The HBCU football game between Kentucky State and Morehouse College will no longer be played in the Bahamas. This marks the second consecutive season an international showcase involving KYSU has been relocated back to the United States.
Morehouse College and Kentucky State jointly announced Tuesday that their Nov. 7 matchup will instead be played at Alumni Stadium in Frankfort, Ky. Kickoff remains scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.
Young Entrepreneurz Solutions canceled the YES HBCU Football Classic in Nassau because of funding challenges, according to the schools.
The game had been scheduled for Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium and promoted as the first football trip to the Bahamas for both programs.
Kentucky State and Morehouse College mutually agreed to return the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference matchup to Kentucky State’s campus.
Bahamas HBCU Classic cancellation creates travel questions
The cancellation comes less than two weeks before the scheduled game.
Fans who purchased tickets or travel packages through the YES HBCU Football Classic have been directed to Young Entrepreneurz Solutions for refund information.
Neither Morehouse College nor Kentucky State will process refunds for purchases made through YES or outside travel providers.
Fans who independently booked airfare, hotels or other travel arrangements must contact those companies directly.
The announcement did not disclose the size of the funding shortfall or how many travel packages had been sold. It didn’t explain financial commitments failed to materialize.
The Bahamas HBCU Classic had remained on conference and university schedules as recently as this past weekend. The SIAC’s recap of Kentucky State’s Oct. 24 victory over Savannah State still listed Nassau as the Thorobreds’ next destination.
The event was supposed to represent the second consecutive Caribbean football showcase produced by Young Entrepreneurz Solutions. YES staged an HBCU football event in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, in November 2025.
Kentucky State international game moved for second straight year
For Kentucky State, however, the situation brings an unusual sense of déjà vu.
The Thorobreds were scheduled to travel to Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, in October 2025 to face Franklin Pierce in the Caribbean HBCU College Football Puerto Rico Bowl. That game never reached Puerto Rico.
Days before kickoff, Kentucky State and Franklin Pierce moved the matchup to Rindge, N.H., because of concerns about field conditions and student-athlete safety. Franklin Pierce hosted the game on Oct. 17. Kentucky State won 17-14.
The two international events were not the same operation.
Available reporting does not connect Young Entrepreneurz Solutions to the 2025 Puerto Rico Bowl. The Puerto Rico game was relocated because of field and safety concerns, while organizers explicitly attributed this year’s Bahamas cancellation to funding challenges. Still, the result is striking.
For the second straight season, Kentucky State prepared for an international football experience only to see the game moved back to the mainland shortly before it was scheduled to be played.
The 2026 trip had been promoted heavily as an opportunity to expand HBCU football internationally.
In April, Kentucky State athletic director Grant Stepp called it a chance for student-athletes to represent the university on a global stage. Morehouse later described the trip as the first international football game in program history.
Instead, the teams will close the regular season in Frankfort. The cancellation also raises broader questions about the financial risks involved in staging international HBCU football events.
Moving two college teams overseas requires funding for travel, lodging, facilities, event operations and other expenses. Fans may also commit significant money months in advance.
For Kentucky State and Morehouse College, the football game remains. It just won’t be in the Bahamas.