SWAC tells Grambling State it's time to pay Jackson State

Ros Dumlao | USA TODAY Sports

The Southwestern Athletic Conference said Wednesday that Jackson State will get paid for the losses incurred after Grambling State failed to show at the Tigers' homecoming game last month.

Jackson State will receive an undisclosed amount and funds will come from Grambling State's "future distribution amounts as outlined in the conference bylaws," the league said. Grambling will also be required to play at Jackson State in the next three years.

In total, it could end up costing cash-strapped Grambling State more than $300,000.

"As far as the fine for Grambling State and subsequent payment to Jackson State, we believe that is the right thing to do from a conference standpoint," SWAC Commissioner Duer Sharp said.

Grambling State will cough over money from its conference profit share. SWAC leaders would not disclose the amount going to Jackson State, which has threatened to sue the league and Grambling State, because it is "between Grambling and the SWAC office."

But this ugly affair doesn't appear over.

After learning of the penalties, Grambling State filed an appeal to the SWAC, explaining why the fine and game decisions are "excessive."

"We support the rights of our students to voice their opinions, but the university was not responsible for our inability to field a team to travel to Mississippi," GSU athletic director Aaron James said. "Their actions pale in comparison to the overwhelming severe penalties imposed by the conference."

Grambling forfeited the Oct. 19 game after its football team boycotted practices over frustrations with the administration and then failed to board a bus to Jackson. As a result, the university was fined by the SWAC. An amount wasn't released, but James said the school could be fined up to $20,000, according to SWAC bylaws.

He estimated that if the conference's ruling stands, Grambling would have to pay as much as $305,000 for the fine, trips to Jackson and other expenses.

"This isn't a surprise at all," James said of the ruling. "We've been working with our conference and our friends at Jackson State so we knew this was coming. It's been a friendly and business-like series of conversations, we disagree with this action and we have appealed."

A majority of the discussions were among the SWAC office, its executive committee and Grambling, Sharp said.

"When you look at all the information, sat down with the executive committee and then ... we wrote out the outline of what we thought the penalty should be, and we went through it," Sharp said. "The executive committee agreed with it, and from that point, it's pretty much done."

As for Grambling's appeal, Sharp said it will go through a review process.

Jackson State said its financial losses, as well as the city's, could be in the millions from its canceled homecoming game and planned on suing Grambling for compensation. But no lawsuit was filed.

The matchup between JSU and Grambling was replaced with an intrasquad scrimmage, and homecoming festivities remained as scheduled.

The conference credited Jackson State with the win and charged Grambling with the loss, but the NCAA ruled the lost game a "no contest" and will not be counted in the teams' overall records.

JSU (7-2, 8-0 SWAC) remains the only undefeated team in the league and closes its regular season against Alcorn State on Saturday at home.

Ros Dumlao writes for The Clarion-Ledger, a Gannett property.