The Eddie Robinson Classic was a college football "kickoff" game played in late August from 1997 through 2002 at various sites. The game was named after legendary Grambling coach Eddie Robinson. Until 2002, the NCAA only allowed for teams to play a 12-game regular season schedule if the first game were a licensed Classic such as the Eddie Robinson Classic, the Pigskin Classic, or the Kickoff Classic. In 2002 the NCAA ended the allowance of an extra 12th game, thus effectively ending the Classics. Kickoff games would later see a revival in 2008, when the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game was organized as a neutral-site game held in Atlanta, Georgia, followed by the Cowboys Classic in Arlington, Texas in 2009.
Game results Season Date Winning team Losing team Site 1997 August 28 Ohio State 24 Wyoming 10 Ohio Stadium • Columbus, OH 1998 August 29 Nebraska 56 Louisiana Tech 27 Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE 1999 August 28 Notre Dame 48 Kansas 13 Notre Dame Stadium • South Bend, IN 2000 August 26 Kansas State 27 Iowa 7Arrowhead Stadium • Kansas City, MO 2001 August 25 Wisconsin 26 Virginia 17 Camp Randall Stadium • Madison, WI 2002 August 24 Florida State 38 Iowa State 31 Arrowhead Stadium • Kansas City, MO
References