List of black college football classics
This is a list of recent black college football classics that have taken place between historically black colleges and universities that compete in college football in the United States. Unlike bowl games, classics take place during college football's regular season; they differ from standard regular season games in that they are often accompanied by entertaining battle of the bands, parades, tailgate parties, social events, concerts, job fairs, and are often played at touristic neutral sites. Football classics annually attract large crowds of alumni, fans, and spectators in general, along with high media interest and corporate sponsorships.
History
The earliest known use of the term "classic" to informally describe a black college football game occurred in 1919 with the Thanksgiving Day contest between Howard and Lincoln. Special games pairing HBCUs have existed continuously since at least 1922 when Bishop College defeated Southern 19–0 in a Louisiana State Fair-sponsored game in Shreveport, Louisiana. The earliest documented use of "classic" as part of an annual black college football game's formal name dates to 1927; on October 31, 1927 the "Louisiana State Fair Classic" showcased Bishop beating Southern, 34–0, and Johnson C. Smith and Livingstone College played in November of that very same 1927 season in a game called the "Turkey Day Classic".Though Grambling State's Eddie Robinson did not invent classic games, he is widely regarded as having perfected them as revenue-generating social events, and a chapter of his autobiography details his efforts at doing so. He was particularly proud of the success of the Bayou Classic, starting from its very first game with 76,000 patrons in attendance. It also developed a national television audience on NBC. As a result of Robinson's efforts, and its proximity to Grambling, Shreveport had established itself as the epicenter of black football classics, hosting at least five in the past. At present, however, Durham, North Carolina is a host to three annual classics and a fourth informal classic that is held there during even-numbered years; it also formerly used to host one called the Midway Classic and another called the Labor Day Classic.
Game formats
Football classics come in three different kinds of formats. They can pair the same two rivals year after year, or they can feature a single host school with rotating opponents—most famously done during Florida A&M's association with the now-defunct Orange Blossom Classic. Other classics, particularly those based in the northern and western U.S. where there are fewer HBCUs, simply invite two different schools every season.Classics that do double as annual rivalry games sometimes consider the first game played under a classic-format as separate from the actual first game of the series, due to the pronounced differences in ambience surrounding the games. For example, Grambling and Southern first clashed in 1932 but today rarely acknowledge their games played prior to the formal creation of the Bayou Classic of New Orleans in 1974; indeed, the series even seems to have intensified since it has become more of a media spectacle—Southern initially won a solid 60% of the games in the series through 1973, but after it was reconfigured as a classic the following year, the series has been largely locked dead even. One of the more noteworthy annual games that later converted into a classic was the Southern–Tennessee State series. Known as the Buck–Boar Classic starting with the 1958 contest, the losing school was required to hunt wild game that was to serve as the main course of the winning school's meal at their annual sports banquet—if SU lost, it was to hunt for deer in Louisiana's swamps and deliver the venison to TSU's banquet; if TSU lost, it was to hunt for wild hogs in the Tennessee mountains and deliver the ham to SU's banquet.
Among games that feature a permanent host with a rotating opponent, the Prairie View Bowl normally pitted Prairie View A&M against a school deemed to have had a worthy enough year to play in the season-ending game. Florida A&M's similar Orange Blossom Classic began in 1933 as a black equivalent to the segregated Orange Bowl. By the same token the Sugar Cup Classic—which was hosted yearly by Grambling, initially in New Orleans—offered an alternative to the segregated Sugar Bowl.
The third kind of classic—those featuring two different opponents each season—often occur outside of the southern U.S., where there are fewer HBCUs. These games have long appealed to those who were part of the Great Migration and were nostalgic to see teams from their home states.
The future of classic-style football games
As participants of the Great Migration have begun to age, it remains to be seen if their descendants can sustain games that focus on teams from regions of the country that they are less familiar with. Indeed, several classics that were held in the North and West have ceased since 2000.In addition, the schools themselves have also been forced to weigh the benefits of maintaining their historical ties with classics or to accept the changes of modern game scheduling. Improvements to all modes of transportation and the end of segregation have greatly increased the scheduling options of HBCUs. Also, HBCUs are increasingly scheduling "guarantee games"—roadtrips against National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision schools that can guarantee high payouts but are also very difficult to win. Because of the commitments of some universities—especially Southwestern Athletic Conference schools—to season-finale classic games, they may forgo the opportunity to participate in the FCS playoffs. The Bayou Classic and Alabama-based Turkey Day Classic, for example, are closely associated with Thanksgiving weekend—which directly conflicts with the playoffs' opening round. Labor Day weekend, with its season-opening games, is now the biggest weekend for classics—including the John A. Merritt Classic, the Texas-based Labor Day Classic, the MEAC/SWAC Challenge, and the Palmetto Capital City Classic.
