A New Playbook: The HBCU Experience at Super Bowl LIX
Source: Kevin Sabitus / Getty
New Orleans hosted Super Bowl LIX, and this year, it wasn’t just about the game. The host city welcomed fans from Philadelphia to Kansas City and beyond. But not only did they open their arms to fans all over, they also opened doors for HBCU athletes. The game-changing HBCU Endzone Experience put these Historically Black Colleges and Universities on the map.
Big-name schools have long been at the top of college football, but HBCUs are starting to see an increase in exposure through the media and big-name athletes putting on for the culture. Young athletes—predominantly Black students—are beginning to make these schools their top picks rather than safeties or backups. The HBCU Endzone Experience provided the platform to back up the plan of these institutions to produce successful pro athletes just as much as their PWI counterparts.
Leveling the playing field for athletes from all kinds of schools will surely cause a surge of talented individuals committing to HBCUs and becoming leaders both on the field and in the classroom. Attending a campus that is a hub of Black excellence will provide mentorship on a level that can’t be attained at a PWI and allow these athletes to give these schools their due credit, all while representing all of us because when one of us wins, we all win.
The HBCU Endzone Experience booth at the 2025 NFL Experience surely created some future game-changers and instilled the courage they needed to pursue what their hearts desire. So when you watch the Super Bowl next year, or the year after, be sure to look out for those putting on for the culture, changing the game, and dominating the field—and the schools that built them.
