The stage for Jackson State’s game against Bethune-Cookman just got bigger.
Bethune-Cookman and Jackson State will meet at TIAA Bank Field on Oct. 15, the city and The Wildcats athletic department announced Tuesday in Jacksonville, Florida, instead of Bethune-Cookman’s campus in Daytona Beach.
TIAA Bank Field is the home of the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars and seats 67,164. Daytona Stadium, home of the Wildcats, seats 9,601.
The game comes to Jacksonville two weeks before the Florida-Georgia game on Oct. 29.
“Big moments deserve a bigger stage,” Bethune-Cookman Football wrote on Twitter.
“It is going to be great for our guys to get the chance to play in a NFL stadium,” Bethune-Cookman head coach Terry Sims said in a statement. “For us, to play in a city like Jacksonville, with our great supporting alumni associations, it will be very exciting, and it is still a close enough drive up the road for our regular crowds from Daytona to attend. We are looking forward to the opportunity for our team and for our fans.”
The game will be one of four neutral-site games for JSU this season.
The Tigers’ coached by Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, season opener against Florida A&M will be played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on Sept 4. The following week, on Sept. 10, JSU takes on rival Tennessee State at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium in Memphis. Jackson State will play Alabama A&M in Mobile on Nov. 12 for the Gold Coast Challenge.
The Wildcats, coached by Terry Sims, finished 2-9 last season, the school’s first since leaving the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference for the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
Jackson State, SWAC champion in 2021 at 11-2, has vaulted into the national spotlight in the last two years with the hiring of Sanders as well as the recruitment of several high-profile national prospects, including five-star cornerback Travis Hunter.
The Tigers defeated Bethune-Cookman 42-12 in last year’s matchup in Jackson, Miss.
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