African-American billionaire music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs has pledged a donation of $1 million to Jackson State University.
The donation will be presented in the form of a substantial check amounting to £794,000 ($1 million) in support of the university’s football program.
The presentation is scheduled to take place in Atlanta during the NCAA opening weekend of college football, coinciding with the game between Jackson State University and South Carolina State.
“We’ll have a special guest at this game that’s going to make a special contribution,” MEAC/SWAC Challenge Executive Director John Grant said. “[Diddy] will be on-site at this year’s Cricket MEAC/SWAC Challenge to present that £794,000 ($1 million) check to Jackson State football.”
“He will be there … will be there to enjoy the game,” he added. “He will be speaking with the team before, and you may see him run out with the team as an honorary captain for this year’s kickoff.”
During the 2022 BET Awards, Combs, 53, made a commitment to donate £794,000 ($1 million) to both Howard University, his alma mater, and Jackson State University. The announcement was made as he received the Lifetime Achievement Award during the event.
In his acceptance speech, Diddy stated: “Before I leave, I want to donate £794 ($1m) to Howard University.” He continued: “Also, I’m going to drop another million dollars on Deion Sanders and Jackson State because we should play for us.”
Diddy’s university journey commenced at Howard University, although he departed during his sophomore year to pursue an internship at Uptown Records. Subsequently, he was bestowed an honorary doctorate in 2014.
Notably, Diddy’s commitment to Jackson State University was initially made while NFL legend Deion Sanders held the position of head coach for the football program.
Sanders, a Hall of Fame cornerback, led Jackson State’s football team from 2020 to 2022.
Although there were expectations that Combs might delay fulfilling his promise following Sanders’ departure from the university, he has indeed honored his commitment. This holds true even as Sanders transitions to a role with the Colorado Buffaloes within the Pac-12 Conference.
Confirmation of Diddy’s contributions to Jackson State University was officially provided by Dr. Elayne Hayes-Anthony, the president of the university.
The announcement took place during a monthly meeting of the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning board of trustees on June 15.
