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.
| Orange Blossom Classic | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Stadium | Hard Rock Stadium |
| Location | Miami Gardens, Florida |
| Previous stadiums | Several, including the Miami Orange Bowl and Tinker Field |
| Previous locations | Miami, Jacksonville, Orlando, Tallahassee, Tampa |
| Operated | 1933–1978; 2021–present |
| Sponsors | |
Denny's (2021–present) | |
| 2024 matchup | |
| North Carolina Central vs. Alabama State (North Carolina Central 31–24) | |
| 2025 matchup | |
| TBD vs. TBD | |
History
editIn its first incarnation, the Classic featured two historically black colleges and universities (HBCU)—Florida A&M and another program. The game sometimes served as a de facto championship game,[1] depending on the record of the participating teams. The game was played late in the season, with Florida A&M inviting another top black team as its opponent.[1] The game could be seen as a mythical "Black National Championship" game.[2] For example, the December 5, 1942, Afro American newspaper refers to the 1942 game as a national title game, as does at least one source for the 1945 game.[3] From 1952 to 1962, 10 of the 11 teams that won the Classic were named national champions. However, there were also numerous seasons in which neither Florida A&M nor its Classic opponent were selected as national champions.
The Classic was discontinued after its 1978 playing. The name was sometimes applied to subsequent regular-season meetings between Florida A&M and the FIU Panthers.[1]
In its second incarnation, the Classic returned in 2021. That season, Florida A&M played Jackson State in a season opening game at Hard Rock Stadium in September.[4] The game has continued as an annual early-season contest between those two programs. The 2022 matchup had the second most viewed HBCU football game with close to 958,000 viewers, trailing only the Celebration Bowl. In 2024 Florida A&M will no longer play in the game and the will find another team to play Jackson State.[5] In 2024 the game had a weather delay for a hour and twenty minute delay because of lightning in the area.
Game results
edit1933–1978
edit| Year | Site | Winner | Loser | Ref. | Attendance | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1933 | Jacksonville, Florida | Florida A&M | 9 | Howard | 6 | [7] | |
| 1934 | Jacksonville, Florida | Florida A&M | 13 | Virginia State | 12 | [8] | |
| 1935 | Jacksonville, Florida | Kentucky State‡ | 19 | Florida A&M | 9 | [9][10] | |
| 1936 | Jacksonville, Florida | Prairie View A&M | 6 | Florida A&M | 0 | [11] | |
| 1937 | Orlando, Florida | Florida A&M | 25 | Hampton | 20 | [12] | 3,000 |
| 1938 | Orlando, Florida | Florida A&M‡ | 9 | Kentucky State | 7 | [13] | |
| 1939 | Orlando, Florida | Florida A&M | 42 | Wiley | 0 | [14] | |
| 1940 | Orlando, Florida | Wilberforce 0–0 Florida A&M | [15] | ||||
| 1941 | Orlando, Florida | Florida A&M | 15 | Tuskegee | 7 | [16] | 8,200 |
| 1942 | Jacksonville, Florida | Florida A&M‡ | 12 | Texas College | 6 | [17] | |
