🐾 HEART. HISTORY. HBCU FOOTBALL AT ITS FINEST 🏆

ATLANTA, GA — If you wanted drama, passion, and pure HBCU football excellence, the 2025 Cricket Celebration Bowl delivered all of it and more at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. In front of a national audience averaging 2.3 million viewers on ABC—the bowl’s highest viewership since 2022—South Carolina State and Prairie View A&M put on an instant classic that will be talked about for years.

The Bulldogs ultimately outlasted Prairie View A&M 40–38 in FOUR overtimes, crowning South Carolina State as the 2025 Cricket Celebration Bowl National Champions in one of the most thrilling finishes in the bowls history.

PRAIRIE VIEW STRIKES FIRST

Prairie View A&M came out swinging early. Cameron Peters opened the scoring by connecting with Ethan John for a touchdown to go up 7–0, setting the tone for a dominant first half. The Panthers didn’t stop there.

Peters added a rushing touchdown and then fired scoring strikes to Jyzaiah Rockwell and Andre Dennis, as Prairie View rattled off 28 unanswered points, stretching the lead to a commanding 28–0. At that point, it looked like the game might be headed toward a blowout.

THE MOMENTUM SHIFT

South Carolina State finally found life early in the third quarter when Ryan Stubblefield powered in a 5-yard rushing touchdown, putting the Bulldogs on the board and igniting a comeback for the ages.

From there, it was all heart.

The Bulldogs exploded for 28 unanswered points, highlighted by:

• Jordan Smith’s 1-yard rushing touchdown

• A Stubblefield-to-Smith passing touchdown

• A gritty 1-yard TD run by Stubblefield

Just like that, South Carolina State erased a 28-point deficit and tied the game 28–28 with 10:44 left in the fourth quarter.

LATE-GAME FIREWORKS

Prairie View wasn’t done. With 9:53 left, Peters connected with Cameron Bonner on a 78-yard touchdown pass, reclaiming the lead at 35–28.

But the Bulldogs refused to fold.

With 1:54 remaining, Stubblefield once again found Jordan Smith in the end zone, knotting the score at 35–35 and forcing overtime in front of a roaring crowd in Atlanta.

FOUR OVERTIMES. ONE CHAMPION.

Both teams traded field goals in the first overtime to make it 38–38.
The second overtime? No score.
The third overtime? Still nothing.

Finally, in the fourth overtime, Tyler Smith delivered the decisive conversion for South Carolina State, pushing the Bulldogs ahead 40–38. On the ensuing possession, Prairie View A&M was unable to answer and game was sealed.

Final Score:
South Carolina State 40, Prairie View A&M 38 (4OT)

South Carolina State Bulldogs 2025 Cricket Celebration Bowl National Champions