ORANGEBURG, S.C. – The No. 19/21 North Carolina Central University football team will hit the road for a nationally televised game on Thursday, heading to Oliver C. Dawson Stadium to take on the Bulldogs of South Carolina State.
Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m., and the game will air live on ESPN2.
Series History: This will be the 29th meeting between the Bulldogs of South Carolina State and the Eagles of North Carolina Central on the gridiron. The Eagles lead the all-time series 15-13 and will be making their 14th trip to Orangeburg to face the Bulldogs; they are 4-9 in games played at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium. N.C. Central last won in Orangeburg on Nov. 24, 2018 (21-17).
Last Time Out: The Eagles (6-2, 2-0 MEAC) won their fifth straight game this past Saturday, celebrating Homecoming with a 16-7 victory over Morgan State. Running back J'Mari Taylor led the Eagles with a career-high 196 rushing yards and a touchdown, while N.C. Central's defense held Morgan State to 204 yards of total offense.
The Bulldogs (5-2, 1-0 MEAC) are on a four-game winning streak of their own after a 69-35 Homecoming win over Delaware State this past Saturday. Quarterback Eric Phoenix threw for 341 yards and four touchdowns, while receivers Caden High (132) and Einaj Carter (114) both had 100-yard receiving games. Running back Deondra Duehart added a pair of rushing touchdowns.
Eagles on Halloween: The Eagles will play their 13th game all-time on Halloween on Thursday night; they are 9-4 in those games. NCCU's last game on Halloween was in 2015, when they defeated Norfolk State 24-16 at home. The Eagles have won their last three games that have fallen on Halloween. They are also 3-2 in road games on Halloween.
Made for Thursday Nights: The Eagles have played in eight Thursday night games and hold a 5-3 record in those contests. N.C. Central is 5-3 at home in Thursday night games, and 1-1 on the road. This game will mark the fourth time the Eagles and Bulldogs have squared off on a Thursday; N.C. Central is 2-1 in those games (including last season's 62-28 win in Durham).
Taylor Made: N.C. Central has been known for producing some great running backs, and J'Mari Taylor is cut from the same fabric as the others. Taylor has rushed for 790 yards and 10 touchdowns while averaging 98.8 rushing yards per game. He has 21 receptions for 186 yards and two touchdowns. He has scored at least one touchdown running the ball in every game he has played in this season. Taylor leads the team and the MEAC in scoring with 72 points, and he is currently 12th in NCAA FCS rushing touchdowns (10), 13th in scoring (9.0) and ninth in total touchdowns (12).
Quick on the Uptake: In the games against North Carolina A&T and Norfolk State, Markell Quick had a combined nine receptions for 243 yards and three touchdowns. Over that same span, he recorded two catches of 60 yards or more. In the game against North Carolina A&T, Quick had four catches for 119 yards and a touchdown. Against Norfolk State, he had five catches for 124 yards and two touchdowns. It marked his first 100-yard receiving game, and the first multi-touchdown game of his career. In the Eagles' win over Morgan State, Quick five passes for 96 yards and a touchdown.
No-Fly Zone: N.C. Central's secondary has recorded nine interceptions with one returned for a touchdown, 23 pass breakups and 22 quarterback hurries going into the South Carolina State game. They have placed continued pressure on the quarterbacks. The Eagles have also recorded 21 sacks and 63 tackles for a loss of 68 yards. The Eagles defense is ranked second in the NCAA in team tackles for loss (7.9), fifth in defensive touchdowns (3) and seventh in third-down conversion defense.
Red Zone Success: This season, the Eagles have made 33 trips into the red zone and have come away with points 29 times for an 88% conversion rate. Twenty-five of those red-zone trips have resulted in touchdowns, an 76% conversion rate.
The Coaches: Trei Oliver (N.C. Central, 1998) is in his fifth season as a college head coach. With 24 years of college coaching experience that includes five conference championships and three Black college football national titles, Oliver returned to his alma mater as North Carolina Central University's 24th head football coach in December 2018. A native of Yorktown, Va., Oliver earned all-conference and all-region honors as a defensive back and punter during his four-year playing career at NCCU from 1994-97. The 1998 graduate later returned to NCCU as an assistant coach from 2003-06, helping the Eagles to back-to-back Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) championships in 2005 and 2006.
Chennis Berry was named head football coach at South Carolina State University on Dec. 16, 2023. The former Benedict College (Columbia, S.C.) head coach succeeded the iconic coach Oliver "Buddy" Pough, the winningest coach in Bulldog football history who retired as head football coach at the end of the 2023 season after 22 seasons at the helm and 151 wins.
NCCU the MEAC Favorite: The 2022 MEAC champion and HBCU national champion Eagles were selected as the preseason favorite to win the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) for the second straight season.
Four Eagles made the preseason first team: Trevon Humphrey (OL), Jaden Taylor (DL), Kole Jones (DB) and Juan Velarde (P/K). Four more Eagles were on the second team list: J'Mari Taylor (RB), Joaquin Davis (WR), Ja'Quan Sprinkle (OL), and Max U'Ren (LB).
Nationally, NCCU is ranked 20th in the Stats Perform Top 25 poll and tied for 21st in the AFCA poll..
Youth Movement: Underclassmen have played a significant role with the Eagles during the first eight games this season, and that shows just how much youth is on this team. There are 56 underclassmen on the roster (freshman or sophomore), and they continue to play snaps for the Eagles. Eight games into the season, 45 of the 56 underclassmen have seen playing time.
A North Carolina State of Mind: NCCU's emphasis on recruiting talent in North Carolina is demonstrated with 63 Eagles calling the Tar Heel state their home out of the 110 student-athletes on the team's season-opening roster (63%).
For more information on NCCU Athletics, visit NCCUEaglePride.com, or download the NCCU Eagles Athletics app.