TIFTON — The overhead lights of Gressette Gymnasium glowed Saturday afternoon. The smell of fresh popcorn wafted in from the concession stand. Colored lights of scoreboards flashed numbers on each end, one declaring Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College as the home of the Stallions, the other as the home of the Fillies.

Basketball was happening. For the first time since 2008, ABAC had a team in uniform, the Stallions playing against NewRock Prep of Covington.

A horn sounded. The national anthem played and Chris Beckham began announcing names. First were the Wolverines of NewRock.

“And now, the starting lineup for your ABAC Stallions,” announced Beckham as fans applauded. “At guard, at six-feet from Loganville, number zero, Xavier Boyd.”

Boyd’s name was followed by four others, Matthew Mairena, Chris Foster, Nate Mobley and Antwann Brown, the first five to play hoops for ABAC in nearly two decades.

“You’re watching the start of history,” said ABAC athletic director Chuck Wimberly. “… That’s the beauty of it. I couldn’t ask for it to be any better.”

Basketball was once a constant at ABAC, the men’s program dating back to its days as an A&M school a century ago. But basketball was shuttered in mid-2008, its budget cut made easier by the prior departure of both team’s head coaches.

Nearly two years went into basketball’s restart. Wimberly was hired in November 2022 as athletic director, starting the job on Jan. 1, 2023.

From the start, his goals were to transform ABAC from a two-year athletics program to a four-year, and to add more sports. On May 16, 2023, the college announced it would become a member of the (four-year) NAIA for the 2024-25 athletics year, and that women’s and men’s basketball would return that season.

Soccer and cross country have already made their NAIA debuts for 2024-25. Basketball was the next piece of that puzzle.

“You work hard for something, to see it all transpire, that’s the ticket,” Wimberly said as he watched the Stallions continue a hot streak at the start of the second half.

Wimberly not only serves as AD, but is coaching the Fillies basketball team. They’ll make their debut Saturday, playing a home doubleheader with the Stallions against Community Christian College. The women’s game will tip at 1 p.m.

The Fillies will be playing their first season as a four-year school. The campus last had men’s four-year games in 1933, when they were known as the Georgia State College for Men Rams. The state underwent a major overhaul of its colleges that year and the school in Tifton became the two-year Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College.

Against NewRock Prep, Mobley helped the Stallions corral the opening tip.  Head coach Calvin Sinkfield’s Stallions, still growing as a team after only a few months together, had to dig out of a double-digit hole early in the first half, but exploded after that to an easy win. Final score was 92-74.

When the women play Saturday, there will be several familiar names. Tift County High alumni Faith Hillmon and Shakiria “Sis” Chaney are on the roster. Chaney was a 1,000-point scorer for the Lady Devils.

Wimberly was in constant motion on the sidelines for the men’s opener. Watching the game, talking to those in attendance, talking to media, throwing ABAC basketball T-shirts into the crowd.

Both Stallions and Fillies will be moving, too.

After Community Christian, both will head to Pensacola, Florida, at the start of November for a tournament. From Nov. 9-16, there will be three home games, against Beacon College, Middle Georgia State and Point University. Back when both were junior colleges, Middle Georgia and ABAC had a heated rivalry.

The college regular season stretches to late February. After, ABAC will participate in its first ever Southern States Athletic Conference tournaments, with a chance to advance to nationals.