Recent black college football classics ''(those active since 2000)''
Listed below are black college football classics played since 2000. Classics listed in boldface remained active through the 2017 or 2018 seasons. In the cases where classics have shared the same exact name—there have been multiple "Capital City," "Labor Day," "Port City," "River City," and "Turkey Day" classics completely unrelated to each other, for example—the state of origin is also listed to differentiate between them. In the cases where classics have informal names, only those not outright opposed by both schools—such as the "Murk City Classic"—are listed.| Classic Name | Location | Year Established | Notes |
| A. G. Gaston Labor Day Classic | Birmingham, AL | 2001 | |
| AME Classic ' | Kingsland, GA | 2002 | See the Ralph J. Bunche Hornets Classic. |
| Aggie–Eagle Classic ' | Durham, NC & Greensboro, NC | 1994 | Annual game between North Carolina A&T and North Carolina Central. The series, which began in 1924, rotated between Durham and Greensboro, North Carolina until 1992, although for part of that time the series was played in a classic format and known as the Carolina Classic. It was moved to Carter–Finley Stadium in Raleigh, North Carolina and returned to a classic-style format between 1994–2005. After its association with Raleigh was discontinued, the series ceased before later being revived as an on-campus event in 2007. It is still informally called the Aggie–Eagle Classic by fans but not officially by the participating schools. In 2016, the game was televised on ESPN3. |
| Angel City Classic | Los Angeles, CA | 2007 | Formerly an annual game. The event was canceled after the 2008 season. |
| Arkansas Classic | Pine Bluff, AR | ||
| Atlanta Football Classic | Atlanta, GA | 1989 | Formerly an annual game between two NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision teams. The event was canceled after the 2014 season to make way for the Celebration Bowl. |
| Atlanta Labor Day Classic | Atlanta, GA | ||
| Augusta City Classic | Augusta, GA | 1992 | Annual game that, prior to 2010, was known as the CSRA Football Classic. |
| Azalea City Classic | Mobile, AL | ||
| Battle for Greater Baltimore | Towson, MD | 1979 | Annual classic between Morgan State and—unusually—a predominantly white institution, Towson. Because Towson plays in a major FCS conference, and Morgan State plays in the MEAC, a conference that does not participate in the NCAA Tournament, it is typically one sided. |
| Battle of I-40 Football Classic | Greensboro, NC | ||
| Battle of the Bay | Hampton, VA & Norfolk, VA | 1962 | Formerly an annual game between two schools in different portions of the Hampton Roads area—Hampton on the "Peninsula" and Norfolk State on the "Southside". The event was canceled after the 2017 season with Hampton joining the Big South Conference. |
| Battle of the Firsts—Wade Wilson Classic | Philadelphia, PA | 2009 | See the Battle of the Firsts. |
| Battle of the Firsts | Philadelphia, PA | 2009 | Formerly an annual game between Cheyney and Lincoln, held the first week of the season. The "first" referred to the schools being among the first HBCUs; Cheyney was the first four-year institution established for African Americans, and Lincoln was the third. It originally featured Cheyney as its only permanent team and was part of the Wade Wilson Classic series until 2008 before spinning off to include Lincoln the following year. The event was canceled after the 2017 season with Cheyney disbanding its football program. |
| Battle of the Real HU | Hampton, VA | 2017 | Game between Hampton and Howard. The series was played in Washington, DC in a classic format until 2016 and known as the Nation's Football Classic. The event was canceled after the 2017 season with Hampton joining the Big South Conference. |
| Bayou Classic | New Orleans, LA | 1974 | Annual game between Grambling State and Southern, held on the Saturday after Thanksgiving Day at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The series, which began in 1932, is televised on NBCSN. |
| Big Easy Classic | New Orleans, LA | 2000 | Formerly an annual game that, since 2002, had featured Jackson State and Southern. It originally featured Southern and—unusually—an NCAA Division I-A school, Tulane. The event was canceled after the 2004 season. JSU and SU now compete in the BoomBox Classic. |
