Jackson State began the 2023 college basketball season on Monday. It has already played two games, where most teams have played just one.
The Tigers have an absurdly busy schedule for the month of November and will be entirely on the road. They will not return home to Mississippi until January 6. That is more than two months away!
It raises the legitimate question of schooling and how the athletes will have time to do class and study.
Jackson State, of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, started the year with a 17-point loss to Memphis on Nov. 6. That was the first of eight games this month.
Here is how the schedule breaks down for November:
- Jackson to Memphis: 197 miles
- Monday, Nov. 6 — at University of Memphis
- Memphis to San Diego: 1,558 miles
- Wednesday, Nov. 8 — at University of San Diego
- San Diego to Riverside: 88 miles
- Friday, Nov. 10 — at California Baptist University
- Riverside to Los Angeles: 50 miles
- Tuesday, Nov. 14 — at Loyola Marymount University
- Los Angeles to Tulsa: 1,263 miles
- Thursday, Nov. 16 — at University of Tulsa
- Tulsa to Columbia: 278 miles
- Sunday, Nov. 19 — at University of Missouri
- Columbia to Washington D.C.: 821 miles
- Saturday, Nov. 25 — at Georgetown University
- Washington D.C. to Jonesboro: 779 miles
- Tuesday, Nov. 28 — at Arkansas State University
The Tigers will travel 5,034 miles during the month of November. They will play eight games in 22 days.
And then, once November wraps, Jackson State will stay on the road for another full month. Fortunately for the athletes, the games are a little bit more spaced out.
- Dec. 9 — at Houston
- Dec. 16 — vs. Howard in Las Vegas
- Dec. 17 — vs. North Carolina A&T in Las Vegas
- Dec. 20 — at Gonzaga
- Dec. 29 — at Northwestern
Shortly after the new year, the Tigers will play their first regular season home college basketball game of the year against Alcorn State. What a grind!