The 2015 football clash will kick off at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 26 in the Cotton Bowl at Fair Park. Gates open at 3:00 p.m. The Southwest Airlines State Fair Classic is always a vibrant, dramatic contest – between the football teams and the marching bands of Grambling State University of Louisiana and Prairie View A&M University of Texas. The classic showdown began in the 1940s and has been at Fair Park annually since the 1980s. It is considered the largest social event of the year for both schools, attracting some 65,000 fans to Dallas.