| Biker's Classic | Nashville, TN | 2006 | Annual game featuring Tennessee State. |
| Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic | Canton, OH | 2019 | Began with the relocation of the Black College Football Hall of Fame from Atlanta to Canton. |
| Black Wall Street Classic | Tulsa, OK | ||
| Blues Classic | Fayetteville, NC | 2002 | |
| BoomBox Classic ' | Baton Rouge, LA & Jackson, MS | 2010 | Annual game between Jackson State and Southern. The series, which began in 1929, was played in New Orleans in a classic format in 2002 and 2004 and known as the Big Easy Classic. After its permanent association with New Orleans was discontinued, the series began to rotate between Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jackson, Mississippi and Southern's A. W. Mumford Stadium in 2005. It was later informally dubbed a name by fans that was never officially adopted by the participating schools; the fans derived its moniker from a combination of the names of the marching bands of the two schools—JSU's Sonic Boom of the South and SU's Human Jukebox. |
| Bluff City Kickoff Classic | Memphis, TN | 2018 | |
| Bull City Gridiron Classic | Durham, NC | Annual game featuring North Carolina Central. | |
| CME Classic | Tyler, TX | ||
| CSRA Football Classic | Augusta, GA | 1992 | See the Augusta City Classic. |
| Capital City Classic ' | Columbia, SC | ||
| Capital City Classic ' | Jackson, MS | 1993 | Formerly an annual game between Alcorn State and Jackson State. The series, which began in 1927, rotated between Jackson and Lorman, Mississippi until 1992, although for part of that time the series was played in a classic format and known as the Dixie Classic. It was moved to Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jackson in a classic-style format between 1993–2011. After its permanent association with Jackson was discontinued, the series began to rotate between there and Alcorn's Jack Spinks Stadium in 2012. In a document published on the Alcorn website, President M. Christopher Brown II and interim athletic director Dwayne White informally dubbed the game the Soul Bowl, apparently because the game would no longer be played annually in the capital city as the previously-existing name suggested—and, also, because classics held in Columbia, South Carolina and Sacramento, California have been using similar names. However, the classic's new name was never officially adopted by JSU and has already been in use with other football-related events in the Deep South for some time now. Likewise, it could prove difficult to revert to the old Dixie Classic name, since it has also been used by other events more recently. |
| Capital City Football Classic | Sacramento, CA | 2008 | Annual game held in September. |
| Capital City Freedom Classic | Topeka, KS | ||
| Carolinas Classic | Charlotte, NC | 1995 | |
| Chicago Football Classic | Chicago, IL | 1997 | Annual game held in September and played at Soldier Field. |
| Circle City Classic | Indianapolis, IN | 1983 | Annual game held on the first weekend in October. |
| Cleveland Classic | Cleveland, OH | 2011 | Annual game held in September and played at FirstEnergy Stadium. |
| Commemorative Classic | Charlotte, NC | 2009 | Annual game between Johnson C. Smith and Livingstone College. The series, which began in 1892, featured the first black college football game, and for part of that time the series was played in a classic format and known as the Turkey Day Classic. It returned to a classic-style format in 1976 as the Bicentennial Football Classic and was recognized by President Gerald Ford. It returned to a classic-style format in the 1990s as part of the Statesville Classic. |
| Dallas Lone Star Classic | Dallas, TX | 2008 | Formerly an annual game between Arkansas–Pine Bluff and Texas Southern, held on the Saturday after Thanksgiving Day at the Cotton Bowl stadium in Dallas. The event was canceled after the 2009 season. |
| Dayton Classic | Dayton, OH | 2005 | Annual game featuring Central State. |
| Delta Classic 4 Literacy | Little Rock, AR | 2006 | Formerly an annual game featuring Arkansas–Pine Bluff. The event was canceled after the 2012 season. |
| Derby City Classic | Louisville, KY | 2009 | |
| Detroit Football Classic | Detroit, MI | 2003 | Formerly an annual game. The event was canceled after the 2006 season. |
