Edward Waters president makes bold Division I matchup after Jackson State loss

Following Jackson State’s 66-14 victory over Edward Waters University, university president Dr. A. Zachary Faison made a lengthy statement. Faison took to his X account to lay out his issues with the arrangement, given that Edward Waters received only $65,000 for the appearance.

“Going forward, Edward Waters University will not schedule Division I opposition in football except on terms this institution sets and that materially and substantially advance our program goals,” he said in the post. “I want you and our supporters to understand exactly why. The economics do not work. We were paid a $65,000 guarantee, which covered none of our costs. Travel and related expenses ran roughly $30,000 to $35,000, so we cleared about $30,000. That does not begin to justify what such a game asks of a team, a coaching staff, and a program.”

He then used the payment that HBCU FCS programs have been afforded to play FBS opponents. Azan used the figure to showcase the disparity between what FCS HBCU programs receive in these matchups and what Division II teams receive when they play up. He specifically used Tennessee State as an example, as they played the University of Georgia on Saturday and lost 63-3

“Tennessee State is the clearest illustration. That is a very capable FCS program which lost to this same Jackson State team by two points the week before, and it was beaten 63 to 3 by my alma mater, the University of Georgia, on Saturday. The result says nothing about Tennessee State. It says everything about what happens when a program plays division(s) above itself. The difference is that Tennessee State went home with $600,000 and can convert it into something materially significant for its program. That is a defensible trade. Ours was not.”

Edward Waters University football program is expected to be at the top of the SIAC as it will rank first overall in the conference’s predicted order of finish. In Week 1, Edward Waters pulled off a 42-28 victory over Florida Memorial University in the 2026 Unity Classic. They turned their sights to an in-conference clash against Miles College on September 12 at 3 pm.

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