Orange Blossom Classic expands its reach in Year 2 of revival
When the Orange Blossom Classic roared back to life last year after a 43-year hiatus, organizers figured Miami Gardens would be the perfect home for the annual football game between Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
After Year 1 went so well, the Orange Blossom Classic is going even bigger in Year 2. Once again, the Florida A&M Rattlers and Jackson State Tigers will battle Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium, but, by sheer coincidence, the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats will be in town, too, to play the Miami Hurricanes on Saturday.
“We plan for it to be one big HBCU weekend,” Orange Blossom Classic executive director Kendra Bulluck-Major said.
In Year 1 of its revival, the Orange Blossom Classic (OBC) generated nearly $12 million for Miami-Dade County, the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau found in an economic impact analysis. In Year 2, expectations are for the game to do even more for South Florida, partially because the COVID-19 pandemic is less a concern than it was a year ago and partially because Bethune-Cookman is adding a third Historically Black College or University (HBCU) to the mix.
An even bigger HBCU spectacle
Although the Hurricanes-Wildcats showdown Saturday doesn’t technically count as part of the OBC, the Orange Blossom is embracing the game as part of its expansion this year. For Year 2, the OBC is partnering with Visit Lauderdale, too, to expand further into Broward County because of how many more HBCU fans it expects to be in town this weekend.
“We know that we’ll have people who will probably stay over and get to see a doubleheader,” Bulluck-Major said.
On Saturday, fans will get to see a new era for Miami begin against an in-state FCS opponent — invariably, there will be split allegiances in the building with Bethune-Cookman alumni from South Florida, who root for the Hurricanes any time they’re not playing their alma mater. On Sunday, spectators get to watch two of the best teams in FCS meet — Jackson State, led by coach Deion Sanders, is No. 15 in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 and Florida A&M sits just outside the preseason rankings — and some of those Tigers and Rattlers fans will certainly also identify as Miami fans.
There’s good reason, the OBC figures, for people to make a whole weekend out of the Classic.
“I don’t think we could’ve written a better story,” Bulluck-Major said.
As another piece of evidence for organizers’ confidence, the OBC is moving its Battle of the Bands from Miramar’s Ansin Sports Complex to Coral Gables’ Watsco Center — home of the Hurricanes’ men’s and women’s basketball teams — to up capacity from roughly 5,000 to nearly 8,000.
Economic impact on Miami Gardens
Even though events are spread even further across the region this year, the OBC is still maintaining a focus on Miami Gardens, the largest majority-Black city in Florida. About $6 million of the almost $12 million generated for Miami-Dade County last year benefited local, minority-owned business, Bulluck-Major said, and the same programs designed to benefit those businesses are still in place for 2022.
A cornerstone of the OBC’s economic vision for 2021 was its “Business Unite” program. In essence, this program made local businesses part of the event. Last year, more than 70 minority-owned business signed up for the program, which contracts out different parts of the game-day and weekend-festivity experiences to local companies, and the OBC will be able to work off the same list — plus any newer additions — to put on the event.
The “Business Unite” initiative, Bulluck-Major said, is used to find everything from DJs and sound systems, to janitorial services and portable toilets, and the OBC also provides visitors an extensive list of minority-owned businesses to “serve as a guide throughout the weekend.”
What else is in store?
The countdown to the Orange Blossom actually began in July when the OBC hosted its “Elevation Experience” at the Charles F. Dodge City Center Pembroke Pines. Actress Rashan Ali and Dr. Heavenly Kimes, one of the stars of Bravo’s “Married to Medicine,” headlined the panel at the women’s empowerment event to discuss their entrepreneurial endeavors and brand building, and more than 200 people attended.
The weekend will truly begin Thursday with the Cortez Bryant Foundation and OBC Golf Tournament at the Miami Lakes Golf Club, which will raise money for both Florida A&M and Jackson State, and costs $300 per golfer to register.
On Friday, the OBC will host its Orange Blossom Careers in Sports and Entertainment Symposium at St. Thomas University in Miami Gardens and the Battle of the Bands will headline Saturday — a fan fest and Orange Blossom parade won’t happen this year because of the Miami game at Hard Rock.
Still, the weekend will wrap up with a fan fest on the grounds of the stadium before Sunday’s kickoff.
In all, not much is changing from Year 1 to Year 2 and it’s a testament to the success the Classic had in its long-awaited return last season.
“We’re just ecstatic about the success of 2021,” Bulluck-Major said, “and that’s definitely something for us to build upon for 2022.”
