Five years in, and the importance of the Allstate HBCU Legacy Bowl only is growing. The Legacy Bowl will be played Saturday at 3 p.m. in Tulane's Yulman Stadium, and will be broadcast on the NFL Network. Two 50-player squads (Team Gaither and Team Robinson) hope to use the all-star game, which showcases draft-eligible players from historically Black colleges and universities, as another attention-grabber en route to an NFL job.
"The big importance is to help these young men get into the NFL — and not just the players, but the coaches (and) the staffers," said Steve Wyche, the chief national reporter for NFL Network, who will handle play-by-play duties for the Saturday's broadcast. This year, Wyche, a graduate of Howard University, was selected for induction into the Black College Football Hall of Fame as a contributor, in part due to his role helping form and organize the Legacy Bowl.
"With so few HBCU players now getting invited to the (NFL) Scouting Combine, with so many HBCU players getting plucked by bigger programs in the (transfer) portal, it's still important to showcase all of the talent at HBCUs, which has historically been a pipeline (for the NFL)," Wyche said.
Notable recent HBCU alums who made NFL rosters include former New Orleans Saints and Dolphins offensive tackle Terron Armstead (Arkansas Pine Bluff), Colts linebacker Shaq Leonard (South Carolina State) and Vikings defensive tackle Javon Hargrave (South Carolina State).
Morgan State defensive tackle Elijah Williams, who played in the Legacy Bowl last year, made Minnesota's 53-man roster as an undrafted rookie.
Here are the up-and-comers to watch in this year's game:
RB Curtis Allen (Virginia Union)
The Harlon Hill Trophy winner (the Division II equivalent of the Heisman Trophy, the first HBCU player to win the award) ran for 2,409 yards – a Division II single-season record – and a nation-leading 30 touchdowns in 12 games. Allen has been nursing a sore hamstring and his game availability is questionable.
LB Erick Hunter (Morgan State)
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year had 101 tackles (52 solo), three passes defensed, four sacks, three forced fumbles and an interception in 12 games.
DE Quincy Ivory (Jackson State)
The Southwestern Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year posted 71 tackles (33 solo), six sacks, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, an interception and a pass defensed for the 9-3 Tigers.
QB Walker Harris (North Carolina Central)
Harris completed 234 of 375 passes for 3,214 yards and 24 touchdowns, with nine interceptions, en route to being named MEAC Offensive Player of the Year.
