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Alabama A&M signs new agreement with Magic City Classic
One of college football’s oldest and most classic rivalries had some good news to announce this week when Alabama A&M inked a new deal with the Alabama Sports Council to manage the McDonald’s Magic City Classic for the 2023-2026 events.
Here’s more info:
The new Magic City Classic deal
A&M and Alabama State University have each entered into separate agreements with the Alabama Sports Council for the council to manage and promote the Magic City Classic through 2026.
Each school’s agreements mirror one another, allocating assets and responsibilities based on which University is deemed the “home team” each year. Both schools signed a four-year agreement with the City of Birmingham in April of this year, inclusive of funding and the use of Legion Field.
The event was still surrounded by ambiguity with just weeks to go before the game, after some renegotiation on Alabama A&M’s part regarding the April agreement.
The 2022 Magic City Classic, which resulted in a comeback win by Alabama State, was the last game played under the previous agreement. Alabama State signed the agreement with Birmingham relatively soon after the game, but A&M officials were not as eager to sign.
“These two deserving HBCUs will receive the highest guaranteed payout in the history of HBCU athletics. This guarantee is higher than some FBS bowl game payouts. We would like to applaud both presidents for being extremely thoughtful in achieving the best outcome for their constituency. We couldn’t be prouder to manage the McDonald’s Magic City Classic presented by Coca-Cola and continue to focus on growing this great event.”
Perren King, executive director – Magic City Classic
Securing the legacy
The contract signing by Alabama A&M means that this celebrated and famous rivalry will continue without interruption. Here are a few interesting tidbits about the rivalry:
- 1924: That’s the first year AAMU and Alabama State played each other. Alabama St. won 20-17.
- 1944: That’s the last year these two teams did not play each other.
- 7: That’s the longest winning streak in the series, held by A&M from 1960 to 1966.
- 4: That’s Alabama A&M’s current win streak against ASU.
- 1982: That was the last time the Classic ended in a tie (13-13), and now that overtime rules exist, it’s likely the last tie that will ever happen in the series.
- 70,813: That is the record crowd for any Classic, a milestone reached in 2016.
The Classic is one of the most highly anticipated events of the year in Birmingham, drawing tens of thousands of fans from across the country.
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