CANTON, Ohio, Sept. 5, 2026 – Nearly 134 years ago, Johnson C. Smith University, then Biddle University, helped launch a tradition when its football team faced Livingstone College on a snowy field in the first Black college football game. More than a century later, JCSU students had the opportunity to experience that history firsthand before participating in the 2026 Black College Football Hall of Fame Clash at the Classic.
Members of the Golden Bulls football team, the International Institution of Sound Marching Band and the Luv-A-Bulls toured the Pro Football Hall of Fame Museum, connecting the sport they participate in today with the people and milestones that shaped its history.
“We earned our way here,” said Head Football Coach Maurice Flowers ’96.
The Golden Bulls earned the opportunity to participate in the Clash at the Classic after winning the 2025 CIAA championship. The game matched JCSU against Albany State University, the 2025 SIAC champion.
The museum houses exhibits showcasing the history of the sport and the stories of the men and women who have contributed to it. Its Hall of Fame Gallery features bronze busts of the enshrinees.
“This is a wonderful opportunity for our students to understand the history of the game,” said JCSU Chief Operating Officer and Athletic Director Denisha Hendricks.
Students explored exhibits that trace the evolution of football, including interactive displays that demonstrate what officials see during instant replay reviews, molds of NFL players’ arms and legs, and helmets that simulate what a quarterback hears when receiving a play call from a coach.
“It’s good to know where the game that we play came from,” said Vincent Hill, a redshirt senior linebacker. “Seeing how the game has progressed, seeing how the gear that they use or the jerseys. It was cool to see the evolution of the game.”
The exhibits also include examples of early leather pads and helmets, offering students a look at how much player equipment and safety has changed.
“It’s insane to think about the fact that they used to play with no pads on and the helmets were made of leather,” said Jamari Mason, a senior right guard.
For Mason, one exhibit held a personal connection to his own experience on the field.
“Gene Upshaw. Offensive lineman who wore the same number as me. Ironic, but, looking at him and his history and the plays that he made, it was an ‘awe’ moment for me. Surreal.”
Eugene Upshaw Jr., a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 1987, spent his 15-year career with the Oakland Raiders. He wore the No. 63 jersey, the same number Mason wears for the Golden Bulls, and won two Super Bowls. Upshaw was the first player who exclusively played guard to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. He later served as the longtime executive director of the NFL Players Association. He died in 2008.
The tour begins with the early history of football, where visitors encounter a towering statue of Jim Thorpe. The multi-sport athlete, who became the first Native American to win Olympic gold for the United States, also served as the first president of the American Professional Football Association, the organization that became the NFL.
For the Golden Bulls, the tour’s conclusion at the Black College Football Hall of Fame is where the history of the University and the game of football collide.
“You get a chance to see so many of the folks that made it possible for them to be able to play today,” said Flowers. “Guys that came from so many different backgrounds, beginnings and played this game to the highest level.”
Founded in 2009 by football legends James Harris and Doug Williams, the Black College Football Hall of Fame honors the achievements of players, coaches and contributors from historically Black colleges and universities. HBCUs provided opportunities for Black athletes to compete in an era when segregation limited access to many predominantly white institutions. Their contributions to professional football have continued long after desegregation.
According to the Black College Football Hall of Fame, 34 members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame attended an HBCU. All but two are also members of the Black College Football Hall of Fame.
Among the exhibits is a plaque commemorating the first Black college football game, played between Biddle University and Livingstone College on Nov. 27, 1892. Biddle won the historic contest 4-0, with the four-point touchdown reflecting the scoring rules of the era, another fact that can be learned at the museum.
For Flowers, seeing JCSU’s history represented among the sport’s greatest stories was the highlight of the visit.
“Of course, my favorite part is seeing Biddle College as playing the first HBCU game,” said Flowers. “The rivalry still runs strong. That’s the highlight for me. To see so much history of the game that football is today, it’s really just, it’s breathtaking.”
