The Cricket MEAC/SWAC Challenge ended in a thrilling matchup on the field between Florida A&M and Norfolk State and famed actor and R&B singer Tyrese Gibson was one of the attendees.

While Tyrese was present to promote his upcoming film, 1992, which is set during the poignant first night of the 1992 Los Angeles riots, he found himself deeply inspired by the student musicians of Florida A&M's Marching 100 band. In a video he shared, Tyrese spoke of the profound admiration he felt, stating, “They the stars. They in college. They're breaking the generational curses in their family. They are the stars.”

Tyrese’s presence at the MEAC/SWAC Challenge was not an isolated event. The actor has been actively engaging with HBCUs as part of his promotional efforts for 1992. Earlier in the week, Tyrese visited Spelman College, sharing his experience on social media.

“Shout out to all of these very, very special and specifically blessed, freshman and freshmen who just started their first day at Spelman college in Atlanta!!! They had no idea that I was coming to interrupt their first class we talked we live we cried we exchanged and I wanna believe that everybody in this room understand how important it is to show up for 1992,” he said on his X account about his visit

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His enthusiasm for supporting educational opportunities at HBCUs shows in his recent history of philanthropic efforts; in 2015, Tyrese generously donated $50,000 towards a Morehouse College student's tuition, per a report by NewsOne. In an Instagram post at the time, he credited his inspiration for giving back to none other than radio legend and Tuskegee University alumnus Tom Joyner, whose foundation has significantly aided HBCUs over the years.

“Why did I decide to put this young kid from Compton through college?? Because I #dream with my eyes OPEN,” Tyrese said in the Instagram caption announcing his donation.

Lorenzo Murphy, also known as Zo the Motivator, spoke candidly about how he felt about Tyrese's donation towards his education.

“None of this would be possible without God, @tyrese, the support from my family and of course, my relentless hard work. Annually, Morehouse is around 45k-50k and as you can imagine, that is a lot of money. I thank God for placing @tyrese in my life,” he wrote. “It is because of him believing in me and investing in my future, that I am able to receive my education. I am amongst the worlds greatest leaders and I want to thank @tyrese for giving me the opportunity to be pursue my academic and career endeavors at Morehouse College.”

1992 arrives in theaters on August 30th.