Huntsville, Ala. - Alabama A&M University and Alabama State University officials have penned a six-year deal through which the schools will play every other home basketball game between the two in Mobile, Ala.  AAMU will play its cross-state rival ASU on Monday, January 16, in what is dubbed as the "Bridge Builder Classic" on Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2023. 

"Not only will this match up continue the long-standing rivalry, but it will offer other extras, as well," said AAMU Athletic Director Paul Bryant.  "It will boost both athletic programs, while simultaneously increasing support from alumni bases in southern Alabama, northwestern Florida and southeastern Mississippi."  The school that hosts its home game in the Classic in Mobile is slated to receive $100,000.

Officials have noted the significant increase in revenue to boost the basketball program that has been generated when both teams play each other at neutral sites.  For instance, the AAMU program received $11,305 from the 2019-2020 game against Alabama State that was played in Birmingham, compared to less than $1,000 made in ASU match-ups during 2020-21 and also 2021-22. 

Although the most recent years of the rivalry must account for the impact of COVID-19 during two consecutive years, athletic officials report that while A&M-ASU games have been traditionally high attendance events, the vast majority of tickets have been acquired by students. Even during 2018-19, when the game rivalry proceeds yielded $16,255, that match-up, too, was played in Birmingham.