Mississippi Valley State has finally made it to Atlanta. It just will not be in December. Yesterday, Vice President and Director of Athletics Angela Suggs announced they would play Mississippi Valley State at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The Rattlers need no introduction to Atlanta, playing in the Atlanta Football Classic yearly from 1998-2012.
On the other hand, Mississippi Valley State has played just one game in Atlanta. The Delta Devils never made the Heritage Bowl, the precursor to the Celebration Bowl or the Celebration Bowl. The closest the program came was in 1996.
That year, the Heritage Bowl went to the second-place team in the SWAC, due to the conference champion instead opting to play in the Division 1-AA (now FCS Playoffs). Southern won a three-way tiebreaker over Texas Southern and Mississippi Valley State, due to having the best point differential in games between the three teams. Southern defeated the Delta Devils 24-0, the Delta Devils beat Texas Southern 23-17, and Southern and Texas Southern did not play.
That same year, the Delta Devils played in Atlanta against Morris Brown in the Atlanta Labor Day Classic. Despite outgaining Morris Brown 404-196, the Delta Devils needed a 65-yard touchdown pass with less than a minute left to seal a 13-3 win. Keith Poindexter threw for 339 yards in the win, while the defense held the Wolverines to 67 passing yards.
Additionally, Mississippi Valley State and Florida A&M have one prior neutral site meeting. 10,390 fans saw the Delta Devils face the Rattlers at Jacksonville’s Gator Bowl in the 1990 Bold City Classic. Amir Rasul ran for 135 yards and three touchdowns to lead Florida A&M to a 28-13 win.
In 2013, Mississippi Valley State once again met the Rattlers at a Florida neutral site when they played in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge at Orlando’s Camping World Stadium. 24,376 fans saw the Rattlers intercept three Delta Devil passes in a 27-10 win.
After years of neutral site HBCU Classics avoiding Mississippi Valley State, the Delta Devils will play in two this year, with the Port City Classic at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Alabama being the other. The Delta Devils also played in the Chicago Football Classic in 2023.
Despite costing them a home game, traveling to Atlanta to play a program synonymous with the city is a significant opportunity for exposure for the long-overshadowed program.
*This article reflects a correction made by @PenaltyTalk on X, regarding the 2013 MEAC-SWAC Challenge.
Mark Pollack’s book, The Playing Grounds of College Football, was an indispensable resource in my research, you can buy it here.
