Gayle Benson Receives Black College Football Hall of Fame Founders Award

New Orleans Saints owner Gayle Benson accepted the 2023 Black College Football Hall of Fame Founders Award in Atlanta, GA.

ATLANTA — New Orleans Saints owner Gayle Benson accepted the 2023 Black College Football Hall of Fame Founders Award in Atlanta, GA. Last evening, Benson and the former Pro Football Hall of Fame president Carl David Baker received the honors at the Class of 2023 Black College Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

Mrs. Benson became a founding partner with Doug Williams and James "Shack" Harris when they were organizing the inaugural HBCU Legacy Bowl in New Orleans, LA, in 2021. The New Orleans Saints organization led the efforts to host the event at Tulane's Yulman Stadium and the first HBCU Legacy Bowl Career Fair at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in New Orleans. The Saints' and Pelicans' vice president of production, Shaneika Dabney-Henderson, has chaired the planning committee for the previous two HBCU Legacy Bowls.

Congratulations to @Saints owner Gayle Benson, who received the 2023 Black College Football Hall of Fame Founders Award last night. Mrs. Benson has been a dear friend and champion of the Allstate HBCU Legacy Bowl since inception! pic.twitter.com/rcfIUdKEUJ

— BlackCollegeFootball (@BCFHOF) June 11, 2023

"I would like to personally thank HBCU Legacy Bowl founders James Harris and Doug Williams for all the work they have done leading to the success of HBCU Legacy Bowl, career fair, combine, and game," Gayle Benson said in her recorded acceptance speech. "Additionally, I would like to thank trustees Mel Blount, Willie Lanier, Art Shell, and the many partners that provide the resources needed to create a first-class experience for these students. Their support gives these HBCU students the platform to display their skills and establish a network they will use for the rest of their lives. And again, I'm truly humbled to be in a position where I'm able to support all these colleges and universities. I look forward to continuing the New Orleans Saints' relationship with the Black College Football Hall of Fame and the HBCU community. We have made tremendous progress to level the playing field for these students. And I am extremely excited to continue the great work we have done with the [HBCU] Legacy Bowl for years to come."

When the NFL decided to switch the HBCU Combine from the Reese's Senior Bowl to the HBCU Legacy Bowl, the New Orleans Saints organization offered to host the HBCU student-athletes at its facilities in Metairie, LA.

The game's third installment will have a new title sponsor, Allstate, and be named the Allstate HBCU Legacy Bowl. The New Orleans Saints, NFL, NFL Network, and other sponsors will support and broadcast the all-star contest in New Orleans for the next several years.

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