Grambling and Prairie View to meet in State Fair Classic

Courtesy of Brian Howard Sr Associate AD for Athletic Communications

GRAMBLING, La. | The Grambling State University football team will look to snap a four-game losing streak against rival Prairie View A&M in the annual State Fair Classic on Saturday night. Kickoff against the Panthers in this Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) showdown is set for 6 p.m. at the historic Cotton Bowl Stadium in Dallas, Texas.

Grambling State (1-3 overall, 0-1 SWAC) is coming off a 36-19 defeat on the road to Bethune-Cookman last week to open conference play. Despite outgaining the Wildcats by more than 100 yards, the Tigers failed to score any second-half points after taking a 19-17 lead late in the second quarter. 

Prairie View A&M (2-2, 2-0) might have had some plane troubles on the way to Montgomery, Alabama last week, but that didn’t stop the Panthers from picking up the 24-15 victory over Alabama State. PVAMU did the bulk of its damage through the air, despite only having 16 first downs.

Saturday’s game will be streamed live HBCU GO as Charlie Neal will have the call. Grambling State will broadcast and stream the game on the Grambling State Sports Radio Network. The game can be heard in Ruston and Dubach on the flagship station, The Peach (KPCH-99.3 FM), KNNW 103.1 FM in Columbia and Monroe and KEDG 106.9 FM in Alexandria and Pineville. The Tigers’ broadcast crew of Ossie Clarkl, Chyelle Flowers and T. Lay Collins will call all of the action.

Grambling State head coach Hue Jackson said the Tigers didn’t play as well against Bethune-Cookman as they did on that particular day, but saw some improvement with the football team overall and that the team is headed in the right direction.

“There are still some things we are working through each and every day,” Jackson said. “I think we are building. I think our guys are starting to truly get and understand the environment I am creating for them. We are looking forward to playing again this weekend in the State Fair Classic.”

ABOUT THE GAME 

• Grambling State and Prairie View A&M will be meeting for the 74^th time
• The Tigers own a 51-21-1 all-time series record against the Panthers
• Grambling State will be playing in its 38^th State Fair Classic
• The Tigers are 27-10 all-time in the State Fair Classic, but have lost the last four decisions
• The last time Grambling State won the State Fair Classic was in 2017, the same year the Tigers won the SWAC championship
• Both teams have new head coaches to the rivalry (GSU – Hue Jackson; PVAMU – Bubba McDowell)
• The coaches may be new to the rivalry, but both have ties to the NFL, with Jackson serving as the head coach of the Oakland (now Las Vegas) Raiders and McDowell played for the Houston Oilers
• Prairie View A&M is the defending SWAC West Division champions
• The Panthers were predicted to finish third in the SWAC West Division standings
• The Tigers were chosen to finish fourth in the SWAC West Division standings

GRAMBLING STATE NEWS & NOTES  

• The Tigers are coming off a 36-19 loss at Bethune-Cookman last week
• Grambling State’s offense racked up 461 total yards of offense, with 287 coming through the air
• The Tigers picked up 26 first downs, but were plagued by 14 penalties for 107 yards
• Phaizon Wilson caught his first collegiate touchdown during the second quarter, which tied the game at 17
• Quaterius Hawkins has thrown for nearly 750 yards in four games, with five touchdowns
• Lyndon Rash has 249 yards on 12 catches, with a pair of scores
• Defensively, Lewis Matthewshas 36 tackles, including 29 solo stops
• Sundiata Anderson leads the team in sacks, with three
• Garrett Urban extended his streak last week and has now had at least one point (field goals and extra points) in the last 12 games, dating back to the 2021 season

WHERE THEY RANK NATIONALLY

• The Tiger defense is third statistically in defensive touchdowns
• GSU is among tops in the nation in blocked punts and fumbles recovered
• Grambling State is also seventh in the country in turnovers gained
• Anderson is sixth nationally in fumbles forced
• Marquis Britten is second in the FCS in fumbles recovered
• Matthews is second in the country, first in the SWAC, in solo tackles

PRAIRIE VIEW A&M NEWS & NOTES 

• The Panthers are perhaps one of the hottest teams in the conference – outside of No. 9/8 Jackson State
• Prairie View A&M gutted out a 24-15 road win last weekend against Alabama State
• The Panthers never trailed against the Hornets in earning the SWAC win
• PVAMU had 362 total yards, with 236 coming through the air
• Despite 16 first downs, Prairie View A&M committed just four penalties for 29 yards
• The Panthers have navigated two conference wins and two non-conference losses through the first four games
• PVAMU opened the season with a 40-23 win against Texas Southern, but fell to Abilene Christian (21-13) and Incarnate Word (31-14)
• Trazon Connley has thrown for 429 yards, with four interceptions and a pair of touchdown strikes
• Ahmad Antoine leads the ground game with 304 yards on 59 attempts, with three scores
• Tariq Mulmore paces the defense with 31 total tackles, including 18 solo stops

THREE KEYS TO THE GAME

• Grambling State must protect the quarterback
• GSU’s needs to win the turnover battle
• The Tigers must avoid committing a ton of penalties 

ALL-TIME SERIES HISTORY 

• Grambling State leads the all-time series, 51-21-1
• The series dates back to 1950, with Prairie View A&M rolling to a 40-7 victory
• Grambling State owns the longest win streak in the series, 20 games
• The Tigers are 4-6 in the last 10 meetings against PVAMU
• The Panthers have won four consecutive games, including 17-10 and 24-10 victories during the Spring and Fall 2021 seasons
• Grambling State’s last win against PVAMU came during the 2017 season, a 34-21 victory in the State Fair Classic

WHAT FANS ARE ENCOURAGED TO WEAR

• The Gameday color for Grambling State fans is … wear BLACK

LOOKING AHEAD TO WHAT’S NEXT 

• Grambling State completes its six-game road swing next Saturday (Oct. 8) at Alabama A&M
• The Bulldogs will play host to Bethune-Cookman this Saturday, before wrapping up their two-game home stand against GSU
• Alabama A&M will be hosting High School Band Day and also its Pink Out game
• The Tigers and Bulldogs will be meeting for the 28^th time
• GSU leads the all-time series, 21-6 and have won five straight
• The series began in 1989 as Grambling State earned a 34-22 win
• Alabama A&M’s last win in the series came in 2013, a 23-9 victory
• Tickets are on sale by visiting the GSU Ticket Office or Click Here

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