GSU football shooting for six in spring
Leader file photo
Grambling State head football coach Broderick Fobbs, pictured during a preseason football workout last summer, hopes to see his Tigers play a six-game schedule in the spring of 2021.
GRAMBLING — Grambling State is hoping to open up a spring six-pack when the G-Men next return to the football field.
After cancelling its 2020 fall football season earlier this summer due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Southwestern Athletic Conference has released the schedules for all 10 SWAC schools for the upcoming 2021 spring football season.
The six-game conference schedule includes one non-conference open date for each team and six conference contests scheduled each week beginning in Week One.
A bye week has been designated for all SWAC teams during the week of March 13 to ensure that fans and supporters have the opportunity to attend the Cricket Wireless Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments (March 9-13).
SWAC teams will play four games against division opponents and two games against nondivision opponents.
Each member institution also has the option to add one nonconference game. The season will officially kickoff the weekend of Feb. 27 with five league games set to be played.
“We are excited about this opportunity,” said GSU head football coach Broderick Fobbs about the schedule. “As you know this has been extremely tough for not only our players, but also our coaches and administration as well. We are looking forward to getting the opportunity to participate in our SWAC football season this spring, and we are looking forward to it being an exciting brand of football as we continue to walk through this continual situation to make sure that all parties involved stay safe, but also more importantly, to play together and do things the right way.”
Grambling’s two nondivision games will be played against Jackson State and Alabama A&M. GSU will play Prairie View A&M on Feb. 27 in the Texas State Fair Classic at a location yet to be determined; Jackson State on March 8 in Grambling; Arkansas-Pine Bluff on March 20 in Grambling; Alabama A&M on March 27 in Huntsville, Alabama; Texas Southern on April 3 in Houston; and Southern on April 17 in the Bayou Classic at a location yet to be determined.
The SWAC 2021 spring football season will culminate with the Cricket Wireless conference championship game to be played on May 1.
“The 2019 edition of the Cricket Wireless SWAC Football Championship was an instant thriller broadcast live on ESPNU,” said Tommy Henry, senior marketing manager at Cricket Wireless.
“We’re excited to be back in the game for the upcoming season. We are proud to team up with SWAC once again so that we can continue to grow our relationship with SWAC members, while introducing our brand to students, alumni and fans.”
The Cricket Wireless SWAC Football Championship will once again be played on the campus of the highest-seeded team at the conclusion of regular season play. SWAC football teams are scheduled to begin preparation for the season with an eight-week training period beginning in January.
“The SWAC Council of Presidents and Chancellors, Sports Administrators Committee, COVID-19 Advisory Committee, along with our fall sports scheduling groups have worked tirelessly over recent months to get to the point where we are able to announce a significant part of the rescheduling of our fall sports,” said SWAC Commissioner Charles McClelland.
“Collectively as a conference, we look forward to continuing on the path to a safe return to competition that we know all of our student-athletes, team staff, institutional administrators and supporters would like to see in the coming months.
“This schedule allows the needed flexibility for any additional adjustments that will need to be made once the NCAA releases its revised spring calendar. Clearly our plans in regards to the safe return to competition within our league will ultimately be dictated by the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic in the respective regions of our member institutions.”
