The 2025 HBCU Legacy Bowl is here, and there are players from HBCUs across the country and NCAA divisions at the HBCU football all-star game. Here's a look at the 2025 HBCU Legacy Bowl selections, how to watch the game and more.
What is the HBCU Legacy Bowl?
The HBCU Legacy Bowl is a postseason HBCU football all-star game that features the top draft-eligible prospects from Historically Black Colleges and Universities. The HBCU Legacy Bowl began in 2022 and is presented yearly by the Black College Football Hall of Fame. In 2023, the HBCU Legacy Bowl partnered with the NFL to host the HBCU Combine ahead of the game. In 2024, Allstate joined the HBCU Legacy Bowl as a title partner.
PAST ROSTERS: 2023 HBCU Legacy Bowl rosters | 2024 HBCU Legacy Bowl rosters
How to watch the 2025 HBCU Legacy Bowl
Here's how you can watch the fourth-annual HBCU Legacy Bowl in 2025.
- When: Saturday, Feb. 22
- Time: 4 p.m. ET
- TV: NFL Network
- Location: Yulman Stadium (on the campus of Tulane) in New Orleans
MORE: What happened in the 2024 HBCU football season | 2024 Celebration Bowl | Final 2024 Rankings
2025 HBCU Legacy Bowl coaches
The two HBCU Legacy Bowl teams are Team Gaither and Team Robinson, named after legendary HBCU head coaches Jake Gaither (Florida A&M) and Eddie Robinson (Grambling State). Team Gaither will be led by co-head coaches Chennis Berry (South Carolina State) and Alvin Parker (Virginia Union). Team Robinson will be led by co-head coaches T.C. Taylor (Jackson State) and Sam Shade (Alabama A&M — coached at Miles in 2024).
LOOKING AHEAD: 2025 HBCU football homecoming and classic schedule
2025 HBCU Legacy Bowl rosters
Team Gaither — consisting of players from the MEAC, CIAA, NAIA or non-HBCU conference HBCUs — has 48 players in the 2024 HBCU Legacy Bowl and Team Robinson — consisting of SWAC and SIAC players — has 57 players. Here's a complete list of the 2024 HBCU Legacy Bowl rosters. You can click or tap here for roster updates.
Here's the full list of Team Gaither and Team Robinson rosters:
| Position | Athlete | School | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | QB | Draylen Ellis | Tennessee State |
| QB | Eric Phoenix | South Carolina State | |
| QB | Romelo Williams | Virginia State | |
| RB | Jada Byers | Virginia Union | |
| RB | Jarett Hunter | Howard | |
| RB | Jaden Sutton | Delaware State | |
| RB | Walter Wilbon III | Florida Memorial | |
| TE | Kameron King | Fayetteville State | |
| TE | Keshawn Toney | South Carolina State | |
| WR | Ah'shaan Belcher | Shaw | |
| WR | Joaquin Davis | North Carolina Central | |
| WR | Jalal Dean | Tennessee State | |
| WR | Kasey Hawthorne | Howard | |
| WR | Jacquez Jones | Norfolk State | |
| WR | Justin Smith-Brown | South Carolina State | |
| OL | Jared Achuff | Bowie State | |
| OL | Eric Brown Jr | South Carolina State | |
| OL | Darius Fox | Howard | |
| OL | Cam Johnson | South Carolina State | |
| OL | Larry Jones Jr | Virginia Union | |
| OL | Nick Taiste | South Carolina State | |
| Defense | DL | Isaac Anderson | Virginia Union |
| DL | Keandrew Booker | Tennessee State | |
| DL | Jayden Broughton | South Carolina State | |
| DL | Shi Gaskin | Fayetteville State | |