| 1943 | Jacksonville, Florida | Hampton | 39 | Florida A&M | 0 | ||
| 1944 | Jacksonville, Florida | Virginia State | 19 | Florida A&M | 6 | ||
| 1945 | Jacksonville, Florida | Wiley‡ | 32 | Florida A&M | 6 | 8,000 | |
| 1946 | Tampa, Florida | #20 Lincoln (PA) | 20 | #8 Florida A&M | 0 | 9,000 | |
| 1947 | Miami, Florida | #3 Florida A&M | 7 | #4 Hampton | 0 | 19,000 | |
| 1948 | Miami, Florida | #10 Virginia Union | 10 | #5 Florida A&M | 6 | 16,000 | |
| 1949 | Miami, Florida | #6 North Carolina A&T | 20 | #5 Florida A&M | 14 | ||
| 1950 | Miami, Florida | #12 Wilberforce State | 13 | #1 Florida A&M‡ | 6 | 19,317 | |
| 1951 | Miami, Florida | #2 Florida A&M | 67 | #7 North Carolina College | 6 | 23,446 | |
| 1952 | Miami, Florida | #1 Florida A&M‡ | 29 | #2 Virginia State | 7 | 35,064 | |
| 1953 | Miami, Florida | #1 Prairie View A&M‡ | 33 | #2 Florida A&M‡ | 27 | 41,313 | |
| 1954 | Miami, Florida | #2 Florida A&M‡ | 67 | #6 Maryland State[a] | 19 | 41,179 | |
| 1955 | Miami, Florida | #1 Grambling‡ | 28 | #3 Florida A&M | 21 | 40,319 | |
| 1956 | Miami, Florida | #1 Tennessee A&I‡ | 41 | #2 Florida A&M | 39 | 41,808 | |
| 1957 | Miami, Florida | #1 Florida A&M‡ | 27 | #4 Maryland State[a] | 21 | 37,000 | |
| 1958 | Miami, Florida | #1 Prairie View A&M‡ | 26 | #3 Florida A&M | 8 | 39,426 | |
| 1959 | Miami, Florida | #1 Florida A&M‡ | 28 | #4 Prairie View A&M | 7 | 43,645 | |
| 1960 | Miami, Florida | #2 Florida A&M | 40 | Langston | 26 | 42,080 | |
| 1961 | Miami, Florida | #1 Florida A&M‡ | 14 | #2 Jackson State | 8 | 47,791 | |
| 1962 | Miami, Florida | #2 Jackson State‡ | 22 | #1 Florida A&M‡ | 6 | 43,461 | |
| 1963 | Miami, Florida | #4 Florida A&M | 30 | #3 Morgan State | 7 | ||
| 1964 | Miami, Florida | #2 Florida A&M | 42 | #3 Grambling | 15 | ||
| 1965 | Miami, Florida | #2 Morgan State | 36 | #3 Florida A&M | 7 | ||
| 1966 | Miami, Florida | Florida A&M | 43 | Alabama A&M | 26 | ||
| 1967 | Miami, Florida | #2 Grambling‡ | 28 | #4 Florida A&M | 25 | ||
| 1968 | Miami, Florida | #3 Alcorn A&M‡ | 36 | #7 Florida A&M | 9 | 37,398 | |
| 1969 | Tallahassee, Florida | #3 Florida A&M | 23 | #5 Grambling | 19 | 36,784 | |
| 1970 | Miami, Florida | Jacksonville State | 21 | Florida A&M | 7 | 31,184 | |
| 1971 | Miami, Florida | Florida A&M | 27 | Kentucky State | 9 | 26,161 | |
| 1972 | Miami, Florida | Florida A&M | 41 | Maryland Eastern Shore[a] | 21 | 21,606 | |
| 1973 | Miami, Florida | Florida A&M | 23 | #11 South Carolina State | 12 | 18,996 | |
| 1974 | Miami, Florida | #20 Florida A&M | 17 | #6 Howard | 13 | 20,166 | |
| 1975 | Miami, Florida | #2 Florida A&M | 40 | #8 Kentucky State | 13 | 27,875 | |
| 1976 | Miami, Florida | #20 Florida A&M | 26 | #16 Central State | 21 | 18,000 | |
| 1977 | Miami, Florida | #1 Florida A&M‡ | 37 | #8 Delaware State | 15 | 29,493 | |
| 1978 | Miami, Florida | #1 Florida A&M‡ | 31 | #2 Grambling State | 7 | 35,499 | |
‡ Denotes a team selected as Black college football national champions for the season in question (in some seasons, different teams were named champions by different selectors).
