taylor told the Clarion Ledger back then. “That’s why it was good to hear from him. After that game, he was just telling me to go win this one this weekend.” That little nudge from “Coach Prime” carried some weight, considering the stage Taylor is stepping into.

Jackson State won the Celebration Bowl 28-7 against South Carolina State. That was their third trip in four seasons. Prime made the game twice but left empty-handed both times. Taylor, at 46, delivered what even the Hall of Famer couldn’t. For a program many thought might fade when Sanders left, Taylor’s steady hand has them right back striking.