The Cricket Celebration Bowl is a postseason college football game featuring the conference champions from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). The event’s mission is to provide the schools, alumni, fans, and sponsors with a first-class bowl experience while continuing to celebrate the heritage, legacy, pageantry and tradition of Historically Black Colleges and Universities. It is managed by ESPN Events, a subsidiary of ESPN, which owns and operates a large portfolio of collegiate sporting events worldwide, including 17 postseason bowl games. John Grant serves as the Celebration Bowl’s Executive Director.
The Cricket Celebration Bowl was announced at the College Football Hall of Fame in March of 2015. The event got off to a rousing start in its inaugural year as North Carolina A&T defeated Alcorn State 41-34 in front of over 35,000 fans at the Georgia Dome. An additional 14.8 million people (2.56 million average) watched around the country on ABC.
In 2016, the event was viewed by even more people as average viewership eclipsed a 2.71 million average. In addition, Grambling State’s 10-9 victory over North Carolina Central was seen by service men and women around the world in over 140 countries on the Armed Forces Network.
The 2021 game hosted 48,653 fans at Mercedez-Benz Stadium, an event record. That figure represented the 12th largest crowd of all bowl games that year.
See below for year by year results. For information on our MVPs click here.
Series Record: MEAC Leads 5-1
2021
South Carolina State 31, Jackson State 10
Mercedes-Benz Stadium – Atlanta, GA
Box Score
2019
North Carolina A&T 64, Alcorn State 44
Mercedes-Benz Stadium – Atlanta, GA
Box Score
2018
North Carolina A&T 24, Alcorn State 22
Mercedes-Benz Stadium – Atlanta, GA
Box Score | Recap
2017
North Carolina A&T 21, Grambling State 14
Mercedes-Benz Stadium – Atlanta, GA
Box Score | Recap
2016
Grambling State 10, North Carolina Central 9
Georgia Dome – Atlanta, GA
Box Score | Recap
2015
North Carolina A&T 41, Alcorn State 34
Georgia Dome – Atlanta, GA
