EAST GREENSBORO – North Carolina A&T Athletics mourns the loss of former Aggies football coach Maurice "Mo" Forte. 

Forte coached the Aggies from 1982-87. In 1986, Forte led the Aggies to the school's first-ever outright Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) football title. He also led the school to its first-ever postseason appearance in NCAA Division I-FCS/AA football. The Aggies went 9-3 overall and 4-1 in the MEAC in 1986. 

Among the players, he coached at N.C. A&T was record-setting quarterback and N.C. A&T Sports Hall of Famer Alan Hooker. He coached other legendary players, including MEAC Hall of Fame linebacker Demetrius Harrison, former two-time defensive player of the year Akinyele Igunmuyiwa (formerly known as Ernest Riddick) and record-breaking punt returner and wide receiver Herbert Harbinson.

Forte started his collegiate coaching career in 1970 at the University of Minnesota as an assistant coach, where he coached running backs. He also served as an assistant at Duke, Michigan State and Arizona State before becoming the head coach at N.C. A&T. 

Known for his wide-open offense, Forte used Hooker and Harbison to break numerous Aggies passing records. Many of those records still stood well into the next millennium. 

After leaving N.C. A&T, Forte spent seven seasons as an assistant coach for the NFL's Denver Broncos starting in 1988. He also spent two seasons with the Detroit Lions before becoming the Norfolk State head coach for four seasons starting in 1999. In 2004, he accepted the head coaching job at Arkansas-Pine Bluff. 

Forte was 25-39-1 in six seasons at N.C. A&T. In his head coaching career, he was 57-90-1.