GAME: No. 18 North Carolina Central University (NCCU) (1-0, 0-0 MEAC) at North Carolina A&T (0-1, 0-0 CAA)
DATE: September 9, 2023
TIME: 7 p.m.
LOCATION: Truist Stadium
FLOFOOTBALL ANNOUNCERS: Spencer Turkin (play-by-play); Daimeon Banks (analyst)
RADIO ANNOUNCERS: Donal Ware (play-by-play); Al Swann (analyst); Billy Covington
GREENSBORO – The North Carolina A&T Aggies return to action Saturday night in a game that brings about tremendous passion. The North Carolina A&T Aggies and the North Carolina Central University (NCCU) Eagles continue their 101-year-old rivalry at Truist Stadium, with the Aggies leading the all-time series 54-35-5. It will be A&T head coach
Vincent Brown's first-ever Aggie-Eagle. Meanwhile, NCCU head coach Trei Oliver played in the rivalry as an NCCU Eagle and was an A&T assistant coach from 2011-15 before becoming the Eagles head coach in 2019. The Aggies are coming off a 35-6 loss at UAB last Thursday. The Eagles defeated former CIAA rival Winston-Salem State 47-21 in Durham.
The Eagles won last season's game against the Aggies 28-13 in Charlotte as a part of the Duke's Mayo Classic at Bank of America Stadium. The Aggies, however, have won four of the last five games over the Eagles. The last time the two schools played in Greensboro, the Aggies came away with a 37-14 win in 2021.
STORYLINES:
- The connections between the two schools are extensive and historic. Legendary A&T football coach Bill Hayes graduated from NCCU and served as the university's athletics director during his storied career in athletics. Legendary A&T head football coach Rod Broadway coached North Carolina A&T to two HBCU national championships (2015, 2017). He also coached NCCU to two HBCU national championships (2005, 2006).
- NCCU defensive coordinator Courtney Coard served as A&T's defensive coordinator from 2018-21 and started coaching at A&T in 2011 before returning to his alma mater in 2022. NCCU defensive back coach Tony McRae was an all-conference cornerback and kick returner for A&T from 2013-16 before playing in the NFL for several teams.
- NCCU defensive tackle Karfa Kaba transferred from A&T after last season after starting for A&T each of the previous two seasons. Carolina Panthers tackle Ricky Lee III played at NCCU for two seasons before transferring to A&T and starting for the Aggies each of the last two seasons.
- After A&T departed for the Big South three years ago, the two rivals signed an agreement to keep them battling on the gridiron until 2030, including a return trip to Charlotte in 2027 for the Classic.
- The Aggies quarterback situation is still fluid. Redshirt freshman Eli Brickhandler took the opening snap last Thursday, with true freshman Kevin White figuring in the mix. Redshirt sophomore Zachary Yeager still figures into the equation, and Brown also mentioned Alston Hooker at his weekly press conference.
- Yeager threw for 275 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 59 yards on six carries in Charlotte last season versus the Eagles.
- The Aggies running attack looked solid last week. In his A&T debut, Virginia Tech transfer Kenji Christian carried the ball eight times for 45 yards, averaging 5.6 yards per carry. Wesley Graves ran for 58 yards on 16 carries, and Brickhandler carried it 12 times for 36 yards, including a 19-yard run. The Aggies rushed for 147 yards against a team from a Group of Five conference.
- Defensively, graduate BJ Turner, making his A&T debut, made a game-high 14 tackles, including 2 ½ tackles for loss. A transfer out of Charlotte, Turner recorded his first career double-figure tackling game.
- North Carolina A&T's team captains on Thursday night were safety Ty Williams, Jr., center Cesar Minarro, right guard Lawrence Lagrone and linebacker Milach Jacobs.
- Last week, the Aggies threw for only 16 yards, marking the fewest yards they have thrown for since throwing for minus-5 yards against S.C. State on Nov. 22, 2008.
- Unfortunately for A&T, quarterback Jacob Zeno threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns on 38-for-41 passing. The Aggies never got him to the ground on a sack, and the Blazers lost only four yards rushing the entire night.
- A&T did play a disciplined ballgame last Thursday, committing only two penalties for 10 yards. It marked the fewest penalties A&T has committed since committing two in its Celebration Bowl win over Grambling 21-14 in Atlanta on Dec. 16, 2017.
- Six points are the fewest the Aggies have scored in an opener since losing 15-2 to NCCU on Sept. 3, 1988. It also marks the last time the Aggies failed to score a touchdown in an opener.
- The last time the Aggies failed to score a touchdown in a game came on Oct. 16, 2021, in a 14-0 loss at Kennesaw State.
- Three Aggies had career highs in tackles, including Turner's 14. Ty Williams, Jr., had a career-high nine, and linebacker Malich Jacobs had a career-best eight. In addition, David Laney made a career-high five tackles, and AJ Dupree finished with his best career total of five tackles.
- NCCU is coming off a terrific 10-2 season that saw the Eagles win a share of the MEAC title, the HBCU national championship and the 2022 Celebration Bowl. They also finished nationally ranked and entered the 2023 season ranked 19th in the FCS STATS Media and the Coaches' Polls.
- The Eagles legitimized last season by beating two nationally-ranked teams – New Hampshire and Jackson State.
- NCCU returns 12 All-MEAC players from last season, including quarterback Davius Richard, the 2022 MEAC offensive player of the year. Richard is considered one of the best FCS quarterbacks in the nation.
- Richard threw for 200 yards and two touchdowns in the Eagles win over A&T last season. He also rushed for 54 yards and two touchdowns. All-MEAC running back Latrell Collier ran for 72 yards and a touchdown against the Aggies in 2022.
The Opposing Point of View:
"They struggled, but they are going to be an improved team this week. Obviously, they played up. UAB is a Group of Five team. They were a little outmatched, but I'm sure they will get some stuff corrected, and they will be a whole different team this week. Schematically, we have an idea of what their two coordinators like to do offensively and defensively, and we got to see some of the new guys and the new talent they have in there. We'll have to come up with a game plan and execute at a very high level this week. With this being a rivalry game, they're going to come in there jacked up and ready to roll."
Trei Oliver
NCCU head coach