| Down East Viking Football Classic | Rocky Mount, NC | 1998 | Annual game featuring Elizabeth City State. |
| Druid City Classic | Tuscaloosa, AL | 2003 | Annual game featuring Stillman College. |
| Eddie McGirt Classic | Charlotte, NC | 2000 | Annual game featuring Johnson C. Smith in its home opener that, through 2002, was played in Memorial Stadium before being discontinued for nine years. |
| FAMU/FIU Orange Blossom Classic | Miami, FL | 1933 | Formerly an annual game between Florida A&M and Florida International. The game was formerly known as the Orange Blossom Classic and was canceled after the 1978 season but was revived in the 1990s. It originally featured Florida A&M against another HBCU school, but the most-recently revived version included—unusually—a predominantly white institution, FIU. The event was again canceled after the 2005 season. |
| F. E. Whitney Classic | Hopkinsville, KY | 2018 | |
| 5th Quarter Classic | Mobile, AL | 2016 | Annual game. |
| Fish Bowl Classic | Norfolk, VA | 1948 | Annual game featuring Norfolk State. |
| Florida Classic | Orlando, FL | 1979 | Annual game between Bethune–Cookman and Florida A&M. Televised on ESPNU. |
| Fountain City Classic | Columbus, GA | 1990 | Annual game between Albany State and Fort Valley State. |
| Gateway Classic | Jacksonville, FL | 1953 | Annual game featuring Bethune–Cookman. The 2004 game was canceled due to Hurricane Frances. |
| Gateway Football Classic | St. Louis, MO | 1993 | Annual game. |
| Gold Bowl Classic | Richmond, VA | 1981 | Annual game inspired by the Gold Bowl postseason game, which featured schools from the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association and Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference from 1977–80. It has featured Virginia Union and Bowie State or Virginia State. |
| Gold Coast Classic | San Diego, CA | 1997 | |
| Greater LaGrange Classic | LaGrange, GA | ||
| Greenville HBCU Classic | Greenville, SC | 2005 | Annual game. |
| Gulf Coast Challenge | Mobile, AL | 2018 | |
| Gulf Coast Classic | Mobile, AL | 1974 | Formerly an annual game featuring Alabama State. The event was canceled after the 2009 season. |
| Hall of Fame Game Classic | Houston, TX | ||
| Harvey Moore Azalea City Classic | Valdosta, GA | 2006 | |
| Heart of Texas Football Classic | Waco, TX | ||
| Inaugural Classic | Montgomery, AL | 2014 | Game between Alabama State and Tennessee State. |
| Iris Classic | Griffin, GA | 2013 | Game between Clark Atlanta and Fort Valley State. The series was formerly played in a classic format starting in 1961 and known as the Textile Football Classic. |
| Jake Gaither Classic | Tallahassee, FL | ||
| Joe Turner Classic | Savannah, GA | 1994 | Annual game featuring Savannah State. |
| John A. Merritt Classic | Nashville, TN | 1999 | Annual game featuring Tennessee State, held in early September, and played at Nissan Stadium. |
| Kickoff Classic | Jefferson City, MO | 2009 | |
| LU Classic | Jefferson City, MO & Langston, OK | 2015 | Annual game between Langston and Lincoln. |
| Labor Day Classic ' | Orlando, FL | ||
| Labor Day Classic ' | Albany, GA | ||
| Labor Day Classic ' | Durham, NC | ||
| Labor Day Classic ' | Houston, TX & Prairie View, TX | 1985 | Annual game between Prairie View A&M and Texas Southern. The series, which began in 1946, is played on Labor Day weekend and was played in a classic format in 1947 and between 1952–54 and 1956-57 as part of the Prairie View Bowl. |
| Labor Day Classic ' | Norfolk, VA | 1991 | Annual game featuring Norfolk State. |
| Labor Day Classic: A Marion Nine Invitational | Montgomery, AL | 2017 | |
| Labor Day Golden Classic | Birmingham, AL | 2007 | |
| Las Vegas Classic | Las Vegas, NV | 2003 | Game between North Carolina A&T and Southern. The game replaced the Silver Dollar Classic. |
| Lexington Heritage Classic | Lexington, KY | 2002 | |
| Louis Crews Classic | Huntsville, AL | 2010 | Annual game featuring Alabama A&M. |
| Low Country Classic | Charleston, SC | ||
| Lucille M. Brown Community Youth Bowl | Richmond, VA | 2002 | Annual game featuring Virginia Union. |
| MEAC/SWAC Challenge | Atlanta, GA | 2005 | Annual game between a MEAC team and a Southwestern Athletic Conference team, formerly the defending conference champions, held on Labor Day weekend. The event was formerly played in Birmingham, Alabama, Orlando, Florida, and Daytona Beach, Florida. Televised on ESPN2. |
