This year at SXSW, the NFL sponsored the fifth annual HBCU Battle of the Brains competition. Fisk University, in Nashville, Tennessee, won first place in the exhilarating March 9-13 event.
“It’s in my blood, yeah! I cannot lie. I’ll be a mighty, mighty Bulldog to the day I die,” the Fisk students chanted after winning the $50,000 grand prize.
“Where’re we be, we shall still love Thee…” 💙💛
Congrats to the Fisk University (@Fisk1866) team for winning the 5th Annual HBCU Battle of the Brains competition!
🎥: @JustinHCinema pic.twitter.com/ZBRQw9TtdL
— HBCU Battle of the Brains (@HBCUBotBrains) March 15, 2022
The annual competition featured over 30 HBCUs with students battling for scholarship prizes. One of the prizes went to Fisk student Aminu Abdusalam, who was one of a dozen Dell Success Scholarship winners.
“We are excited to continue our long-standing partnership with the HBCU Battle of the Brains,” Natara Holloway, vice president, business operations & strategy, NFL, said in a press release. “This event gives us a unique opportunity to get a glimpse of innovative thinking and ideas from an immensely talented group of students from Historically Black Colleges and Universities. The NFL’s commitment to providing a platform that highlights the extraordinary skills and creativity of HBCU students is a priority now and into the future.”
Former NFL star and current businessman Marshawn Lynch surprised the students at the event and announced he, Baltimore Ravens quarterback Josh Johnson and cornerback Marcus Peters donated $10,000 from their foundation to help fund the scholarship prizes. Lynch also showed off his trademark charisma, as he even grabbed a photographer’s camera for a few moments.
@MoneyLynch showing love to HBCU’s at @HBCUBotBrains…Second career behind the camera? pic.twitter.com/y0pcKBu4GC
— Tyrone Brooks (@tbrooksBIN) March 13, 2022
The Battle of the Brains competition brings some of the best STEM and business students across the country to compete in the competition with over $80,000 of total scholarship winnings. This year’s 24-hour challenge was to create a website or app of an HBCU student and alumni portal, as well as organize the launch event for said website or app. Once teams presented their creations to a panel of judges, they had a final presentation Q&A.
“The opportunity to serve as a competition judge at the HBCU Battle of the Brains was truly an honor,” David Jurenka, SVP and general manager of NFL Media, said in a press release. “It was a difficult decision to choose between so many exceptionally talented teams whose projects were not just thoughtfully constructed but were also presented in such a dynamic manner that challenged us during deliberations. I look forward to following their journeys in the near future.”
Huston-Tillotson University came in second place, winning $20,000 and Morehouse College came in third place, winning $10,000.