| DL | Saevion Gibbs | Shaw | |
| DL | John Hannibal Jr | South Carolina State | |
| DL | Quantez Mansfield | North Carolina Central | |
| DL | Jamaree Moyer | Virginia Union | |
| DL | Elijah Williams | Morgan State | |
| LB | Benari Black | Johnson C. Smith | |
| LB | Carson Buchanan | Tennessee State | |
| LB | Antwan Davis | Florida Memorial | |
| LB | Carson Hinton | Howard | |
| LB | Ahmad Nelson | Tennessee State | |
| LB | Sadiq Salawu | Bowie State | |
| LB | Aaron Smith | South Carolina State | |
| LB | Jack Smith | Johnson C. Smith | |
| CB | Karon Prunty | North Carolina A&T | |
| DB | Marcell Blocker | Florida Memorial | |
| DB | Carlvainsky Decius | Morgan State | |
| DB | Justin Fleming | Winston-Salem State | |
| DB | Kenny Gallop Jr | Howard | |
| DB | Robert Jones III | Howard | |
| DB | Terron Mallory | Norfolk State | |
| DB | Kolby Merritt | Fayetteville State | |
| DB | Xavier Robiou | Howard | |
| DB | Jarod Washington | South Carolina State | |
| DB | Jordan White | Hampton | |
| Specialists | K/P | James Lowery | Tennessee State |
| K/P | Dylan West | Howard |
Some of the players we expected to show out, did on Day 1 of practice for the Allstate HBCU Legacy Bowl. But there were others who have the scouts on hand taking notice. From The Insiders on NFL Network. pic.twitter.com/3l75tvTcrj
— Steve Wyche (@wyche89) February 19, 2025
| Position | Athlete | School | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | QB | Myles Crawley | Grambling State |
| QB | Daniel Richardson | Florida A&M | |
| QB | Jhaydon Sullivan | Savannah State | |
| RB | Ike Brown | Lane | |
| RB | Brandon Marshall | Fort Valley State | |
| RB | Irvin Mulligan | Jackson State | |
| WR | DeJuan Bell | Fort Valley State | |
| WR | Jamari Gassett | Florida A&M | |
| WR | Shemar Savage |
Prairie View A&M |
|
| WR | Da'Shun Mitchell | Savannah State | |
| TE | Tavarious Griffin | Alcorn State | |
| TE | Thomas Nance |
Bethune-Cookman |
|
| TE | Jeremiah Pruitte | Florida A&M | |
| OL | Steve Carter | Alcorn State | |
| OL | Austin Euler | Clark Atlanta | |
| OL | Jalen Goss | Florida A&M | |
| OL | Evan Henry | Jackson State | |
| OL | Jordan Taylor | Benedict | |
| OL | Christian Twymon | Miles | |
| Defense | DL | Malachi Bailey | Alcorn State |
| DL | Aaron Miller | Benedict | |
| DL | Donte Reed |
Mississippi Valley State |
|
| DL | Fred Stokes Jr |
Prairie View A&M |
|
| DL | Treqwan Thomas | Alabama State | |
| LB | DeMarkus Cunningham | Alabama State | |
| LB | Rico Dozier | Alabama State | |
| LB | Stemarion Edwards | Alcorn State | |
| LB | Tyshun Gaiter | Lane | |
| LB | Jalil Lenore | Central State | |
| CB | James Burgess Jr | Alabama State | |
| DB | Kendall Bohler | Florida A&M | |
| DB | Robert McDaniel | Jackson State | |
| DB | Amon Scarbrough | Alabama State | |
| DB | Edwin Summerour | Alcorn State | |
| S | Javius Williams | Texas Southern | |
| S | Raymond Woodie III |
Bethune-Cookman |
|
| Specialists | K/P | Matt Noll | Jackson State |
| LS | Braxston Blackwell | Southern |
The following players participated in the HBCU Combine ONLY. Click or tap here for results from the combine.
