Deuce McAllister and Ro Brown on Grambling-Jackson State HBCU Basketball Games Broadcast for NBA TV

Former New Orleans Saints running back and current WWL Radio's Saints color analyst Deuce McAllister and WBOK's Ro Brown will be the broadcast team for the Grambling State University and Jackson State University women's and men's basketball contests on Monday.

Former New Orleans Saints running back and current WWL Radio's Saints color analyst Deuce McAllister will be on the broadcast team for the Grambling State University and Jackson State University women's and men's basketball contests on Monday, Feb. 22. New Orleans' WBOK/106.1 FM Host Ro Brown will call the play-by-play action, with Deuce being the color analyst.

The two SWAC conference games will start at 2:00 PM CT (Women’s game) and 4:30 PM CT (Men's game).

NBA TV and SWAC (Southwestern Athletic Conference) have formed a partnership to televise the HBCU basketball games in honor of Black History Month. The live broadcast back-to-back contests will be the first of its kind by televising the NCAA Division I Women’s and Men’s Basketball Games between the Historically Black Universities.

Hall of Fame NFL player Deion Sanders will take over the head coaching duties for the Jackson State University football team on Sunday, Feb. 21, as they battle Edward Waters College.

According to the SWAC press release, the pregame, halftime, and postgame studio coverage will be hosted by Stephanie Ready, Sam Mitchell, and Ro Parrish starting at 1:30 PM CT. Coverage will also feature special guests throughout the afternoon, including JSU’s legendary Sonic Boom of the South Marching Band.

The New Orleans Saints drafted Deuce McAllister in the first round of the 2001 NFL Draft out of the University of Mississippi. The Morton, Mississippi native played eight seasons (2001–2009) for the Saints. He was a fan-favorite and consummate professional and had two Pro Bowl selections (2002, 2003) as a player. 

McAllister holds the record for the most rushing yards in Saints franchise history at 6,096 yards and ran for 49 rushing touchdowns in his career.  After several injuries, Deuce McAllister officially retired from the NFL in 2010 with New Orleans.

Deuce became WWL's full-time Saints color analyst after Hokie Gajan's death in 2016. He is joined by former New Orleans Saints' right tackle Zach Strief, who became the new play-by-play announcer after Jim Henderson's retirement in 2018.

Ro Brown will be inducted into the 2021 Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and receive the Distinguished Service Award in Sports Journalism. The former WDSU anchor and Sports Director has had a legendary career in New Orleans and Louisiana. He was the first African-American to hold those titles for a major news channel in the area. Today, Brown is calling games and on-air reporting for WBOK and writing for Crescent City Sports.