| Magic City Classic | Birmingham, AL | 1940 | Annual game between Alabama State and Alabama A&M. The series, which began in 1924, is the highest-attended HBCU football classic in the nation. |
| Masonic Bowl | Fayetteville, NC | ||
| Masonic Bowl Classic | Richmond, VA | ||
| McGee Classic | Tulsa, OK | ||
| Memphis Blues City Classic | Memphis, TN | ||
| Miami Dade Football Classic | Miami, FL | 2008 | Annual game featuring Howard. |
| Midway Classic | Durham, NC | 1998 | |
| Midwest Classic | Columbus, OH | 2003 | |
| Music City Classic | Macon, GA | 1998 | |
| Nation's Football Classic | Washington, DC | 2011 | Formerly an annual game that most recently had featured Hampton and Howard. The event was canceled after the 2016 season. Hampton and Howard now compete in the Battle of the Real HU. |
| New York Urban League Football Classic | East Rutherford, NJ | 1971 | Formerly an annual game, formerly known as the Whitney M. Young Jr. Memorial Football Classic, and held at MetLife Stadium. The event was canceled after the 2015 season. |
| OKC Classic | Oklahoma City, OK | ||
| Ohio Classic | Cleveland, OH | ||
| Okeefenokee Classic | Waycross, GA | 2016 | The event was suspended after the 2016 season due to Hurricane Irma. |
| Orange Blossom–Palmetto Classic | Jacksonville, FL | ||
| Palmetto Capital City Classic | Columbia, SC | 2001 | Annual game featuring Benedict College. |
| Peach State Classic | Atlanta, GA | 2002 | |
| Peach State Kick-off Classic | Macon, GA | ||
| Pete Richardson Classic | Baton Rouge, LA | 2018 | |
| Planters Bank South Classic | Jackson, TN | ||
| Port City Classic ' | Shreveport, LA | 2002 | Formerly an annual game that, since 2010, had featured Grambling State, and was held on Labor Day weekend. It originally featured Southern and was part of the revived Louisiana State Fair Classic series in 2001, before spinning off to become an early September game of its own the following year. The event was canceled after the 2012 season. This game is not to be confused with the old Port City Classic game between Elizabeth City State and Fayetteville State. |
| Port City Classic–State Fair Game | Shreveport, LA | 2001 | See the Port City Classic and the Red River State Fair Classic. |
| Pre-Labor Day Classic | Columbia, SC | ||
| Prince George's Classic | Bowie, MD | 2004 | The first PG Classic was played by Alcorn State and Howard. The second was played by Morgan State and North Carolina A&T. Subsequent games featured Bowie State as the home team. |
| Prince Hall Americanism Football Classic | Fairfield, AL | ||
| Prince Hall Shriners Diabetes Classic | Durham, NC | ||
| Raleigh Classic | Durham, NC | ||
| Ralph J. Bunche Hornets Classic | Kingsland, GA | 2002 | Annual game between Allen University and Edward Waters College. |
| Red River Classic | Grambling, LA | 1981 | Annual game, formerly played in Shreveport, Louisiana, that features Grambling State and a SWAC opponent. The 1999 and 2002 games were part of the revived Louisiana State Fair Classic series. The event was cancelled after the 2003 season, but the revived version began in 2017. |
| Red River State Fair Classic | Shreveport, LA | 1922 | Annual game that, since 2015, has featured Grambling State and a SWAC opponent, and is held during the State Fair of Louisiana. The game was formerly known as the Louisiana State Fair Game, the Louisiana State Fair Classic, the Port City Classic—State Fair Game, and, more recently, the Shreveport Classic and originally featured Southern. The event was canceled after the 2016 season due to Grambling's desire to play an additional game in Eddie Robinson Stadium after the completion of its multi-million dollar renovation. |
| Richard Allen Classic | Atlanta, GA | Annual game formerly played in Philadelphia. | |
| Rivalry Classic | Charlotte, NC | 2003 | Annual game between North Carolina A&T and South Carolina State. |
| River City Classic ' | Louisville, KY | 1990 | |
| River City Classic ' | Chattanooga, TN | ||
| Riverfront Classic | Cincinnati, OH | 1999 | |
| Rose City Classic | Tyler, TX | ||
| Shreveport Classic | Shreveport, LA | 2010 | See the Red River State Fair Classic. |
| Silver Dollar Classic | Carson, CA | 2002 | Annual game, formerly played in Las Vegas. The game was replaced by the Las Vegas Classic in 2003, so it was suspended and then moved to Carson, California in 2004. |
