Grambling and Southern Set for Houston Face-Off at 32nd Bayou Classic
If it’s Thanksgiving week, it’s a sure bet that many of us are anticipating about more than turkey, stuffing and Black Friday shopping.
As traditional as those mainstays are to this season, so is the State Farm Bayou Classic, which will be played at Houston’s Reliant Stadium this Saturday. Known to many as the “granddaddy” of black college football games, the Bayou Classic will be played at a site other than the Louisiana Superdome for the first time in its 32-year history, another casualty of Hurricane Katrina, which devastated much of the Gulf Coast region nearly three months ago.
Despite the unfortunate circumstances that caused the move to Houston, the Bayou Classic -- which consists of the game, a battle of the bands, step show, and other pageantry celebrating participating schools Grambling State and Southern universities -- will remain the festive event many have grown to love over the years, said LeAmber Howell, a spokesperson for Bickerstaff Sports and Entertainment, the Washington, D.C.-based firm promoting the Bayou Classic.
“We’ve tried to preserve the integrity, and we’re providing the same event. It’s just in a different place,” Howell stated in a recent interview, adding that there will be some new twists. Prior to the game, which airs 2 p.m. EST on NBC, ESPN’s popular pre-game show, “College GameDay,” will broadcast live from Reliant Stadium, making the Bayou Classic the first historically black college game highlighted in the show’s 19-year history. The progam begins at 10:30 a.m. EST.
In addition, Southern University alumni will host a Mardi Gras celebration and, following the game, Grambling State alumni will present a Patti LaBelle at the stadium. The classic will also host a college fair and job fair, including companies committed to aiding in New Orleans’ financial recovery, Howell said.
As Katrina hit and left much of New Orleans in watery ruins, those responsible for putting on the Bayou Classic didn’t have time to hope for the best. Once the Superdome was deemed inoperable, Bayou Classic organizers made it known they were looking for a temporary home. Responses came in from Birmingham, Dallas, Orlando and Shreveport, among others, but Houston was a better fit, Howell said, pointing to the city's hotel capacity and the availability for one of its major sports venues to host the game.
“Houston has been very hospitable and gracious in hosting us this year,” Howell said. “Even when Hurricane Katrina hit, [Houston] was hospitable, taking in all the [victims] and providing shelter and lodging.”
Houston spokesman Patrick Trahan said his city was an obvious choice to host the Bayou Classic, from being home to a large number of alumni from both Grambling and Southern to being close to two other historically black colleges, Prairie View A&M and Texas Southern. Those and other reasons, Trahan added, lets Houston recognize the significance of the Bayou Classic tradition.
“Since the storm occurred, we know that many more have called Houston home,” Trahan stated in a recent interview, acknowledging that countless numbers of Katrina survivors landed in Houston to rebuild their lives. “So much of the New Orleans flavor is here now.”
In recent years, Houston has hosted its fair share of major events, including a Super Bowl and Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game. Earlier this month, Essence magazine announced that it would be hosting its 2006 Essence Music Festival, normally held at New Orleans' Superdome and Ernest Morial Convention Center, in Houston next July.
Trahan noted that there are numerous entertainment establishments, including jazz clubs, restaurants, and black theater, to make people accustomed to New Orleans’ flair for fun feel more at home.
“We’re excited to play home to our neighbors to the east as they rebuild,” Trahan said, adding that the circumstances, which should bring millions of dollars in revenue to the city, are a mixed blessing.
“We’re happy to host these events, but we look forward to the city of New Orleans getting back on its feet,” Trahan said. “That’s very important for all of the Gulf Coast region, and Houston is included in that.”
Keisha Lacour, a Southern University spokesperson, said the school is looking forward to the Bayou Classic, as always, despite the fact that it won’t be played in the Bayou State.
“[Hurricane Katrina] was an unfortunate natural disaster, so we just want to think positively and remain optimistic because we were still able to hold the event,” Lacour stated in a recent interview, adding that students, staff, and friends of the school, as with Grambling, will likely come out in large numbers this weekend.
“It’s really just a different location, but we plan to win the game and have just as much fun as if it was in New Orleans,” Lacour said, already looking forward to the time when the game will once again be played in the Big Easy.
“Once everything is back in order,” Lacour said, “we’ll be back in New Orleans to continue our legacy there.”
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Wednesday, November 23rd 2005 at 12:55PM
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