Stats Perform is bringing a greater spotlight to athletes, students and stories at Historically Black Colleges and Universities through a partnership with Urban Edge Network. Included in the 2024 college football season are both HBCU FCS Player and Team of the Week awards and a season-ending HBCU FCS National Player of the Year Award, each presented by HBCU+.
In 1979, head coach Clarence Thomas led the Morgan State Bears football team to a 9-2 season – only the third nine-win campaign in the program’s first 59 years of existence.
It hasn’t happened since then.
In the following 44 years, Morgan State has managed to reach seven wins only twice, and there’s been only four winning seasons in that time.
The most-recent winning season occurred in 2014 when the Bears finished with a 7-6 record. It was Lee Hull’s first season as head coach as they tied for the MEAC title and advanced to the FCS playoffs.
That team was led by an offense that averaged 372 total yards and 27.8 points per game. The defense was not great, but made timely plays that helped propel the team to success.
The 2024 season could see the Bears return to the MEAC success they enjoyed in 2014. However, if that happens, it will be because the defense leads them to prominence.
Coach Damon Wilson knows that after back-to-back four-win seasons, there are higher expectations. Instead of downplaying them, he has chosen to lean into them.
“I think you just accept it,” Wilson said at the MEAC’s football media day. “You expect us to play defense, you expect us to be a certain way on the field. Now we have a responsibility to live up to it.”
It’s been hard for the Bears to remain under the radar with the preseason expectations coming off the heels of a 2023 season in which they had the No. 1-ranked defense in the conference. They allowed 21.4 points per game overall and just 18.4 on average in conference while going 3-2. Out of conference, the Bears was named the FCS national team of the week following a season-opening upset at Richmond.
The stingy defensive unit returns eight starters, including senior defensive lineman Elijah Williams and senior linebacker Erick Hunter – both 2023 All-MEAC first-team selections who this preseason were named to the Stats Perform All-America squad. They also were named to the HBCU+ Preseason Player of the Year watch list.
The 6-foot-3, 270-pound Williams followed up his breakout 2022 campaign of 60 tackles, 19 tackles for loss and nine sacks with 50 tackles, 11 TFLs, seven sacks and two forced fumbles in only nine contests. He provides the Bears with a versatile chess piece that can be put on the edge or moved to the interior.
While Williams is the unquestioned leader on the front line, it also features returnees in fellow seniors Melteon Davis and Nana Asante, who started all 10 games last season. Their combination of size and athleticism have been difficult for even the best offensive lines to handle. In fact, last season, they helped limit the top two teams in the MEAC, Howard and North Carolina Central, to a combined 30 points.
Hunter is the engine that goes perfectly in the middle of the Morgan State defense. Last season, the 2023 Buck Buchanan Award finalist continued to show his versatility as a linebacker, recording a second straight season with 70+ tackles while also sacking the quarterback three times, intercepting two passes and forcing two fumbles. His athleticism to rush the passer, fill running lanes and cover is what makes him such a special player.
Expect his listed frame (6-4, 210) to carry a little more weight this season as his defensive responsibility increases. He will likely be joined by junior Arturo Mattocks and a group of athletic linebackers who operate as the second-level mainstays in a Morgan State defense with a 4-2-5 base alignment. They will hope to make up for the loss of Lawrence Richardson, a 2023 All-MEAC second-team selection.
The secondary has some holes to fill after saying goodbye to All-MEAC first-team selections Jordan Toles and Jae’Veyon Morton. The Bears still have safety Carlvainsky Decius and cornerback Ja’son Prevard returning to command expanded roles. Prevard has the type of size (6-3, 185) and production (eight passes defended last season) to make NFL teams take notice; Decius is a major contributor as a tackler.
As good as the Morgan State defense was in 2023, the unit surely knows it can be better. Their opponents’ first-drive or late-game scores were costly when the Bears lost close games. CAA Football tri-champ Albany scored twice in overtime to claim a victory. North Carolina Central kicked a field goal with less than two minutes remaining to make it a two-score game. Howard, the MEAC champ, had an opening touchdown drive that went 81 yards in 11 plays.
“Worry about the little things,” Williams said on how the defense can take the next step in 2024. “Really keying in on how to think and focus when you’re fatigued. A lot of times we let up late scores in the games. Really just coming with that mentality.”
To Wilson, the Road to Atlanta – the MEAC champion will advance to play the SWAC champion in the Celebration Bowl on Dec. 14 – means the Bears can’t skip steps in the process.
“We’re gonna take it one day at a time, one game at a time and continue to get better,” he said, “but the overall goal is to be in Atlanta in December.”
Regardless of Morgan State’s offensive improvements this season, Wilson’s goal will largely depend on the defensive side of the ball.
The Bears believe they are ready for the challenge.
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