CHARLOTTE, N.C. - After a long nine months without football, the 2024 CIAA football season has arrived. Here’s a preview of what’s on the docket for week zero.
Shaw vs. Elizabeth City State
Two teams who had similar 2023 campaigns, both finishing 3-7, will face off to start the 2024 season, as Shaw University hosts Elizabeth City State University. The Vikings look to exact revenge on the Bears, as in 2023, Shaw narrowly defeated ECSU, 20-17. The game was a tale of two halves with the Bears heading into halftime up 20-0. The Vikings turned the tide in the second half scoring 17 unanswered points, but were unable to grab the lead back from Shaw. This meeting marks the 11
th meeting between the two teams with the Bears holding a 7-3 advantage. The matchup is set to kick off at 1:00 P.M.
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Virginia Union vs. Kentucky State
Last year’s champions will also take the field during week zero this season as they head west to take on a non-conference opponent in Kentucky State in a battle of two HBCU conferences. Head coach Alvin Parker will begin his seventh season (11
th overall) in his second tenure at the helm of VUU’s football program in search of the team’s seventh-consecutive winning season and hopeful back-to-back title.
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Livingstone vs. Charleston
Former NFL pro bowler and current head coach of the Blue Bears, Sean Gilbert, faces a tall task in week zero. Livingstone will welcome the University of Charleston to Alumni Memorial Stadium to kick off their 2024 campaign. The Golden Eagles are no strangers to recent success, as they boasted an impressive 8-2 regular season record which included numerous weeks being ranked amongst the top 25 in Division II. The Blue Bears, who went 4-2 in their final six games of 2023, will look to carry some of last season’s momentum into 2024 and knock off a previously ranked team on their own turf.
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Winston-Salem State vs. Bluefield State
After a rough ending to 2023, the Big Blue hired head coach Davon Morgan and are ready to attack the 2024 season head on. They’ll play host to Winston-Salem State who had a heavy advantage in last season’s matchup between the two, which saw the Rams explode for a 30-0 victory in the two teams’ first-ever matchup.
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Virginia State vs. Benedict
Virginia State will look to build on a strong 2023 campaign with an exciting week zero showdown with Benedict College. The task will be far from easy for the Trojans, as Benedict concluded last season at 11-1, with one of the best regular seasons in recent history, which included winning 10 of their 11 games by 20 points or more. VSU was one game short of qualifying for the conference championship after an impressive 8-2 season but were narrowly defeated by the defending champions, Virginia Union. The game will be featured as the Black College Hall of Fame Game, and will take place at the NFL’s Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, and can be viewed on NFL Network.
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Johnson C. Smith vs. Tuskegee
The Golden Bulls will commence the 2024 season on the road, as they head to Montgomery, Alabama to take on Tuskegee University. JCSU is coming off a strong 2023 showing which included an appearance in the Florida Beach Bowl. The matchup between the two squads is not the first, albeit a rare occasion. This marks the third meeting between the two, while the first two meetings came in 2000 and 2012. Tuskegee handedly won both, 35-17 in the first meeting and 48-0 in the second.
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Lincoln (PA) vs. Clarion
Lincoln (PA) will take on Clarion to conclude this season’s week zero matchups. This marks the second-consecutive season that the Lions are facing off with the Golden Eagles to kick off the season, as the two teams commenced the 2023 season. Lincoln had a strong second half but were unable to come out on top, falling 30-20.
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