"Clearly we are excited to have had three [Black college] teams participate in [the] postseason [playoffs], it is the first time ever for our conferences and indicates Black conferences clearly have begun to lift the bar of competitive success. We simply hope to build on this year as we move into future years."
Dennis Pope, director of championships for the NCAA, says the success of Black colleges in Division I-AA is also a reflection of parity across the board in the division. He adds that many schools that dominated the division for years moved up to Division I-A, allowing more schools to be competitive.
But being realistic, Pope says that although the Black colleges were competitive enough to make it to the playoffs, all three lost in the opening round.
"While there is parity, some conferences didn't do as well as others did," he says. "Only the strong schools are left. But the predominantly Black schools had better games this year than in previous ones."
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