ESPN moving HBCU bowl game up ticks off Dan Le Batard co-host

ESPN released its college football bowl schedule for the 2024 season and its decision to switch things around left many people in the HBCU world upset. And some members of the Dan LeBatard Show as well. 

ESPN moved bowl season up a week due to the expanded College Football Playoff field. That included the Celebration Bowl, the game between the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) champions that often determine the HBCU national championship. Historically, the game has taken place the week before Christmas. But it has been moved up to Dec. 14. 

That puts the Celebration Bowl, as well as the Camellia Bowl, on the same day as the historic Army-Navy Game. Dan LeBatard Show co-host Stugotz isn’t feeling it. 

“College football does not care about our military. They don’t care about our troops,” Stugotz said during Monday’s broadcast. “This game has been an isolated game, Army-Navy, and those two schools, the troops, they deserve to have a weekend that is all about them.”

“They took this isolated game, this beautiful game…you know what they did? Now you get the Camellia Bowl, and you get the Celebration Bowl,” Stugotz continued. “That is a disgrace, and I’ll tell you why. Go ahead — name any team who has played in the last 10 of any of those bowls. The answer is you can’t. I guarantee you can tell me every year who’s playing in the Army-Navy game.”

While not for the same reason, many in the HBCU football ranks aren’t much happier about the change of date for the Celebration Bowl. Some others were upset because it gave the SWAC one less week to prepare for the Celebration Bowl compared to its MEAC opponent. ESPN Events, of course, owns the bowl game.

What do you think about the Celebration Bowl moving up a week? Is it a smart move or an unfair advantage?