PHILADELPHIA — Michael Vick and DeSean Jackson embraced tenderly at midfield — Jackson pulled his hood over his mouth to hide his message to Vick — after playing in the same NFL stadium and being teammates for five years. Philadelphia Eagles.
The Pro Bowl players are now incredibly connected as HBCU coaches, and their career paths would have shocked Vick and Jackson when they each shined in the NFL.
“I never thought I'd be looking across the field and watching him coach,” Vick said. “I know it’s the opposite for him. It was a really cool moment, a surreal moment. You never know what life will throw at you.”
Jackson beat Vick in their first meeting as a black college coach, thanks in large part to Amir Andersonblocked the punt due to the score he sent Delaware To victory with a score of 27-20 over Norfolk State on Thursday evening.
This was no ordinary regular season win. Jackson scheduled the game into his office schedule, and the Hornets carried him off the field on their shoulders as if they had just won the Super Bowl, appreciative of the victory and how—like Vick—he had raised the profile of HBCU programs.
“I’m just proud of both of us,” Jackson said. “We are in a position where we are inspiring and changing the lives of young people at HBCUs. Man, it doesn’t get any better than this.”
Kayden Bennett threw a 24 yard pass Tahmir Ellis for the Hornets and James Jones scored on a 76-yard run in the fourth quarter to seal the final conference win for Jackson's team.
Vic and Jackson were the signature attractions of each program leading up to a rare nationally televised evening game for HBCU programs in an NFL stadium.
Both players played key roles in the Eagles' success in the 2010 NFC East Championship, where a banner was raised on the roof of Lincoln Financial Field. Vic, The big-armed, left-handed QB and Jackson took the NFL by storm that season when they connected on an 88-yard touchdown pass against Washington and a 91-yard touchdown pass against Dallas, helping both players earn Pro Bowl honors.
“Man, the energy as I walked across the field smelling the grass just flowed through my veins,” Jackson said.
Jackson, who won a Super Bowl with the Rams and retired after the 2022 season, has made a proposal to move the game from campus to Philadelphia. Former NFL stars Hugh Douglas, Marshawn Lynch and Cam Newton, as well as Eagles quarterback Brandon Graham were at the Link, and thousands of fans – more than the average for each program at a home game – waited out the early rain before Delaware State shook them up.
Norfolk State led 6-3. The good times started when Otto Kuhns hit JJ Evans for a dynamite 13-yard throw – when he struck deep in his own territory. Anderson made the interception and interception in the end zone for a 10-6 lead that Delaware State took at halftime.
Koons and Evans carried on the old Vic-Jackson dynamic with a 70-yard score that put the Spartans within 19-13 late in the fourth. Koons threw for 311 yards and three touchdowns, and Evans finished with five catches for 124 yards. DreShaun Kendrick had nine catches for 112 yards.
“To be able to work with guys like JJ, DreShawn, the guys in the locker room, being a part of the HBCU culture is really cool,” Vick said. “I'm looking forward to better days.”
Patrick Fisher-Butler made field goals of 30 and 26 yards for the Hornets (6-3, 2-0 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference).
Playing in front of a large crowd under lights, emotions may have been high, but late in the third inning the teams got into a fight and Delaware State offensive lineman Isaiah Cook was ejected for striking.
Jackson and Vick's missions are clear: use their fame, connections and football talent to revive two ailing programs in the HBCU community, much like Deion Sanders did at Jackson State en route to a Power Four program in Colorado.
The 45-year-old Vick, who starred in college at Virginia Tech and was a four-time Pro Bowler in 13 NFL seasons, had a rocky start to his rookie season.
Norfolk State, which has about 5,100 students, is 1-8 and has lost seven straight games. Vick recently fired several defensive assistant coaches as he tries to revive a Spartans program that has made only one playoff appearance since moving to the FCS in 1997.
Jackson orchestrated a quick turnaround at Delaware State, which has about 6,500 students, which already includes its first conference win since 2022. The Hornets beat rival North Carolina Central 35-26 last week to earn their first win in Durham since 1977.
“We had [eight] In the games before and every game, it was hard not to think about that game,” Jackson said.
