Atlanta and the History of College Football

Atlanta, Georgia, has significantly contributed to the landscape of college football. From hosting classic HBCU matchups to housing the College Football Hall of Fame, the city's influence is undeniable. This article delves into the history of college football in Atlanta, exploring the significance of HBCU classics, the impact of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), and the presence of the Atlanta Falcons and Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.

HBCU Classics: Showcasing Tradition and Rivalry

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) football teams participate in annual "classics," showcasing the sport at specific venues and highlighting historic rivalries. These games are more than just football; they are cultural events that celebrate tradition, community, and the legacy of HBCUs. Here's a look at some of the notable HBCU classics and their recent results:

Teams: Southern vs. Jackson State. Most recent result: 2025 - Jackson State def. W.C.
Teams: Bethune-Cookman vs. Florida A&M. Most recent result: 2024 - Bethune-Cookman def.
Teams: Howard vs. Morehouse. Most recent result: 2025 - Howard def.
Teams: Fort Valley State vs. Albany State. Most recent result: 2025 - Albany State def.
Teams: Prairie View A&M vs. Southern. Most recent result: 2025 - Prairie View A&M def.
Teams: North Carolina Central vs. South Carolina State. Most recent result: 2025 - North Carolina Central def.
Teams: Alabama State vs. Tuskegee. Most recent result: 2025 - Alabama State def.
Teams: Arkansas-Pine Bluff vs. Grambling State. Most recent result: 2025 - Arkansas-Pine Bluff def.
Teams: Norfolk State vs. Hampton. Most recent result: 2025 - Hampton def.
Teams: Alabama A&M vs. Alabama State. Most recent result: 2025 - Alabama A&M def.
Teams: Grambling State vs. Southern. Most recent result: 2025 - Prairie View A&M def.
Teams: Jackson State vs. Southern. Most recent result: 2025 - Jackson State def.
Team: Johnson C. Smith. Most recent result: 2025 - Johnson C. Smith def.
Teams: Livingstone vs. Johnson C. Smith. Most recent result: 2025 - Johnson C. Smith def.
Teams: Saint Augustine's vs. Livingstone. Most recent result: 2023 - Shaw def.
Teams: Elizabeth City State vs. Hampton. Most recent result: 1999 - Hampton def.
Teams: Morehouse vs. Tuskegee. Most recent result: 2025 - Morehouse def.
Teams: Tuskegee vs. Morehouse. Most recent result: 2024 - Morehouse def.
Teams: Fort Valley State vs. Tuskegee, Johnson C. Smith. Most recent result: 2018 - Benedict def. Fort Valley State, Johnson C.
Teams: Benedict vs. Tuskegee. Most recent result: 2025 - Benedict def.
Teams: Fayetteville State vs. UNC-Pembroke. Most recent result: 2025 - UNC-Pembroke def.
Teams: Virginia Union vs. L. C. Johnson C. Smith. Most recent result: 2025 - Virginia Union def.

The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC): A Collegiate Powerhouse

The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. It sponsors competition in twenty-eight sports with many of its member institutions held in high regard nationally. ACC teams and athletes have claimed dozens of national championships in multiple sports throughout the conference's history. Generally, the ACC's top athletes and teams in any particular sport in a given year are considered to be among the top collegiate competitors in the nation. Additionally, the conference enjoys extensive media coverage.

Formation and Evolution

The ACC was founded on May 8, 1953, by seven universities located in the South Atlantic states, with the University of Virginia joining in early December 1953 to bring the membership to eight. These seven universities became charter members of the ACC: Clemson, Duke, Maryland, North Carolina, North Carolina State, South Carolina, and Wake Forest. They left partially due to the Southern Conference's ban on post-season football play that had been initiated in 1951. After drafting a set of bylaws for the creation of a new league, the seven withdrew from the Southern Conference at the spring meeting on the morning of May 8, 1953, at the Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Since 2000, with the widespread reorganization of the NCAA, ten additional schools have joined, and one original member (Maryland) has left to bring it to the current membership of 18 schools. The ACC has 18 member institutions from 12 states. Listed in alphabetical order, these 12 states within the ACC's geographical footprint are California, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, and Virginia. The geographic domain of the conference is predominantly within the Southern and Northeastern United States along the US Atlantic coast, but recent conference realignment has brought it to California and Texas.

Read also: A Look at Atlanta College of Art

Conference Expansion and Realignment

The ACC added three members from the Big East Conference during the 2005 conference realignment. Initially, the conference targeted Boston College, Miami, and Syracuse. Then-Virginia governor Mark Warner, who feared Virginia Tech being left behind in a weakened Big East, pressured the administration of the University of Virginia to lobby on behalf of their in-state foe. Eventually Virginia Tech replaced Syracuse in the expansion lineup and ACC expansion was agreed upon.

On September 12, 2012, Notre Dame agreed to join the ACC in all conference sports except football and men's ice hockey (as the ACC does not sponsor men's ice hockey; of all other ACC universities, only Boston College sponsors men's ice hockey) as the conference's first member in the Midwestern United States. On September 1, 2023, the conference voted to expand and add three new members: California, SMU, and Stanford.

Academic Collaboration

The members of the ACC participate in the Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Consortium (ACCAC), a consortium that provides a vehicle for inter-institutional academic and administrative collaboration between member universities.

Football in the ACC

ACC football teams compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision. Seven of its members claim football national championships in their history, with two having won the now-defunct Bowl Championship Series (BCS) during its existence between 1998 and 2014 and one having won under the current College Football Playoff (CFP) system.

In 2005, the ACC began divisional play in football. The two division leaders then competed in the ACC Championship Game to determine the conference championship, which guarantees a berth in a New Year's Six bowl game.