Rankings from The Pittsburgh Courier (1946-1958, 1961-1969), Associated Negro Press (1959-1960), and Jet (1973-1978)
2021–present
edit| Year | Site | Winner | Loser | Ref. | Attendance | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Miami Gardens, Florida | Jackson State | 7 | Florida A&M | 6 | [18] | 31,000 |
| 2022 | Jackson State | 59 | Florida A&M | 3 | [19] | 39,907 | |
| 2023 | Florida A&M‡ | 28 | Jackson State | 10 | [20] | 24,967 | |
| 2024 | North Carolina Central | 31 | Alabama State | 24 | 10,256 | ||
Appearances by school
edit| No. | School | Record |
|---|---|---|
| 48 | Florida A&M | 27–21–1 |
| 6 | Grambling State | 3–3 |
| 5 | Jackson State | 3–2 |
| 4 | Kentucky State | 1–3 |
| 4 | Prairie View A&M | 3–1 |
| 3 | Central State | 1–1–1 |
| 3 | Hampton | 1–2 |
| 3 | Maryland Eastern Shore[a] | 0–3 |
| 3 | Virginia State | 1–2 |
| 2 | Howard | 0–2 |
| 2 | Morgan State | 1-1 |
| 2 | Wiley | 1–1 |
| 1 | Alabama A&M | 0–1 |
| 1 | Alcorn State | 1–0 |
| 1 | Delaware State | 0–1 |
| 1 | Jacksonville State | 1–0 |
| 1 | Langston | 0–1 |
| 1 | North Carolina A&T | 1–0 |
| 1 | North Carolina Central | 0–1 |
| 1 | South Carolina State | 0–1 |
| 1 | Tennessee State | 1–0 |
| 1 | Texas College | 0–1 |
| 1 | Tuskegee | 0–1 |
| 1 | Virginia Union | 1–0 |
| 1 | Alabama State | 0–1 |
Source:[21]
See also
editNotes
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c Super Bowl Catches Up to Orange Blossom Classic, The New York Times, February 3, 2007, retrieved February 7, 2009.
- ^ Tremene Triplett, Fans, coaches, athletes reminisce about the historic Orange Blossom Classic, South Florida Times, March 14, 2008, retrieved February 7, 2009.
- ^ "UW Athletics Black History: football assistant coach Les Ritcherson". media-newswire.com. February 17, 2011.
- ^ "HBCU Football: The Orange Blossom Classic returns after 43 years". Saturday Blitz. 18 May 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
- ^ "Florida A&M leave Orange Blossom Classic". yahoo. 4 September 2023.
- ^ http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/2022/Bowls.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ "Florida A. & M. Upsets Howard, 9-6, In Thriller". Pittsburgh Courier. December 9, 1933. pp. 2–5. Retrieved August 20, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Rattlers Nose Out Trojans, 13 To 12". Pittsburgh Courier. December 15, 1934. pp. 2–5. Retrieved August 20, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Negro Football". Miami Herald. December 8, 1935. p. 1-C. Retrieved August 20, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Rattlers Hold KY. In Hectic 2nd Half". Pittsburgh Courier. December 14, 1935. pp. 2–4. Retrieved August 20, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "5,000 See Prairie View Beat Florida, 6-0, In Orange Blossom Game". St. Louis Argus. December 11, 1936. p. 6. Retrieved August 20, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Hampton Loses To A.&M. 25-20". The Sunday Sentinel-Star. December 5, 1937. p. 7 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Florida Rattlers Beat Kentucky, 9-7, For National Title". The Tallahassee Daily Democrat. December 4, 1938. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Moorne, Halody (December 16, 1939). "Florida's Orange Blossom Classic Is Joke Of Season". The Black Dispatch. Oklahoma City. p. 8. Retrieved August 20, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Jones, Melancholy (December 14, 1940). "Terrific Defenses Feature 0-0 Tie At Orlando; 7,000 See 8th Classic". The Phoenix Index. p. 6. Retrieved August 20, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tuskegee Loses To Florida A. And M., Orange Blossom Tilt". The Birmingham News. Birmingham, Alabama. AP. December 7, 1941. p. Sports 8. Retrieved August 20, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Florida Takes Over Negro College Title". Star-News. Wilmington, North Carolina. AP. December 13, 1942. p. 8. Retrieved August 20, 2023 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Jackson, Wilton (September 6, 2021). "Deion Sanders's Defense Seals Victory for Jackson State in Orange Blossom Classic vs. Florida A&M". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
- ^ Becton, Stan (September 4, 2022). "How Jackson State dominated Florida A&M 59-3 to win 2022 Orange Blossom Classic". NCAA.com. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
- ^ Kelley, Kevin (January 6, 2023). "Jackson State, Florida A&M to play in 2023 Orange Blossom Classic". fbschedules.com. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
- ^ Official 2007 NCAA Division I Football Records Book, National Collegiate Athletic Association, p. 367–368.