Today, the SWAC became the first league to announce their 2021 spring football schedule.
The full schedule includes on non-conference open date for each team and conference contests beginning Week one. They will play six total conference games including four against divisional opponents and two games against non-division SWAC members.
February 27th will mark the official kickoff weekend for the conference and the league has designated a bye week for each team during the week of March 13th.
The season will end with a conference championship name sponsored by Cricket Wireless on Saturday May 1. The highest seeded team will host.
“The SWAC Council of Presidents and Chancellors, Sports Administrators Committee, COVID-19 Advisory Committee, along with our fall sports scheduling groups have worked tirelessly over recent months to get to the point where we are able to announce a significant part of the rescheduling of our fall sports,” SWAC Commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland shared in their release.
“Collectively as a conference, we look forward to continuing on the path to a safe return to competition that we know all of our student-athletes, team staff, institutional administrators and supporters would like to see in the coming months. This schedule allows the needed flexibility for any additional adjustments that will need to be made once the NCAA releases its revised spring calendar. Clearly our plans in regards to the safe return to competition within our league will ultimately be dictated by the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic in the respective regions of our member institutions.”
Beginning in January, teams will start their eight-week training period leading up to the start of the new spring season.
The SWAC East is made up of Alcorn State, Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Jackson State, and Mississippi Valley State. The SWAC West consists of Southern, Prairie View A&M, Grambling State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and Texas Southern.