The Bayou Classic

A Revived Renowned Rivalry in the Big Easy  

Let’s get this out of the way first, regardless of the outcome, I’m a proud Gramblinite.
.........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................Hopefully, that was enough time for all of you Southern University supporters to get all of your jokes and laughs out because I'm not trying to hear it! It's all for the love of the rivalry, nothing personal. The 52-45 score did indicate that you guys did win, so you deserve every bragging right. Good luck to the Jaguars as they battle Alcorn State next week in Houston for a chance to claim the Southwestern Athletic Conference title.

The 41^st annual Bayou Classic went down as a true classic in every aspect. Southern’s head coach Dawson Odums said after the game that, ''This will probably go down as one of the best classics ever.'' How could anybody disagree?

With championship implications on the line for both teams, both teams played their hearts out, fans came to support them, and the city of New Orleans hit it big economically.

The game finished in epic fashion. Grambling’s late fourth quarter rally, in which they were trailing 21 points in the third quarter, ended on the final play of the drive. With a chance to tie the game with a touchdown and a converted extra point, GSU’s quarterback Jonathan Williams was tackled inside the 1-yardline as time expired giving Southern a 7-point victory and a 31-30 series lead.

According to reports, there were 57,852 game tickets distributed. This was the first time the Bayou Classic grossed over 50 thousand fans in four years. Although it's uncertain if that was the actual number of physically bodies in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome for the game, having that many people supporting this historic tradition is momentous.

This could be the revival of something big! With both programs progressing, we could see major growth in the recent disappointing attendance for the Bayou Classic.

From 2000 through 2004, the game had an averaged at least 70,000 fans in attendance, before Hurricane Katrina devastated the city of New Orleans. In recent history, those numbers significantly plummeted.

In 2013, there were 47,385 tickets distributed and 2012 in there were 45,980. The Classic drew its lowest attendance in 38 years with 40,175 in 2011 and in the year prior, the game drew its second lowest attendance in 38 years with 43,494 people.

Supposedly, the recent diminished participation was largely because of Grambling. In the G-Men’s previous two season, the team suffered from a dismal 2-21 record. As a result, some fan lost interest in not only the football program, but the school itself. The university faced numerous budget cuts forcing enrollment to drop and consequently, alumni stopped giving back. Not only did they stop giving back, they stopped coming back. Thus the Bayou Classic suffered.

As the nation watched Grambling’s football program spiral downhill in the last two seasons, including boycotting Jackson State's 2013 homecoming game because of inadequate equipment and other deficient issues, rhetoric surfaced about possibly replacing GSU in the Bayou Classic.

In June of this year, the commissioner of the Louisiana Stadium and Exposition District Robert Bruno told NBC Sports college football talk, ”If Grambling has fallen off that bad, maybe Southern could take the lead and it could be an earned-in game and bring in somebody else,” said Robert Bruno,. “I just don’t know if Grambling can carry the load.”

The Bayou Classic is much more than a football game between two storied programs. It’s the weekend after Thanksgiving full of fun and festivities, but most importantly, the Bayou Classic is a business.

The City of New Orleans depends heavily on the economic impact that weekend brings to the city. The Bayou Classic is responsible for racking in millions of dollars annually and this year according to the New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau, the city cashed out on an estimate of $50 million from fans shopping, dining, partying and hotel living

Now that both football programs are back on the rise, fans are more engaged in the activities the Bayou Classic has to offer. The game between Southern and Grambling is the second largest HBCU Classic only falling to the Magic City Classic that features the historic in-state rivals Alabama A&M University Bulldogs and the Alabama State University Hornets at Legion Field in Birmingham, AL.

Before GSU and SU took the field for the 41^st annual Bayou Classic, there were reports that they have exceeded the total number of sales of last year’s game and this year the conversation about replacing Grambling has changed.

"Ultimately, if there is another game to be played, it's not going to be the Bayou Classic anymore,'' Southern University athletic director William Broussard said. "It's important that we continue to invest in the Bayou Classic. You don't work 41 years building up a name brand with this much recognition for both institutions to abandon ship. You look at what works and what doesn't work and you improve upon it. It just so happens this year those continued efforts along with the teams having great years really has paid off.''