Funding Challenges Force Relocation of YES HBCU Football Classic to Kentucky
The matchup between Kentucky State and Morehouse College will no longer take place in Nassau, marking the second consecutive season an international game involving Kentucky State has been relocated back to the United States.
Morehouse College and Kentucky State jointly announced that their Nov. 7 contest will instead be played at Alumni Stadium in Frankfort, Ky., with kickoff remaining scheduled for 1 p.m. ET. Young Entrepreneurz Solutions called off the YES HBCU Football Classic at Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium due to funding challenges, according to the schools.
The game had been heavily promoted as the first football trip to the Bahamas for both programs. Instead, the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opponents will close their regular season in Frankfort. The sudden shift comes less than two weeks before kickoff, creating significant travel questions for supporters who had booked trips.
Ticketing and Travel Fallout for Fans
Supporters seeking information regarding refunds for tickets or travel bundles bought through the YES HBCU Football Classic have been instructed to contact Young Entrepreneurz Solutions. Purchases made through YES or external travel agencies will not be refunded by Morehouse College or Kentucky State. Supporters who independently booked airfare, hotels, or other arrangements must contact those companies directly.
The announcement omitted details regarding the exact monetary shortfall and the quantity of travel packages that had been purchased. It also did not explain which financial commitments failed to materialize. As recently as this past weekend, the event remained firmly on conference schedules. The SIAC’s recap of Kentucky State’s Oct. 24 victory over Savannah State still listed Nassau as the Thorobreds’ next destination.
BREAKING: Morehouse vs. Kentucky State moves back to KSU after YES cancels the YES HBCU Bahamas Classic that was set for Nov. 7.
The event was supposed to represent the second consecutive Caribbean football showcase produced by Young Entrepreneurz Solutions, which staged an HBCU football event in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, in November 2025.
Familiar Logistics Hurdle for Kentucky State
For Kentucky State, the cancellation brings an unusual sense of déjà vu. Plans were originally made for the Thorobreds to visit Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, during October 2025 to play Franklin Pierce in the Caribbean HBCU College Football Puerto Rico Bowl. That game never reached Puerto Rico.
Citing worries concerning field conditions and player protection, Kentucky State and Franklin Pierce shifted the game to Rindge, N.H., just days prior to the start. Franklin Pierce hosted that game on Oct. 17, with Kentucky State winning 17-14. While available reporting does not connect Young Entrepreneurz Solutions to the 2025 Puerto Rico Bowl, the result remains striking. Preparations for an overseas football trip were underway for Kentucky State for the second consecutive year, only for the contest to be shifted back to the mainland right before kickoff.
In April, Kentucky State athletic director Grant Stepp called the Bahamas trip a chance for student-athletes to represent the university on a global stage. Morehouse later described the game as the first international football game in program history. Moving two college teams overseas requires extensive funding for travel, lodging, facilities, event operations, and other expenses. For Kentucky State and Morehouse College, the football game remains. It just won’t be in the Bahamas.
