Reflecting the past

From its inception in 1974 until present day the State Farm Bayou Classic has been a game for African Americans from all over to enjoy as their own personal Super bowl of HBCU’s or Historically Black Colleges or Universities.
Year after year, thousands of fans come to New Orleans to celebrate the Bayou Classic. However, there is more to the Classic than the football game. Fans enjoy a number of events such as the Miss Bayou Classic Pageant, Battle of the Bands, Greek Show, among others. The annual game between rivals Grambling and Southern used to be held at both schools’ stadiums before the crowds began to outgrow the local venues.
At that time, Southern’s stadium only seated 20,00 people, and Grambling’s held 16,000. Then Sports Information Director Collie J. Nicholson decided that the game had outgrown its humble beginnings. Nicholson’s plan was to apply what Notre Dame did with its campaign to gain a national Catholic market. He wanted to gain a national Black following across the country.
The long-term goals of the plan were to make GSU nationally known and give the athletes the same chance that students from bigger schools had. Nicholson was the concept man and he conceived ideas about marketing Grambling. His plan was to gain a following in Louisiana, the South and then nationally.
According to Nicholson, it was important for Historically Black Colleges and Universities to have national black support because this is a way of maintaining Black heritage. Nicholson was the man responsible for the Classic’s move to New Orleans. In April 1972, Nicholson received a call from the New York office of NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle, asking him to accompany Rozelle’s assistant Buddy Young, on a fact-finding trip to New Orleans.
Rozelle’s spokesman explained that New Orleans was in the process of filing an application for an NFL franchise with the Superdome, then under construction, as a home venue. At the time, Grambling had successful Classic games at Yankee Stadium in New York, the Astrodome in Houston, and Soldier Field in Chicago-all products from the ideas of the same Collie J. Nicholson.
Head of GSU public relations at the time, Nicholson suggested that the game be moved to the New Orleans Superdome. Then in 1974, the Superdome was still being constructed, and the game moved to Shreveport’s Fair Park Stadium, as a test-market game. The game drew 42,000 fans. Because of the large turnout, the game was then moved to Tulane’s’ stadium in New Orleans, where it hosted a crowd of 76,000 people. In 1976, the Superdome was completed and 81,000 fans showed up.
This was the new home of the Bayou Classic. After finding a new home, the next feat of the Classic was to find sponsors. Today, the Bayou Classic is a multi-million-dollar game. The Classic is televised live on NBC, and is one of the most popular Black college football games.
With the efforts of Collie J. Nicholson and Eddie Robinson GSU has become a household name all over the country. Many people who otherwise would know nothing about the Bayou Classic have had the opportunity to come out and enjoy the rivalry between these two schools, which always makes for an exciting game.
The Bayou Classic will always attract thousands of people every year no matter what their interest may be. The city of New Orleans offers many attractions for those who come to town for the Classic in attempts to leave no one wanting for anything.