Rivals meet again on Saturday afternoon in the Magic City Classic in Birmingham, AL. No love is ever lost when Alabama A&M and Alabama State meet. Both teams are coming off wins two weeks ago before sitting out with a bye last week. AAMU beat Arkansas-Pine Bluff in a 34-31 contest, while Bama St. defeated Mississippi Valley State University. These teams last met in 2021. Alabama A&M came out on top in that one by a score of 42-28.
Alabama A&M (3-4 Overall, 3-1 in SWAC – East)
The Bulldogs’ season thus far has resulted in a 3-4 record. They are scoring an average of 22 points per contest, with a total of 19 touchdowns on the year. The Bulldogs’ defense is conceding an average of 36 points per game overall, slightly better in SWAC play opponents scoring 31 points per game.
Tailback Donovan Eaglin will be leading the way for Alabama A&M. Eaglin arrives having rushed for at least 100 yards in the last three games.
Despite Eaglin’s gaudy stats, Alabama A&M has a committee rushing offense. No one player has taken more than 33 percent of its rush attempts.
Alabama A&M went 7-3 in 2021. This is their first neutral site game this year, but they went 2-0 in 2021, winning the Gulf Coast Challenge against Tuskegee as well as the Magic City Classic. More importantly, Alabama A&M has won four straight match ups against Alabama State since Oct 27, 2018.
Alabama State (4-3 Overall, 2-2 in SWAC – East)
The Hornets will come into this contest with a 4-3 record on the season. They’re putting up an average of two touchdowns and 17 points per contest. On the other side of the ball, the Hornets’ defense is giving up an average of 20 points per game.
Tailback Santo Dunn will be leading Alabama State in this one. Dunn has collected 266 rush yards this season, scoring one touchdown on the ground.
Alabama State has a rush-heavy offense, with a 58-42 rush-pass play selection split.
ASU’s record sits at 2-1 for their last three games, averaging 286 offensive yards per game during those games. They’ve had good luck at neutral sites this season, as their current neutral site record sits at 1-0, with a win in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge. Alabama State is 3-2 in Division I HBCU games, averaging 18 points per game in those games.
This content was produced using Artificial Intelligence technology before being approved and published by HBCU Gameday. Sam Quick is a moniker for our AI technology and is not an actual person.