UPDATE: South Carolina State University defeated Jackson State University 31-10 to win the Celebration Bowl.
John Grant, Executive Director of the Cricket MEAC-SWAC Challenge Kickoff and the Cricket Celebration Bowl wants Atlanta to realize it's sitting on a 'goldmine'. The Challenge starts the HBCU football season in August, and the Bowl being played this weekend, officially ends the season. Both are staged in Atlanta.
Grant tells Audacy Atlanta's Maria Boynton, "The goal we have now is to make sure the city of Atlanta understands the value that we have in these two properties and that we're the only city in the nation to have something like this."
When the sold out Cricket Celebration Bowl kicks off Saturday at Mercedes Benz Stadium, Grant says fans should already be well excited from a preceeding performance by Atlanta's own Big Boi, and Disney's unveiling of Drum Major Mickey. The noon game is being broadcast on ABC which is owned by Disney.
The teams vying for the coveted Cricket Celebration Bowl trophy are South Carolina State University, coached by Oliver "Buddy" Pough and Jackson State University led by former Atlanta Falcon and Braves player Deion "Prime Time" Sanders, who just landed the number one recruit in the nation Travis Hunter. According to Grant, "In my conversations with him (Deion), he speaks highly of his love for the city and how he never really wanted to leave Atlanta, that Atlanta was the first city to give him his start and he cannot wait to get back here."