PHOTO | NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIVERSITY

The North Carolina A&T Blue and Gold Marching Machine will play the 5th Quarter along with North Carolina Central’s Sound Machine Sept. 1 at the conclusion of the Duke’s Mayo Classic football game between the Aggies and Eagles.

The Duke’s Mayo Classic is embracing HBCU culture.

The 100th anniversary of the Aggie-Eagle Classic between in-state rivals North Carolina A&T and North Carolina Central will include HBCU staples from a college fair to a postgame band competition from Thursday to Saturday.

The focal point is the football game between the Aggies and Eagles, which kicks off Sept. 1 at 7:30 p.m. at Bank of America Stadium. Nearly 35,000 tickets in the 38,000-seat lower bowl have been sold, according to a source involved in marketing the game.

One of those ticketbuyers is former Carolina Panthers defensive end Darryl Johnson, an A&T alumnus whose lasting memory from the rivalry was trash-talking NCCU star lineman Nick Leverett, who plays for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“It meant a lot,” said Johnson, who was cut by the Panthers Tuesday. “It’s close to my heart to play in that game. I still want to play in that game. If they asked me to play in it again tomorrow, I’m going.”

Johnson is ineligible, but there's plenty to do leading up to and after kickoff. Here’s the lineup:

Sept. 1
• Belk’s Aggie-Eagle takeover (5-7 p.m. SouthPark Mall): The SouthPark Belk store will transform into a spot for free food, drinks and activities. Music and beauty demonstrations are part of the lineup. To RSVP your place, go to : https://events.belk.com/belkeventhub.

Sept. 2
• Thurgood Marshall College Fund College and Career Fair (10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Charlotte Convention Center): Representatives from dozens of colleges and businesses will be on hand to answer questions on academics and careers. To register your intentions, go to: www.eventbrite.com/e/dukes-mayo-classic-college-fair-tickets-355188828347.

• Step show (6:30-10 p.m., Convention Center): Greek-letter sororities and fraternities square off for bragging rights and $10,000 in cash.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. General admission tickets are $30. To buy tickets, go to: www.eventbrite.com/e/power-98-presents-dukes-mayo-classic-aggie-eagle-stepshow-tickets-350008844877.

Sept. 3
• Mad Miles HBCU Run (10 a.m., Camp North End): A celebration of HBCU history and culture starts at Camp North End as part of Around the Crown 10K expo and open to people of all fitness, running or walking ability. Free.

• “More Than Just a Game: 100 Years of the Aggie-Eagle Football Rivalry” (11 a.m. at Brooklyn collective): Presentation by Charles Johnson of NCCU and Arwin Smallwood of A&T on the century-old gridiron history between North Carolina’s largest historically Black universities.

• FanFest (12-6 p.m., Romare Bearden Park). Live music, food trucks, tailgating and vendors to get fans revved up for the game at nearby Bank of America Stadium.

• 5th Quarter (Bank of America Stadium): After the final whistle, stick around for the evening’s final competition as the A&T Blue and Gold Marching Machine and NCCU's Sound Machine square off in a longstanding HBCU tradition.

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