Examining North Carolina Central and North Carolina A&T ahead of their Week 5 game
Stopped by @NCCU_Football to see if @CoachTOliver was going to start @_walkerharris_ at quarterback against @NCATFootball this Saturday. @MEACSports @HBCUGameday @TheYardHBCU @DraftHBCU @WNCN pic.twitter.com/3sCbwgvYhs
— Chris Clark (@ChrisClark_) September 20, 2024
Kickoff: Saturday, September 21, 2024 - 7 p.m. ET
It's STILL the Aggie-Eagle Classic...
The game may be on campus this year (it's a home game for North Carolina Central this season), but the Aggie-Eagle Classic has been a staple for the tar heel state since 1924.
This year's edition of the game sees two schools where the season trajectories of both programs seem to be going on divergent paths. North Carolina Central University has been at or near the top of the HBCU football mountain top for the better part of 5 years now.
North Carolina A&T is a program looking to get back to those lofty heights after a period of decline. The rivalry that the Aggie-Eagle Classic represents would have you throw those norms out of the window.
You'd be hard-pressed to match the intensity of this game anywhere in the HBCU football ecosystem.
Which Walker Harris will North Carolina Central Fans See? Will Taylor stay on a tear?
The Eagles got great news this week with the return of Walker Harris at QB. When he's on his game, he's proven to be lethal in offensive coordinator Matt Leone's intricate passing offense.
He's not the dual threat that former NCCU QB Davius Richard was, but his ability to accurately put the ball on the numbers is what makes North Carolina Central's offense hard to deal with.
Add in the rushing prowess of RB J'mari Taylor and the Eagles have one of the better 1-2 punches in HBCU FCS football. Taylor's early season performances have been remarkable, accounting for 4 touchdowns in the first 3 games and close to 300 yards rushing from scrimmage.
Then, of course, you have arguably the best coach on the HBCU football landscape head coach Trei Oliver prowling the sidelines.
North Carolina A&T looking for answers on Offense...Run game shows promise
The Aggies didn't have the smoothest of starts to their Coastal Athletic Association conference opener, losing at home to the University of Delaware 42-13.
North Carolina A&T has shown flashes of the growth that head coach Vincent Brown has been looking for throughout this program rebuild, but the Blue Hens really stifled A&T's offensive efforts for the majority of their match-up last week.
The Aggies gained only 264 yards of total offense against one of the better defensive units in the CAA. They'll need to turn that production around as they enter the hostile confines of O'Kelly-Riddick Stadium with hopes of pulling out a win.
Sophomore QB Kevin White and RB Wesley Graves will need to boost their offensive effectiveness in order to control the offensive tempo of the game enough to keep the Central offense off of the field.
If they can get the production from the rushing attack that fans have seen in short spurts during the early portion of the season, they will be able to make the clockwork in their favor and limit Eagle offensive opportunities.
The North Carolina Central/North Carolina A&T rivalry has everything you want if you're a fan of regional rivalries that engage everyone who's a part of it. You can't take anything for granted, regardless of how the respective teams look on paper.
While that may be the case, it's going to take North Carolina A&T channeling some of that rivalry magic to overcome some serious offensive deficiencies when they take the field on Saturday.
If the Aggie offense can indeed make some headway in controlling the ball, this game will be a bit closer than folks think. If not? Well, this edition of the Aggie-Eagle Classic could get dicey for the visitors from Greensboro.
Prediction: North Carolina Central 28 - North Carolina A&T - 14
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