Pac-12/SWAC Legacy Series set for debut during 2022-23 basketball seasons

(Birmingham, AL & San Francisco, CA)   The Pac-12 and Southwestern Athletic Conference will debut the Pac-12/SWAC Legacy Series, an educational and basketball scheduling partnership between the two collegiate athletics conferences, to tip off the 2022-23 season.

The first-of-its-kind pact between Autonomy 5 and HBCU leagues was announced last September with its aim to create both a forum for competition, as well as promotion and education around issues of anti-racism and social justice.

With the inaugural cycle of contests approaching in early November, the leagues have recently collaborated on the event name and announced the six women’s matchups that are a part of this impactful partnership.

The Pac-12/SWAC Legacy Series name was born out of this summer’s Pac-12 ImPACt experience in Selma and Montgomery, Ala., in which conference student-athletes journeyed to the center of the civil rights movement. That trip featured a visit to the Equal Justice Initiative’s Legacy Museum, a Montgomery-based museum which provides a comprehensive history of the United States with a focus on the legacy of slavery.

“We are really excited to see student-athletes coming together to address critically important issues surrounding our nation’s history of racial injustice,” said Bryan Stevenson, the founder and Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative. “Every moment of significant progress on social justice in this country has been energized by students who engage.  We’re excited to see these talented athletes committing themselves to hard work around important topics at this perilous time.”

“The Southwestern Athletic Conference is extremely excited to partner with the Pac-12 on unified messaging and initiatives that will continue to raise the overall awareness related to a wide variety of social justice and anti-racism programming between the two conferences,” said SWAC Commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland. “The educational, professional development, and networking opportunities this partnership will provide our students and student-athletes undoubtedly goes well beyond the game of basketball. We’re looking forward to doing our part to make the initiatives outlined in this strategic plan a success while simultaneously providing a unique user experience that will be truly impactful to all participants involved.”

“The intentions for this partnership extend well beyond the basketball court, and so it was appropriate that our conferences deliberately work together to find the right name and organization to properly reflect that intent,” said Pac-12 Deputy Commissioner Jamie Zaninovich. “Aligning with the Equal Justice Initiative and The Legacy Museum on The Legacy Series perfectly encapsulates what we are seeking to accomplish with our SWAC allyship – to educate and raise awareness for social justice and anti-racism initiatives, and motivate the current and next generation of community leaders to affect positive change.”

The Legacy Series will incorporate an array of educational opportunities for competing teams and student-athletes featuring expert speakers and prominent alumni, community engagement, campus traditions, historic site visits, and book/film discussions.

The dates for the initial 12 men’s and women’s basketball contests are below. Television broadcast details will be announced in the coming weeks.

2022 PAC-12/SWAC LEGACY SERIES MATCHUPS