Former Philadelphia Eagles teammates DeSean Jackson and Michael Vick are bringing their new head-coaching rivalry back to South Philly. Delaware State University, led by Jackson, will face Michael Vick's Norfolk State University at Lincoln Financial Field on Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, running back the inaugural matchup that captivated Philadelphia football fans a year earlier.
The rematch follows Delaware State's 27-20 victory over Norfolk State in the first-ever HBCU Battle of Legends, played at the Linc on Oct. 30, 2025, according to NBC10 Philadelphia. That game drew 47,266 fans, per the same report, cementing the event as a serious draw for HBCU football in the city. Delaware State and Norfolk State are Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference rivals, and NBC10 Philadelphia's reporting notes the two programs have met annually as conference foes, with Delaware State's 2025 win snapping a series in which Norfolk State had otherwise held a 6-3 edge in the modern head-to-head rivalry dating back to 2007, according to AiScore.
Jackson, Delaware State's first-year head coach in 2025, guided the Hornets to an 8-4 overall record and a 4-1 mark in MEAC play, per NBC10 Philadelphia's report. That turnaround — for a program that had not posted a winning season since 2012 — earned Jackson the BOXTOROW HBCU Coach of the Year award and the Tubby Raymond Award from the Delaware Sportswriters and Broadcasters Association, per the same account. It also prompted Delaware State to extend his contract through 2028, as announced by Delaware State University in December 2025.
A Rivalry Rooted in Eagles History
Vick and Jackson entered NCAA Division I head coaching during the same season, and their bond stretches back to their playing days as Philadelphia Eagles teammates from 2009 to 2013, according to NBC10 Philadelphia's reporting. That era included one of the most famous moments in franchise history: the Dec. 19, 2010 “Miracle at the New Meadowlands,” in which the Eagles erased a 21-point fourth-quarter deficit against the New York Giants, capped by Jackson's walk-off 65-yard punt return touchdown as time expired — making him the first player in NFL history to win a game that way, per Wikipedia.
Vick's move into coaching has drawn its own national spotlight. BET premiered “The Coach Vick Experience,” an original docuseries executive-produced by Michael Strahan and Deion Sanders, in February 2026, chronicling his transition into Norfolk State's top job, according to BET. Delaware State, for its part, leaned into Jackson's Eagles legacy commercially, selling limited-edition “DSU Jackson” jerseys priced between $60 and $130 featuring the No. 10 he wore in Philadelphia, per Delaware State University Athletics.
Legal Scrutiny Shadows Jackson's Program
The on-field success has come alongside off-field legal trouble for Jackson's program. In April 2026, former Delaware State safety Malachi Biggs filed a lawsuit in Delaware Superior Court against the university and Jackson, alleging that Jackson promoted a “tough guy” culture that fostered violent bullying and led to a locker room chokehold assault that fractured Biggs's jaw, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. Jackson has publicly denied encouraging hazing or violence, the paper reported.
A Bigger Philly Weekend for HBCU Football
The Delaware State-Norfolk State rematch is part of a broader push by Philadelphia to expand HBCU football programming in the city. One Philly HBCU Week will kick off Oct. 27, 2026, and include family, alumni and fan events across the city, per NBC10 Philadelphia's report. The celebration will also feature an HBCU choir competition, HBCU Battle of the Bands, marching band performances, a student opportunity fair, and a step show.
The Delaware Office of Tourism will again host a fan engagement zone, echoing the pregame programming that accompanied 2025's inaugural game, which Councilmember Jeffery Young Jr. helped facilitate for area residents. Mayor Cherelle Parker said HBCUs build the next generation of history makers, entrepreneurs and public servants, according to NBC10 Philadelphia's account.
The Oct. 31 rematch will follow a separate HBCU showcase the night before: Virginia Union University will face Lincoln University back at the Linc on Friday, Oct. 30, at the same Lincoln Financial Field venue. Lincoln University was founded in 1854, while Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, another Pennsylvania HBCU referenced in coverage of the region's HBCU history, dates back to 1837.
Tickets for both the Oct. 30 and Oct. 31 games go on sale Wednesday, Aug. 12, at 10 a.m. through Ticketmaster, per NBC10 Philadelphia. Official kickoff times and broadcast details for both matchups will be announced at a later time, the outlet reported.
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