Birmingham considers more SWAC Football at Legion Field

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - If you’re among many in Birmingham wondering about the fate of Legion Field - it may have more SWAC football in its future.

The City of Birmingham’s Office of Innovation and Economic Opportunity and the Southwest Athletic Conference wants to play one new conference game a year at Legion Field for the next five years.

If the city council votes Tuesday to approve the plan endorsed by the council’s Budget and Finance Committee Monday, Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders would bring his Jackson State University Tigers to the Old Gray Lady this fall to play the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Future matchups would include JSU versus Southern University and Southern vs Alabama State.

Those games would be in addition to the Magic City Classic, the Alabama State - Alabama A&M matchup that is traditionally the city’s largest event of the year.

Cornell Wesley, who heads the Office of Innovation says the games would capitalize on the growing fervor for Black college football and could generate $16 million dollars worth of economic activity for the city.

The full city council is due to vote on the measure on Tuesday.

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