Column: HBCUs have a bowl of their own worth celebrating

ATLANTA, Georgia -- The kickoff to the monthlong bowl season is more than just another game.

For that matter, it's goes far beyond the two teams taking the field at noon Saturday.

This is a chance to honor the legacy of all those historically black colleges and universities that played such a vital role in the growth of college football, giving African-Americans a place to play when they didn't have anywhere else to turn.

Call this a well-deserved celebration, which is why there is no more aptly named postseason game than the Celebration Bowl.

"We wouldn't be able to do what we're doing today," said John Grant, executive director of the game that will be played at the Georgia Dome, "if not for what they did yesterday."

Indeed, in the days of Jim Crow, HBCUs were a lifeline for African-Americans in the South.

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