- Edge Nana Asante, Morgan State
- DB Kenny Bennett, Virginia State
- DB Jamarius Brown, Southern
- DL Darren Cook, Delaware State
- WR Jacolby Hewitt, Alabama A&M
- OL Jason Ivey, North Carolina A&T
- LB K'Vaughan Pope, Virginia State
- DB Canary Simmons, Texas Southern
- Edge Chris Walker, Tennessee State
A review of the impact of the HBCU Combine and what players helped themselves in front of NFL Scouts. From The Insiders on NFL Network. pic.twitter.com/ojwPItcHYu
— Steve Wyche (@wyche89) February 18, 2025
2025 HBCU Legacy Bowl roster breakdown
HBCU Legacy Bowl rosters by school
Every FCS HBCU except Alabama A&M and Arkansas-Pine Bluff is represented on rosters. Florida Memorial is the only non-NCAA HBCU with players in the bowl game with multiple players. Thirteen Division II HBCUs do not have a player on the 2025 HBCU Legacy Bowl rosters:
- CIAA
- Bluefield State
- Elizabeth City State
- Lincoln (PA)
- Livingstone
- Saint Augustine's
- SIAC
- Allen
- Albany State
- Edward Waters
- Kentucky State
- Morehouse
- Tuskegee
- GLVC
- Lincoln (MO)
- Mountain East
- West Virginia State
| No. of Players on Roster | School |
|---|---|
| 10 | South Carolina State |
| 8 | Howard |
| 6 | Tennessee State |
| 5 | Alabama State, Alcorn State, Florida A&M |
| 4 | Jackson State, Virginia Union |
| 3 | Fayetteville State, Florida Memorial |
| 2 | Benedict, Bethune-Cookman, Bowie State, Fort Valley State, Johnson C. Smith, Lane, Morgan State, Norfolk State, North Carolina Central, Prairie View A&M, Savannah State, Shaw |
| 1 | Central State, Clark Atlanta, Delaware State, Grambling State, Hampton, Miles, Mississippi Valley State, North Carolina A&T, Southern, Texas Southern, Virginia State, Winston-Salem State |
HBCU Legacy Bowl rosters by conference
From a conference perspective, the SWAC leads the way with 27 players in the 2025 HBCU Legacy Bowl. However, the MEAC has the highest percentage of players per team of any HBCU conference.
| No. of Players on Roster | conference | Players per Conf. team |
|---|---|---|
| 27 | SWAC | 2.25 |
| 25 | MEAC | 4.17 |
| 15 | CIAA | 1.36 |
| 9 | SIAC | 0.69 |
| 6 | OVC | - |
| 2 | CAA | - |
| 3 | NAIA | - |
HBCU Legacy Bowl rosters by division
As expected, there are more FCS players in the HBCU Legacy Bowl than DII players. See the full breakdown below.
| No. of Players on Roster | Division |
|---|---|
| 52 | FCS |
| 24 | DII |
| 3 | NAIA |
HBCU Legacy Bowl rosters by position
| No. of Players on Roster | Position | No. on Team Gaither | No. on Team Robinson |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | Offensive line | 6 | 6 |
| 10 | Wide Receiver | 6 | 4 |
| 7 | Running back | 4 | 3 |
| 6 | Quarterback | 3 | 3 |
| 5 | Tight end | 2 | 3 |
| No. of Players on Roster | Position | No. on Team Gaither | No. on Team Robinson |
|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | Defensive line | 9 | 5 |
| 13 | Linebacker | 8 | 5 |
| 15 | Defensive back | 11 | 4 |
| No. of Players on Roster | Position |
|---|---|
| 4 | Kicker, Punter, Long snapper |
Past HBCU Legacy Bowl results
Here's a look at past HBCU Legacy Bowl game results and MVPs
| Year | Winner | Loser | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Team Gaither | Team Robinson | 22-6 |
| 2023 | Team Robinson | Team Gaither | 10-3 |
| 2024 | Team Gaither | Team Robinson | 10-6 |
MVPS
- 2022
- Offensive MVP — QB Geremy Hickbottom, Tennessee State
- Defensive MVP — DB Antwan Collier, Florida A&M
- 2023
- Offensive MVP — WR Xavier Smith, Florida A&M
- Defensive MVP — DL Jason Dumas, Southern
- 2024
- Offensive MVP — QB Davius Richard, North Carolina Central
- Defensive MVP — DE Zareon Hayes, Alabama A&M
This was interesting to find pic.twitter.com/SVbexbPFcW
— Stan Becton (@stan_becton) February 19, 2025
🏈: Recapping the 2024 HBCU football season
📲 B/R: Follow HBCU sports on Bleacher Report
📚 Football History: Top MEAC/SWAC Challenge moments | Individual stars | Recapping 2023 | Recapping 2022 | Recapping 2021
🏆 Championships: Jackson State wins 2024 Celebration Bowl | Tennessee State, NC Central win tennis title | Football title history | Track champions
🏟 Classics: Every HBCU Football Classic's history | Florida Classic | Bayou Classic | Can't miss atmospheres
🏀 HBCU hoops: Pac-12/SWAC series |1980s Alcorn State | NBA draft picks | Hall of Famers
👀 March Madness: Men's history | Women's history | Two HBCU wins in 2021 | HBCU vs. HBCU | Tournament upsets
