HBCU football returns to South Philadelphia with expanded slate of games

HBCU football is returning to South Philadelphia this fall with an expanded slate of games at Lincoln Financial Field.

Delaware State University, the City of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Eagles are teaming up to launch One Philly HBCU Week, building up to the rematch of last year's inaugural HBCU Battle of the Legends.

The Delaware State Hornets will face the Norfolk State Spartans on Oct. 31 at Lincoln Financial Field.

The matchup will again feature the two programs led by former Eagles stars DeSean Jackson, of Delaware State, and Michael Vick, of Norfolk State. Both are entering their second seasons as head coaches.

The Hornets won last year's meeting, 27-20, in front of more than 47,000 fans at the Linc.

The weekend begins Oct. 30 with CIAA action between the Lincoln University Lions and the Virginia Union University Panthers.

Lincoln, the nation's first degree-granting historically Black college and university, is located in Chester County and is the alma mater of Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker.

"I am a proud graduate of Lincoln University, the first person in my family to earn a college degree, and a product of Philadelphia public schools," Parker said. "I know firsthand what it means for a young person to walk into a room and see excellence that looks like them. That's why this event is so important."

The game marks Lincoln's first football game in Philly since 2010, when they faced Cheyney University at Northeast High School in the Battle of the Firsts.

Virginia Union is coming off a 9-3 season and finished 7-0 in the CIAA, earning first place in the conference. The Panthers fell to Johnson C. Smith University in the conference title game.

Lincoln and Virginia Union last met in 2025, when the Panthers clobbered the Lions 66-21.