SWAC Athletic Facilities


Earle

Well-Known Member
Are SWAC athletic facilities comparable to MEAC and other FCS schools? DeWayne Wade, on a recent television sports show, shared, in response to the 5-star basketball recruit choosing Howard, that Howard's small arena which seats only about 2700 would be problematic for him. He went on to say that hbcu facilities were in the "dirt" and that these schools would first need to get their facilities out of the dirt, if they expect these type athletes to show interest. I do know that Wade participated in a benefit game a few years ago at WSSU sponsored by a Chris Paul foundation. At that time the WSSU basketball facility where the game was played, although packed out, looked more like a small high school gymnasium in need of a facelift than a college arena. This could have contributed to Wade's attitude about the quality of hbcu facilities. I have not seen all SWAC stadiums and arenas recently, but I would think SWAC basketball and football facilities would rank favorably among peer institutions. There is not a single basketball arena in SWAC that is as small as Howard's. AAMU has announced plans to build a new arena with a hotel and other amenities, while FAMU enters with a nice arena already, and I am not sure about BCU. Most SWAC football stadiums seat at least 15,000, larger than most MEAC, BS, and SLC schools, and have nice artificially-turfed playing surfaces. What do you think?
 
Last edited:
Man "Phuck" what D Wade's clueless ARSE stated!

Lebron, Garnett, Kemp, Malone, O'neal, etc., etc., etc., all played in High Schools gyms then went 1st round to the league. Somebody need to tell D. Wade's Sugar Lips ARSE to study up on HBCU's before he speaks.

Howard U. Endowment is larger than LSU's and they have 21,000 less students EVERY year! No go figure that ……..
 
Last edited:
Click here to visit HBCUSportsStore
Man "Phuck" what D Wade's clueless ARSE stated!

Lebron, Garnett, Kemp, Malone, O'neal, etc., etc., etc., all played in High Schools gyms then went 1st round to the league. Somebody need to tell D. Wade's Sugar Lips ARSE to study up on HBCU's before he speaks.

Howard U. Endowment is larger than LSU's and they have 21,000 less students EVERY year! No go figure that ……..
“Sugar Lips”...😂😭😭😂
 
there is not a fcs program in south carolina that can compare with the swac on facilities. winthrop, furman, crampton bowl was better.
 
What Wade said is the same thing that’s been said a thousand times on this site by swac fans.

Unfortunately you are right.

I can understand the "D Wade is a clueless outsider who is using his platform to discourage prospects from coming to HBCUs" but what he said is regurgitated ad nauseam on here by people who only like certain schools and want them in the forefront. I can almost assure you that if you say it on a public forum like this site then I can almost assure you that you say it offline as well
 
The problem (and I use that term loosely) is that the vast majority of people equate all HBCUs to be on the same level as far as facilities... no matter whether D1, D2, or NAIA. When we speak about HBCUs we often do so speaking on all HBCUs, but that shouldn't carry over into athletics. Whenever I get into discussions like this (even with fellow HBCU alums) they do the same thing until I show them pictures and evidence that their argument is based on ignorance and perception. Not just that, but all HBCUs are NOT on the same level. That's why I've always hated us bragging about the mythical Black College Football Championship. It compares us and competes us against lower division competition. How does that make any sense from a marketing strategy? There are high school stadiums in DC that are better looking, larger, more advanced than Howard's football stadium. But Howard gets a lot more publicity than most other HBCUs, and as a result are the standard bearers for all other HBCUs. That obviously isn't the standard at SWAC stadiums where our facilities rival FBS G5 conference facilities.

We (SWAC) have to do a better job of marketing ourselves to the general public, because we compete at the same level as the Alabama's, Clemson's, USC's, UCLA's, Notre Dame's, Texas' in every sport other than football, but if you ask most recruits or general public to tell it, we compete on a lower level than those schools.

When people think of HBCU facilities they're more than likely picturing some dilapidated structure being held together by duct tape and rust, and not stadiums and arenas that are in the SWAC. We need to change that narrative, and the best way to do that is through improving our marketing and national TV exposure in our home stadiums playing marquee games.
 
Last edited:
Are SWAC athletic facilities comparable to MEAC and other FCS schools? DeWayne Wade, on a recent television sports show, shared, in response to the 5-star basketball recruit choosing Howard, that Howard's small arena which seats only about 2700 would be problematic for him. He went on to say that hbcu faciliies were in the "dirt" and that these schools would first need to get their facilities out of the dirt, if they expect these type athletes to show interest. I do know that Wade participated in a benefit game a few years ago at WSSU sponsored by a Chris Paul foundation. At that time the WSSU basketball facility where the game was played, although packed out, looked more like a small high school gymnasium in need of a facelift than a college arena. This could have contributed to Wade's attitude about the quality of hbcu facilities. I have not seen all SWAC stadiums and arenas recently, but I would think SWAC basketball and football facilities would rank favorably among peer institutions. There is not a single basketball arena in SWAC that is as small as Howard's. AAMU has announced plans to build a new arena with a hotel and other amenities, while FAMU enters with a nice arena already, and I am not sure about BCU. Most SWAC football stadiums seat at least 15,000, larger than most MEAC, BS, and SLC schools, and have nice artificially-turfed playing surfaces. What do you think?