On June 28, 2022, the ACC approved a new football schedule format, set to take effect in the 2023 season. Under this format, the conference will remove divisions, and instead play a 3-5-5 format, where each team plays 3 designated rivals every year along with two separate 5-team rotations that flip every other year, such that every team will have at least one home game and one away game against every other team in a four-year cycle (the standard length of a college player's career).

With the 2024 arrival of California, SMU, and Stanford, the ACC adopted a new scheduling model effective that season and running through the 2030 season. A total of 16 matchups will be protected, with 11 retained from the 2023 model, two (Miami-Virginia Tech and NC State-Wake Forest) restored from the former divisional format, and the three new members filling the remaining three slots. All teams will play each other at least twice in the cycle (once home, once away).

Atlanta Falcons: The City's NFL Presence

The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) South division.

Early History

Professional football first came to Atlanta in 1962, when the American Football League (AFL) staged two preseason contests. In 1965, after the Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium (then known simply as Atlanta Stadium) was built, the city of Atlanta felt the time was right to start pursuing professional football. The Atlanta Falcons franchise began when it was approved to begin play in 1966 by a unanimous vote of the NFL club owners on June 21, 1965. The Atlanta expansion team became the 15th NFL franchise, and they were awarded the first overall pick in the 1966 NFL draft. They selected consensus All-American linebacker Tommy Nobis from the University of Texas, making him the first-ever Falcon.

The Atlanta team received its nickname on August 29, 1965. Miss Julia Elliott, a school teacher from Griffin, was singled out from many people who suggested "Falcons" as the nickname for the new franchise. She wrote: "the Falcon is proud and dignified, with great courage and fight. It never drops its prey."

The Falcons' inaugural season was in 1966, and their first preseason game was on August 1, a loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Under head coach Norb Hecker, Atlanta lost their first nine regular-season games in 1966; their first victory came on the road against the struggling New York Giants on November 20 in Yankee Stadium.

Notable Seasons and Achievements

In the 1980 season, the Falcons posted a franchise then-best record of 12-4 and captured their first NFC West division title, after a nine-game winning streak. In the 1989 NFL draft, the Falcons selected cornerback Deion Sanders in the first round, who helped them for the next four years, setting many records for the franchise.

In 1998, under recently acquired head coach Dan Reeves, quarterback Chris Chandler and running back Jamal Anderson the "Dirty Bird" Falcons had their greatest season to date. The team finished with a franchise-best 14-2 regular-season record and the NFC West division championship. On January 17, 1999, the Falcons upset the top-seeded Vikings at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in the NFC Championship Game 30-27, in an exciting overtime victory.

In 2004, a new head coach, Jim L. Mora, was hired and Vick returned for the full season. The Falcons went 11-5, winning their third division title and earning a first-round bye into the playoffs.

The Falcons made a surprise trade up with the Cleveland Browns in the 2011 NFL draft to select Alabama wide receiver Julio Jones sixth overall. Atlanta exploded out of the gate, going a franchise-best 8-0 and remaining the last unbeaten team in the NFL that year.

In the divisional round of the playoffs, Atlanta defeated the Seahawks 36-20 in the Georgia Dome, and hosted their last game at the Georgia Dome against the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game on January 22, 2017. The Falcons defeated the Packers 44-21 to advance to Super Bowl LI as the NFC champions. Atlanta was up 28-3 late in the third quarter, and the New England Patriots scored 31 unanswered points, with the last 6 in the first-ever overtime in the Super Bowl.

Stadiums

The Falcons have called three stadiums home in their 59 years of existence, and its third home in their history opened in the late summer of 2017. The first was the Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, sharing with the Atlanta Braves Major League Baseball team until 1991. In 1992, the Georgia Dome was built, and the Falcons played there from its opening to the 2016 season. The Falcons moved into their new home, the Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Their first game ever played at the new stadium was a preseason loss to the Arizona Cardinals. The first regular-season game at the new stadium was a rematch of the 2016-17 NFC Championship, with Atlanta defeating Green Bay 34-23.

Team Colors and Uniforms

The Atlanta Falcons' colors are black, red, silver and white.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets: A Legacy of Innovation

Georgia Tech’s football history stretches back to 1892, including four national championships and multiple college football hall of famers.

Historic Moments

Tech’s historic 222-0 win over Cumberland College in 1916 remains the most lopsided win in college football history. Tech scored 32 touchdowns, converted 30 extra points, forced 15 turnovers, and never took more than two plays per possession to score.

The day that led to a more than century-old rivalry between Georgia Tech and UGA had more than its share of oddball occurrences. Multiple unsportsmanlike actions were taken against Tech.

John Heisman, Georgia Tech Football’s head coach from 1904-1919, innovated football at its most fundamental levels. On the field, he was responsible for implementing passing into offensive plays, the sideways option pass (later used to great success at Tech under Paul Johnson), snapping the ball through the air to the quarterback, and saying “Hike!” to begin a play.

On November 11, 1978, Tech played in 21-degree temperatures with a wild chill of zero in Colorado Springs against the Air Force Academy. He reached 56 yards with ease; the rest was a march to history. Averaging 13.7 yards a carry (an NCAA record at the time), Ivery ran for 356 yards, setting the NCAA single game record and breaking Tech’s program record by 139 yards, all while suffering a stomach bug.

The College Football Hall of Fame: A Shrine to the Sport

Atlanta is home to the College Football Hall of Fame. The AI at the CFB Hall of Fame is next-level-saw myself as a coach, player, even a flyover pilot. Didn’t expect to see multiple versions of myself at the College Football Hall of Fame! New AI at the College Football Hall of Fame is crazy-scans your face and drops you into the game.

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