Jackson State, Tennessee State renew rivalry at Vanderbilt's FirstBank Stadium

Jackson State and Tennessee State are still getting the kind of spotlight this rivalry has always earned, only now it will come inside Vanderbilt’s FirstBank Stadium instead of Nissan Stadium. The relocation keeps the John A. Merritt Classic in Nashville, turns a scheduling headache into an SEC-stage showcase, and gives both programs a bigger platform for a game that already carries real weight in HBCU football.

The 2026 John A. Merritt Classic is set for Saturday, Aug. 29, at 7:30 p.m. and will be presented by the Tennessee Titans and ONE Community. Tennessee State said the move was necessary because the Titans’ preseason game against the Chicago Bears created a conflict at Nissan Stadium, and Vanderbilt stepped in to keep the event in Nashville. FirstBank Stadium, Vanderbilt’s home field, seats about 40,350 to 40,351, which means the rivalry will be staged in a major on-campus college setting rather than an NFL building.

That shift matters beyond the address. For Jackson State and Tennessee State, the setting changes the optics of the matchup in ways that can reach recruiting, alumni interest and the programs’ national profile. An FCS heavyweight game played under SEC lights, in a football stadium tied to a Power Four campus, sends a different message than the same game tucked into a neutral NFL venue. It also keeps the classic in a place where both schools can sell the event as a destination rather than just a date on the schedule.

The rivalry itself still does the heavy lifting. Tennessee State says the series began in 1949 and has been played 55 times, with the Tigers holding a 30-23-2 edge. Jackson State won the latest meeting 16-3 on Sept. 10, 2022, in Memphis, while the last Nashville meeting came on Nov. 17, 2001, when Tennessee State rolled 64-33. TSU also said this will be the first-ever Jackson State game in the John A. Merritt Classic, adding a new chapter to a series that has already crossed generations.

That history gives the event more than ceremonial value. The classic, which began in 1999, honors John A. Merritt, who coached Tennessee State from 1963 to 1983 and Jackson State from 1952 to 1962. He is in the College Football Hall of Fame, and the classic’s history notes that he led TSU to four undisputed Black college national championships in the Sheridan Poll era. Single-game tickets will go on sale later, and the game now carries the rare mix of legacy, leverage and big-stage visibility that makes an FCS rivalry feel bigger than the logistics that moved it.