The scoreboard told one story. The postgame comment told the truth. After a 68–7 loss for North Carolina A&T at UCF, HBCU head coach Shawn Gibbs didn’t spin the reality of playing in a “money game.” “I mean, honestly, for our team, I don’t think it’s worth it. We got 60 plus points put on us, and we lost three quarterbacks,” he said. “Good environment, great platform. But is that worth it? I don’t know.”
This is the dilemma facing HBCU football programs in 2025. Guarantee checks from Power Four programs help budgets, facilities, and non-revenue sports. But nights like this can shred depth charts and derail seasons before they start.
Aggies Struggle Through Injuries and Blowout
A&T’s QB carousel spun in real time. Redshirt freshman Braxton Thomas exited early, Champ Long followed after an injury, and true freshman Jy Walls finished a game that was out of hand before halftime. North Carolina A&T leaned on the ground game late, with junior back Shimique Blizzard ripping a 44-yarder and punching in A&T’s lone score from 17 yards.
UCF, meanwhile, looked every bit like a Big 12 bully from the opening kick. Jaden Nixon took the first return 96 yards to the house and added an 87-yard sprint. He finished the game with 156 yards and two scores on just four carries. The Knights stacked a 28-point first quarter, led 40–0 at half, and smothered any Aggie hopes amid a 75-minute weather delay that did nothing to cool the fireworks.
UCF Coach Shows Respect, Notes Resource Gap
If you want the other side of the coin, UCF’s head coach Scott Frost provided it in the postgame presser.
He praised A&T’s effort and noted, “We have more resources and just had some more horses than they did. ” Frost emphasized the value of depth, development, and getting younger players reps in a game like this.
“My hats off to those guys on the other sideline, they fought hard, guess they had a couple quarterbacks get hurt so wish them the best. Hope that doesn’t hold them back from having a good season.”
He even said the staff tried to be good sports in the second half while still giving backups snaps. It’s the quintessential buy-game perspective: exposure for the visiting team, live reps, momentum for the home favorite, and a check that clears on Monday.
“Those games are tough cuz we were trying to be good, you know, sportsmen with the game in a situation like that. But we also have a lot of guys that went all the way through camp and just wanted to play football.”
Back in Greensboro, though, the calculation is more complicated. HBCU programs like A&T carry legacy, community, and long-term goals that go beyond a one-night bag. Losing by 60 and losing three quarterbacks can ripple into conference play, where the Aggies still seek their first CAA win and extend even further into rivalry dates that can define an HBCU season.
The payout helps. The attrition hurts. And the film doesn’t lie. That’s why Gibbs’ line hit so hard. It wasn’t just frustration. It was a money game cost-benefit analysis said out loud.
The Aggies now pivot to Hampton in the CAA, then home dates with NCCU and S.C. State during GHOE. In those games, culture and conference stakes outweigh any September guarantee. HBCU football will keep debating the money-game math. For A&T, the verdict for this week was simple: the price felt too high.
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