Dallas Cowboys player Markquese Bell will be recognized as the HBCU Player of the Year at the 2024 Super Bowl Soulful Celebration. This prestigious honor is set to air Saturday, Feb. 10 on CBS at 8 p.m.

“I am humbly grateful for this honor and acknowledgment to be selected for the NFL HBCU Spotlight Player of the Year for the 2023 season,” Bell said during an interview with The Famuan. “It’s humbling to be mentioned in the same sentence as Russell Wilson and Prime Time Deion Sanders who have stood on this platform.”

Elsewhere during the conversation, the safety and linebacker spoke about being a representation of what it means to come from an HBCU. “I do realize God has placed upon me to lead and be an example for many, and for that matter, I have accepted my calling to be intentional in the most positive way that I know as to the lives I affect from those watching me,” he told the newspaper.

Bell played college football at Florida A&M University. He signed with the Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2022 and made the team's initial 53-man roster out of training camp. The Cowboys have a history of star players from HBCUs, including Bob Hayes from FAMU as well and Ed "Too Tall" Jones from Tennessee State University.

The Super Bowl Soulful Celebration, which will be hosted by Cedric the Entertainer and Tichina Arnold, is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. According to its official website, the event “is the only inspirational music event sanctioned by the NFL for Super Bowl weekend. This uplifting concert brings NFL players [and] award-winning musical artists together on one stage for an evening of joy and praise.”

In related news, San Francisco 49ers will face the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII on Sunday, Feb. 11 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. Usher is set to take the halftime show stage as a headliner for the first time.