I guess GSU's basketball facility is awful....SMH
 
The problem (and I use that term loosely) is that the vast majority of people equate all HBCUs to be on the same level as far as facilities... no matter whether D1, D2, or NAIA. When we speak about HBCUs we often do so speaking on all HBCUs, but that shouldn't carry over into athletics. Whenever I get into discussions like this (even with fellow HBCU alums) they do the same thing until I show them pictures and evidence that their argument is based on ignorance and perception. Not just that, but all HBCUs are NOT on the same level. That's why I've always hated us bragging about the mythical Black College Football Championship. It compares us and competes us against lower division competition. How does that make any sense from a marketing strategy? There are high school stadiums in DC that are better looking, larger, more advanced than Howard's football stadium. But Howard gets a lot more publicity than most other HBCUs, and as a result are the standard bearers for all other HBCUs. That obviously isn't the standard at SWAC stadiums where our facilities rival FBS G5 conference facilities.

We (SWAC) have to do a better job of marketing ourselves to the general public, because we compete at the same level as the Alabama's, Clemson's, USC's, UCLA's, Notre Dame's, Texas' in every sport other than football, but if you ask most recruits or general public to tell it, we compete on a lower level than those schools.

When people think of HBCU facilities they're more than likely picturing some dilapidated structure being held together by duct tape and rust, and not stadiums and arenas that are in the SWAC. We need to change that narrative, and the best way to do that is through improving our marketing and national TV exposure in our home stadiums playing marquee games.

Couldn't have said it better than myself

I posted the pics of the football stadiums at UAPB, PV and Alabama State on Twitter when people said "we have high school stadiums" and that shut up a lot of people (hopefully Valley can finally get there soon with the nonprofit set up to support athletics).

Same with our gyms. I don't think any of us have dumps and have gyms that rival or better than schools our size. And when you get into conference play against your rival at home, there is hardly a better atmosphere than a SWAC basketball game
 
The problem (and I use that term loosely) is that the vast majority of people equate all HBCUs to be on the same level as far as facilities... no matter whether D1, D2, or NAIA. When we speak about HBCUs we often do so speaking on all HBCUs, but that shouldn't carry over into athletics. Whenever I get into discussions like this (even with fellow HBCU alums) they do the same thing until I show them pictures and evidence that their argument is based on ignorance and perception. Not just that, but all HBCUs are NOT on the same level. That's why I've always hated us bragging about the mythical Black College Football Championship. It compares us and competes us against lower division competition. How does that make any sense from a marketing strategy? There are high school stadiums in DC that are better looking, larger, more advanced than Howard's football stadium. But Howard gets a lot more publicity than most other HBCUs, and as a result are the standard bearers for all other HBCUs. That obviously isn't the standard at SWAC stadiums where our facilities rival FBS G5 conference facilities.

We (SWAC) have to do a better job of marketing ourselves to the general public, because we compete at the same level as the Alabama's, Clemson's, USC's, UCLA's, Notre Dame's, Texas' in every sport other than football, but if you ask most recruits or general public to tell it, we compete on a lower level than those schools.

When people think of HBCU facilities they're more than likely picturing some dilapidated structure being held together by duct tape and rust, and not stadiums and arenas that are in the SWAC. We need to change that narrative, and the best way to do that is through improving our marketing and national TV exposure in our home stadiums playing marquee games.

Wow! Well said, sir! Your comments should be memoralized.
 
Click here to visit HBCUSportsStore
Couldn't have said it better than myself

I posted the pics of the football stadiums at UAPB, PV and Alabama State on Twitter when people said "we have high school stadiums" and that shut up a lot of people (hopefully Valley can finally get there soon with the nonprofit set up to support athletics).

Same with our gyms. I don't think any of us have dumps and have gyms that rival or better than schools our size. And when you get into conference play against your rival at home, there is hardly a better atmosphere than a SWAC basketball game
Hell you could have posted picture of jsu stadium and that would have ended that convo. People scared the SWAC will become a powerhouse conference like decades ago, only because it’s an hbcu conference. Smh
 
BCU's athletic facilities do not appear to be adequate by SWAC standards. Their off-campus football stadium, while a nice facility, seats only 10,000, and their basketball gymnasium is literally archaic compared to SWAC arenas. With a football stadium this size, BCU will not be able to accommodate large travelling fanbases.
 
Last edited:
BCU's athletic facilities do not appear to be adequate by SWAC standards. Their off-campus football stadium, while a nice facility, seats only 10,000, and their basketball gymnasium is literally archaic compare to SWAC arenas. With a football stadium this size, BCU will not be able to accommodate large travelling fanbases.

I read that their athletic budget is $15 million. With that they should be able to fund raise for a football stadium and new basketball arena.
 
Last edited:
BCU's athletic facilities do not appear to be adequate by SWAC standards. Their off-campus football stadium, while a nice facility, seats only 10,000, and their basketball gymnasium is literally archaic compare to SWAC arenas. With a football stadium this size, BCU will not be able to accommodate large travelling fanbases.

I haven't researched but do you think being a private school decently limits what they are capable of doing and growing/funding athletically?

Perhaps BCU is giving us currents a glimpse of the athletic issues in the past when the SWAC experienced attrition of its founding member private schools and the ascension of its state public schools?

Just something to ponder.
 
BCU's athletic facilities do not appear to be adequate by SWAC standards. Their off-campus football stadium, while a nice facility, seats only 10,000, and their basketball gymnasium is literally archaic compare to SWAC arenas. With a football stadium this size, BCU will not be able to accommodate large travelling fanbases.

If they fill their stadium with their fans why should they have to worry about visiting fans, that's not the target.
 
Yes BCU is landlocked...it’s hard to find a spot to build an on campus stadium.

The stadium they currently play at just lost the 5A-8A FHSAA State Championship games because the facility was unable to facilitate the large crowd...Miami Northwestern vs Jones (Orlando) brought a bigger a crowd than most BCU home games outside of their homecoming. Fans didn’t make it through traffic until after halftime in some cases
 
Back
Top