Unpacking the Deion Sanders SWAC-ness conversation — and the 'state of mind' it brings

It was supposed to be a congratulatory handshake between Alabama State football coach Eddie Robinson Jr. and Jackson State coach Deion Sanders after the Tigers' 26-12 victory over the Hornets on Oct. 8.

The two shook hands and Sanders went in for a hug on Robinson, who promptly pushed him away. Sanders stood there and looked stunned while throwing up his arms. In the postgame press conference, Robinson told the media that Sanders is not SWAC, prompting a viral back-and-forth that added jet fuel to their interaction.

Sanders clapped back by saying, “If I ain’t SWAC, then who is SWAC?"

The idea of SWAC-ness takes center stage Saturday when ESPN's "College GameDay" visits Jackson State (7-0, 4-0 SWAC East) ahead of its conference showdown with Southern (5-2, 3-1 SWAC West) at Veteran Memorial Stadium. It's just the second time in the college football pregame show's 29-year history that it has been broadcast from an HBCU campus.

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James Verrett, a 1993 Southern graduate, said he was raised knowing former Grambling coach Eddie Robinson, who grew up with his great aunt, Isadore Domino. Robinson, who has no relation to the Alabama State coach, earned his degree from Leland College.

“When people say, 'I’m SWAC and you’re not SWAC,” Verrett said, “they need to look at the history of Ace “A.W.” Mumford, Eddie Robinson and Marino Casem. None of those greats graduated from those HBCUs schools. They were hired by a SWAC school and enhanced the university by winning football games.”

Verrett, who works games on ESPN's various platforms and other networks, estimates anyone 30 years and older who lived south of South Carolina, from Texas to the Atlantic coast, is a minority and had a Black teacher was likely influenced by somebody who went to school at a SWAC school. "So, we are all SWAC," he said.

Charlie Neal, often referred to as the "Voice of HBCU Sports," was the original Black Entertainment Television (BET) play-by-play announcer who has called SWAC games since 1980. He worked with former Jackson State football Hall of Famer Lem Barney for 23 years, two years longer than sportscasters Pat Summerall and John Madden worked together. One of the highlights of his career was watching Grambling coach Eddie Robinson break the all-time coaching wins record (408-165-15) set by Alabama coach Paul "Bear" Bryant.

“SWAC is a state of mind,” Neal said. “People who have played there, have reverence for it. Sometimes, they feel like people who come from the outside have not lived it and have not grown up to it, through it, and seen it from its inception, or experienced all of the things you could experience as a player and as a coach (Eddie Robinson Jr.) as Robinson has done.”

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Neal said Sanders has done a lot for the SWAC, including bringing attention to the game and to HBCUs. He sees both sides of Sanders and Eddie Robinson Jr.’s arguments and thinks it is all in how a person looks at the idea of SWAC-ness. Neal thinks people are making more out of this issue than it needs to be. He says HBCUs were vital to the Black community before James Meredith’s integration into Ole Miss in 1962 and even after it. When students in the South could not go to Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia and Tennessee, they had to go to HBCUs to get an education.

SWAC influences runs deep into everyday American culture and life in Missisippi. Jackson State University president Thomas K. Hudson went to Jackson State and graduated in 1999. He went on to graduate with his Juris Doctor from the University of Mississippi School of Law. Hudson established his own successful law firm serving as an Equal Employment Opportunity specialist for the Department of Homeland Security/FEMA before returning to JSU in 2012. Before becoming president of the university in November 2020, Hudson served as Chief Operating Officer/Chief Diversity Officer and EEO officer/Title IX Coordinator.

Hudson said everything that Sanders has done since arriving at JSU is about elevating the SWAC. What it means to be SWAC is pride: pride in your community, pride in your team and pride in the city. That’s a lot of what Sanders has brought not just to Jackson State but to HBCU football as a whole.

I’m with Coach Prime. If he ain’t SWAC, who is?

“I’m definitely SWAC,” Hudson said, “My first game was JSU-Southern in 1985. I can fully claim that I am SWAC. I have been going to games for almost 40 years.”

Former JSU football player and NFL Hall of Famer Robert Brazile said playing football at JSU prepared him for the NFL. Practices were intense, motivating and eye-opening. He said some of the toughest practices were against another Hall of Fame lineman, Jackie Slater. Brazile said he wanted to make Slater better, and vice versa, so they gave each other their very best.

“SWAC to me means my confidence,” Brazile said. “It is my background, my legacy. It prepared me for the NFL, and after playing in the SWAC, I proved to myself that I could play at any level. “

Jackson mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba is a graduate of an HBCU and SWAC school. He holds degrees from Tuskegee University and a Juris Doctor from Texas Southern University School of Law.

Lumumba said the city is thrilled to host ESPN “College GameDay” on Saturday and welcomes the nation's attention with open arms. This is the result of the dedication and perseverance of Sanders and reflects his desire to put JSU ‒ and the SWAC ‒ on the national stage.

“I agree that we too are worthy of national attention,” Lumumba said. “And we will do everything on our end to make this game memorable and reflective of all the wonderful people and amenities this City has to offer.”

When people ask, "Who is SWAC?" the answer coming back to them should now be: "I am SWAC."

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: If Jackson State's Deion Sanders isn't SWAC, then I'm not sure who is