Delaware State’s Previous Attempts to Become Philadelphia’s HBCU

After a long period of speculation, Michael Vick and DeSean Jackson will finally have their reunion in the City of Brotherly Love. Vick's Norfolk State Spartans will face DeSean Jackson's Delaware State Hornets under the Thursday night lights at Lincoln Financial Field on October 30th.

The neutral site game is a welcome addition to both schools' schedules, given that both have infrequent appearances in popular classics like the MEAC/SWAC Challenge and the Circle City Classic.

Both schools are also no strangers to Philadelphia. Norfolk State played against Temple at Lincoln Financial Field last year and played Cheyney four times, once at Franklin Field and three times at Temple Stadium. Delaware State's prior Philadelphia history is more eventful. In the mid-1980s, Delaware State attempted to bring a regular classic to Philadelphia's Franklin Field.

The classic never drew well in its three years. Around 12,000 fans attended the 1984 Delaware State-South Carolina State game at Franklin Field. The sparse crowd watched the Hornets explode for 390 rushing yards, including 209 from Gene Lake, a 1984 Kodak All-American and future MEAC Hall of Famer, in a 50-36 win. Attendance declined the following year when 10,500 fans saw Delaware State beat North Carolina A&T 30-16 at Franklin Field. Once again, the paltry crowd saw a phenomenal individual performance, with linebacker Bert Chew intercepting four passes for the Hornets. Chew's interceptions helped stymie a North Carolina passing attack that completed just nine of 32 passes with five interceptions.

1986 marked the final year of the Franklin Field classic for Delaware State when 12,124 fans saw the Hornets lose 28-25 to Jackson State thanks to five turnovers. A lack of traveling Jackson State fans helped cause the disappointing attendance figure.

Jackson State head coach W.C. Gorden estimated 5,000 Tigers fans would travel to Philadelphia, but only about 300 attended the game. Delaware State also tried to promote the classic with their take on the Chicago Bears' famous Super Bowl Shuffle. Seriously.

Eight years later, Delaware State gave Philadelphia another try, but this time at Veterans Stadium. A much better crowd of 26,864 saw Delaware State lose to Florida A&M 25-18. Despite Hornets running back Phil Anderson racking up 162 receiving yards and 79 rushing yards, six stalled drives inside the Rattler 35 doomed them.

In 2001, Delaware State gave Philadelphia one more try, but with disastrous results on and off the field. Only 1,662 fans watched the Richard Allen Philadelphia Football Classic at Veterans' Field, filling it to just around 2.5% capacity. The Hornets lost 49-24 to the Wildcats thanks to four turnovers. The short-lived Richard Allen Philadelphia Football Classic did not return after 2001.

Delaware State's last appearance in Philadelphia was not a classic, but a 59-0 non-conference loss to Temple. The fascination and nostalgic ties associated with Michael Vick and DeSean Jackson should bring a respectable crowd to Philadelphia for this new classic. Although Norfolk State and Delaware State have previous experience in Philadelphia, this game is another chance for Delaware State to become Philadelphia's HBCU finally.

Mark Pollack’s book, The Playing Grounds of College Football, was an indispensable resource in my research, you can buy it here.