{"id":154316,"date":"2025-11-10T14:46:43","date_gmt":"2025-11-10T19:46:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hbcugameday.com\/?p=154316"},"modified":"2025-11-10T14:46:44","modified_gmt":"2025-11-10T19:46:44","slug":"hbcu-ncaa-playoff-hopefuls-to-compete-in-historic-games","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hbcugameday.com\/2025\/11\/10\/hbcu-ncaa-playoff-hopefuls-to-compete-in-historic-games\/","title":{"rendered":"HBCU NCAA playoff hopefuls to compete in historic games\u2013"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

ATLANTA, GA \u2014<\/strong> As the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) prepares for its HBCU championship showdown between Benedict and Albany State, the rest of the league won\u2019t be sitting idle. Thanks to a groundbreaking partnership with Conference Carolinas, two additional SIAC programs will suit up in Week 11, offering fans more football and giving teams a chance to boost their NCAA postseason credentials.
<\/a>
The SIAC, a proud HBCU conference and mainstay of Division II football, will host two cross-conference matchups on Saturday, Nov. 15, as part of a prearranged scheduling alliance with the emerging Conference Carolinas, which is fielding NCAA football teams for the first time in 2025.

The unique partnership calls for two teams from each conference\u2014excluding their respective championship participants\u2014to face off in late-season contests. The goal? Give these programs another opportunity to compete, develop, and impress NCAA playoff selection committees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kentucky State impressive <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Kentucky State University (8-2, 6-1 SIAC), which finished just behind championship participants Benedict and Albany State, will host Shorter University at Alumni Stadium in Frankfort, Kentucky. The game is scheduled for a 2 p.m. kickoff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Allen University (5-5, 5-3 SIAC), another rising HBCU program, will take on Erskine College at Westwood High School Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina, with kickoff set for 5 p.m.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For SIAC Commissioner Dr. Anthony Holloman, the alliance with Conference Carolinas represents an innovative approach to addressing the competitive challenges that come with being an HBCU league within the NCAA Division II structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOpportunities like these not only help with postseason visibility, but they strengthen our programs by allowing them to test themselves against new opponents in meaningful games,\u201d Holloman noted during SIAC Media Day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

HBCU conferences continue to evolve<\/h2>\n\n\n\n


The move also demonstrates how HBCU programs are continuing to evolve with the times. By stepping outside traditional scheduling models, the SIAC is giving its teams more chances to showcase their value on the national stage.

For Conference Carolinas, which is establishing itself in the NCAA football world, the partnership offers an early credibility boost\u2014and an association with one of Division II\u2019s most historic HBCU leagues.

As Benedict and Albany State clash for the SIAC crown, Kentucky State and Allen will fight for pride, momentum, and perhaps a late-season playoff push\u2014helping to keep HBCU football front and center even beyond the championship game.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ATLANTA, GA \u2014 As the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) prepares for its HBCU championship showdown between Benedict and Albany State, the rest of the league won\u2019t be sitting idle. Thanks to a groundbreaking partnership with Conference Carolinas, two additional SIAC programs will suit up in Week 11, offering fans more football and giving teams […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":154317,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_ml_titleColor":"#000000","_ml_titleFont":"Roboto","_ml_titleFontSize":1.136,"_ml_titleFontWeight":"400","_ml_titleLineHeight":1.3,"_ml_metaColor":"#708090","_ml_metaFont":"Montserrat","_ml_metaFontSize":0.6785,"_ml_metaFontWeight":"400","_ml_metaLineHeight":0.92,"_ml_bodyColor":"#a9a9a9","_ml_bodyFont":"Open Sans","_ml_bodyFontSize":0.85,"_ml_bodyFontWeight":"400","_ml_bodyLineHeight":1.2,"_ml_wooPriceColor":"#666","_ml_wooPriceFont":"Open Sans","_ml_wooPriceFontSize":0.9,"_ml_wooPriceFontWeight":"400","_ml_wooPriceLineHeight":1.27,"_ml_headingColor":"#000","_ml_headingFont":"Merriweather","_ml_headingFontSize":2.02,"_ml_headingFontWeight":"700","_ml_headingLineHeight":1.47,"_mlglobal_userfontcolors":{"headingColorUser":[],"titleColorUser":[],"metaColorUser":[],"bodyColorUser":[],"wooPriceColorUser":[]},"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[573635379,573629622,573627535,573627971,573627541],"tags":[573627544,573627534,6605744,6012206],"class_list":["post-154316","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2025-hbcu-football","category-allen-university","category-football","category-kentucky-state","category-siac","tag-featured","tag-hbcusports","tag-kentucky-state","tag-siac"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHBCU NCAA playoff hopefuls to compete in historic games\u2013 - HBCU Gameday<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Discover the thrilling HBCU partnership between SIAC and Conference Carolinas, enhancing NCAA football for fans this season.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hbcugameday.com\/2025\/11\/10\/hbcu-ncaa-playoff-hopefuls-to-compete-in-historic-games\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"HBCU NCAA playoff hopefuls to compete in historic games\u2013\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Discover the thrilling HBCU partnership between SIAC and Conference Carolinas, enhancing NCAA football for fans this season.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/hbcugameday.com\/2025\/11\/10\/hbcu-ncaa-playoff-hopefuls-to-compete-in-historic-games\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"HBCU Gameday\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hbcugameday\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-11-10T19:46:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-11-10T19:46:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/hbcugameday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_siac_kentucky_state_university_team_vs_edward_waters.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"576\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Steven J. 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