| Skyway College Football Classic | Chicago, IL | 2003 | |
| Soul Bowl ' | Lorman, MS | 2012 | game between Alcorn State and Jackson State. The series, which began in 1927, rotated between Jackson and Lorman, Mississippi until 1992, although for part of that time the series was played in a classic format and known as the Dixie Classic. It was moved to Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jackson in a classic-style format between 1993–2011. After its permanent association with Jackson was discontinued, the series began to rotate between there and Alcorn's Jack Spinks Stadium in 2012. However, the classic's new name was never officially adopted by JSU and odd-numbered year games in Jackson are not played under any moniker. |
| South Florida Classic | Fort Lauderdale, FL | ||
| South Georgia Heritage Classic | Valdosta, GA | 2009 | |
| Southern Alabama Heritage Classic | Dothan, AL | ||
| Southern Heritage Classic | Memphis, TN | 1990 | Annual game between Jackson State and Tennessee State, held at the beginning of football season, and played at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. |
| Stan Lomax Gold Coast Football Classic | Brunswick, GA | 2009 | |
| State Fair Classic | Dallas, TX | 1925 | Annual game, formerly known as the Al Lipscomb State Fair Classic, that, since 1993, has been between Grambling State and Prairie View A&M and is held during the State Fair of Texas. The series, which began in 1946, was also played in a classic format between 1959–61 as part of the Louisiana State Fair Classic series. |
| State Fair Football Showdown | Dallas, TX | 2018 | Annual game between Southern and Texas Southern during the third weekend of the State Fair of Texas. The series, which began in 1947, was later informally dubbed the Murk City Classic by fans between 2011–17 but was never officially adopted by the participating schools. |
| Statesville Classic | Statesville, NC | Annual game featuring Livingstone College. | |
| Steel City Classic | Birmingham, AL | 2001 | Annual game between Miles College and Stillman College. |
| T. M. "Tim" Crisp Classic | Oklahoma City, OK | 1996 | - |
| Textile Football Classic | Griffin, GA | 1961 | Formerly an annual game between Clark Atlanta and Fort Valley State. The series was also played in a classic format in 2013 and known as the Iris Classic. |
| The Classic | Charlotte, NC | 2006 | Game between Bowie State and Livingstone College. |
| Tiger Paw Classic | Houston, TX | Annual game, formerly played in San Antonio, between Grambling State and Texas Southern. | |
| Turkey Day Classic ' | Montgomery, AL | 1924 | Annual game between Alabama State and Miles College and held on Thanksgiving Day. This game is sometimes referred to as the first black college football classic with 1924 considered its inaugural year, but it likely did not adopt the Turkey Day Classic name initially as it was not played on Thanksgiving Day until 1932. This game is not to be confused with the old Turkey Day Classic game between Johnson C. Smith and Livingstone College. |
| Tuskegee–Morehouse Football Classic | Columbus, GA | 1936 | Annual game between Morehouse and Tuskegee. The series began in 1902. |
| Two Rivers Classic | Fayetteville, NC & Pembroke, NC | 2009 | Annual classic between Fayetteville State and—unusually—a historically Native American school, UNC–Pembroke. |
| VanPort Football Classic | Portland, OR | 2002 | |
| W. C. Gorden Classic | Jackson, MS | 2008 | Annual game featuring Jackson State. |
| Wade Wilson Classic | Cheyney, PA | 1980 | Formerly an annual game that was also formerly played in Philadelphia, and featured Cheyney. It returned to a classic-style format in 2009 as part of the Battle of the Firsts—Wade Wilson Classic as an annual game between Cheyney and Lincoln. |
| West End Classic | Salisbury, NC | 2014 | Annual game featuring Livingstone College. |
| Western Virginia Education Classic | Salem, VA | 2000 | |
| White Water Classic | Phenix City, AL | 2014 | |
| Willard Bailey Classic | Richmond, VA | 2017 | Annual game featuring Virginia Union. |
| Willie E. Gary Classic | Jacksonville, FL | 2002 | Formerly an annual game between Edward Waters College and Shaw. |
| Winston–Salem Classic''' | Winston–Salem, NC | 2016 | Annual game featuring Winston–Salem State. |
| Wiregrass Football Classic | Dothan, AL | 2009 |