(STATS) -- North Carolina Central and Grambling State just missed out on playing in last seasons inaugural Celebration Bowl. They made sure that didnt happen again this year.The 16th-ranked Tigers take on the No. 20 Eagles at the Georgia Dome on Saturday in a matchup of the Southwestern Athletic Conference and Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference champions.Grambling State won all nine of its conference games last season before being denied an appearance in the Celebration Bowl when it lost 49-21 to Alcorn State in the SWAC title game. The Tigers again went 9-0 in conference play in 2016, but this time rallied from a 17-0 halftime deficit to beat the Braves 27-20 for the SWAC championship Dec. 3.North Carolina Central shared the MEAC title last season with North Carolina A&T and Bethune-Cookman, but N.C. A&T won the tiebreaker and went on to beat Alcorn State 41-34 in the Celebration Bowl. The Eagles and Aggies met in a winner-take-all season finale last month, with North Carolina Central rolling to a 42-21 victory to claim the MEAC championship.We got one more to go, said North Carolina Centrals Jerry Mack, who was named MEAC coach of the year and finished sixth in the voting for the STATS FCS Eddie Robinson Award as FCS Coach of the Year. We got an opportunity to play for potentially a black college national championship. ... So the tradition and the legacy isnt over with yet.North Carolina Central (9-2) does most of its damage through the air. The Eagles led the MEAC with 221.3 passing yards per game behind Malcolm Bell, who finished second in the league with 2,191 yards, first with 16 passing touchdowns and tied for second with nine rushing scores in being named first-team all-conference.He was joined on the first team by LaVontis Smith, who was second in the MEAC with 646 receiving yards and tied for fifth with five TD catches.Grambling State (10-1) also has a star quarterback in DeVante Kincade, who was named the SWAC offensive player of the year. Tackle Donovan McCray was the defensive player of the year and Broderick Fobbs took home coach of the year honors.Kincade led the SWAC in passing efficiency (173.5), completion percentage (65.4), passing yards (2,870) and touchdown passes (30) while throwing just three interceptions. All-SWAC first-team selection Chad Williams topped the conference in catches (86) and receiving yards (1,294) and was second in TD receptions (10).The Tigers are also strong on the ground behind Jestin Kelly (808 yards, eight TDs) and all-conference first-team member Martez Carter (782, nine).Grambling State has won 10 in a row since losing its opener at FBS opponent Arizona, a game in which the Tigers led 21-3 at halftime. North Carolina Central enters on a nine-game winning streak following season-opening road defeats to FBS schools Duke and Western Michigan.This is two titans clashing, and two really good coaching staffs and two really good programs that are doing an exceptional job in this college football atmosphere, said Fobbs, who finished ninth in the voting for the STATS FCS Eddie Robinson Award.This is huge for us and for FCS football and the fact that there are a lot of institutions that would like to be here. Even other institutions that are playing in the national playoffs. They would like to be in a situation where they are able to play in a game like such. Brett Gardner Jersey . -- James Young couldnt wait to apply those tweaks to his jump shot, and the first one he made against UT Arlington told him it could be a good night. Randy Johnson Yankees Jersey .05 million next season unless Graham and the Saints subsequently agree on a long-term deal. The designation was released Monday after the deadline passed for NFL teams to use franchise or transition tags on players becoming free agents. http://www.yankeesauthorityshop.com/Jorge-Posada-Jersey/ . - Oakland Raiders running back Rashad Jennings was speaking to a group of local high school students earlier this week when the conversation turned to the importance of being prepared when opportunities in life arise. Didi Gregorius Yankees Jersey . The next step is a better finish. Bae played bogey-free Friday on another gorgeous day at Riviera for a 5-under 66, giving him a one-shot lead over Aaron Baddeley and Robert Garrigus going into the weekend. Greg Bird Yankees Jersey . Ashley Youngs cross was inadvertently headed by Chester into his own net in the 66th minute, allowing United to claim a third straight league win. "We had to dig deep with our fighting spirit and weve done that," United striker Wayne Rooney said.Thistlecrack is the star name among nine entries for the bet365 Novices Chase at Newbury on Saturday. The Grade Two contest, better known as the Worcester Novices Chase, was reopened for 24 hours after having failed to attract sufficient entries on Monday.Having dominated the staying hurdle division last season, Thistlecrack has made an impressive start to his career over fences, with two comfortable victories confirming his place as ante-post favourite for the Cheltenham Gold Cup. His potential opponents include the Paul Nicholls-trained pair of Arpege DAlene and Ibis Du Rheu and Lucy Wadhams impressive Kempton scorer Potters Legend.Emerging Force is two from two over fences for Harry Whittington, but is unlikely to chase the hat-trick at Newbury.Whittington said: We know hes a better horse on better ground and wed want to have everything iin our favour to be taking on a horse like Thistlecrack.ddddddddddddId imagine well leave it, but but weve left him in the race to keep our options open.Its always good to be open-minded in this game.Theres a Grade Two at Doncaster in a couple of weeks time (December Novices Chase, December 10) and theres a class two race at Cheltenham the day before.Hes a horse thats better when hes fresh, so another couple of weeks wouldnt do him any harm.Bigbadjohn and Our Kaempfer could renew rivalry after finishing first and second respectively over course and distance earlier in the month.Pinnacle Panda and Tajseer complete the confirmations. 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