Prairie View A&M, Texas Southern Labor Day Classic makes controversal ESPN change

The highly anticipated Labor Day Classic is making a controversial move in favor of national exposure. The annual game between Prairie View A&M and Texas Southern is now set to take place on Sunday, September 6 at 11 a.m. The game, which normally takes place on Saturday evening of Labor Day weekend, has been moved to Sunday to allow the game to be broadcast on ESPN2.

In quotes obtained by Terrence Harris of the Texas Defender, Prairie View A&M Athletic Director Anton Goff defended his decision.

“The game has been played at different times, it’s been played on different dates,” Goff said to me. “Not many times do you get to be the only football game on in the country. That’s never happened…People can continue to look at the way things have been done. I’m trying to be innovative.”

Goff sees the move as the next step to gain exposure for the program after its SWAC Championship-winning season under Tremaine Jackson. Prairie View A&M last played on national television during the Celebration Bowl in December, which aired on ABC.

“I was like, `Yeah, because it’s the only college game on TV across the country. “So it’s an opportunity to play without competition. It’s a chance to continue to expand our brand after we just played on national TV during the Celebration Bowl, and it had great ratings, so I took advantage of that timeslot.”

The Texas Southern game in the Labor Day Classic will come after Prairie View A&M’s season-opening game against Tarleton State on August 29.

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