Get ready, New Orleans: one of the greatest traditions in college football is coming home. The 53rd Annual Bayou Classic takes over the Caesars Superdome on Saturday, November 28, 2026, as the Grambling State Tigers and the Southern University Jaguars renew a rivalry that has electrified the city since 1974.
The Bayou Classic is so much more than a football game. Every November, fans and alumni of both schools pour into the Crescent City for an entire week of celebration: a downtown parade, a fan festival full of music and food, and the legendary Battle of the Bands between Southern’s Human Jukebox and Grambling’s World Famed Tiger Marching Band — an event that many fans say steals the show all on its own.
The matchup is a proud showcase of HBCU heritage, pageantry, and community, with tens of thousands of supporters filling the Superdome for the 1:00 PM kickoff. This year’s edition is presented by Procter & Gamble, and tickets are already on sale.
Whether you bleed blue and gold or black and gold, Thanksgiving weekend in New Orleans belongs to the Bayou Classic. Don’t miss one of the most joyful celebrations in all of college sports.
Photo: U.S. Coast Guard / Petty Officer 1st Class Elizabeth H. Bordelon (public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
