The FCS football season is fast approaching, so we’re going inside each conference race. With Howard and North Carolina Central leading the way, here’s our 2024 MEAC football preview.
There’s potential for an outstanding title race in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football this season.
Don’t necessarily let the order of the league’s preseason poll fool you.
Some notables tucked into the poll of the smallest FCS conference (six teams):
- Defending champion Howard wasn’t No. 1 in the MEAC preseason poll.
- South Carolina State, whose 18 conference titles are three times as many as any current MEAC member, was in the second tier at No. 4.
- Norfolk State, picked fifth after winning just one conference game last season, has the most players on the All-MEAC preseason team.
2024 MEAC Football Preview
Predicted Order of Finish
*-Celebration Bowl Qualifier
1. *Howard (2023 Record: 6-6, 4-1) – The defending champion Bison boast the MEAC’s two preseason players of the year in running back Jarett Hunter and safety Kenny Gallop Jr. The new starting quarterback – 2023 backup Ja’Shawn Scroggins and North Carolina A&T transfer Zachary Yeager are part of the competition – has additional offensive weapons in leading rusher Eden James (627 yards – one more than Hunter) and receiver Kasey Hawthorne (38 receptions, 535 yards, five touchdowns). Coach Larry Scott’s squad had 12 All-MEAC preseason selections, including seven on the first team.
2. North Carolina Central (9-3, 4-1) – Last season, NCCU was the second MEAC program to earn an FCS at-large playoff bid since the conference relinquished its automatic bid in 2015 due to the Celebration Bowl commitment. Lefty QB Walker Harris faces the difficult assignment of replacing four-year starter and two-time MEAC offensive player of the year Davius Richards. He’ll distribute the ball to RB J’Mari Taylor (15 TDs the last two seasons) and wide receiver Joaquin Davis. Defensive tackle Jaden Taylor (143 tackles, 19 tackles for loss in career) is a headliner, backed by middle linebacker Max U’Ren and defensive back Kole Jones.
(NCCU enters season just outside Stats Perform FCS Preseason Top 25 Poll)
3. Morgan State (4-6, 3-2) – Eight of the Morgan State’s 10 games were decided by seven or fewer points, including a season-ending win at Richmond (which ended NCCU’s season). The Bears’ top-ranked MEAC defense will keep roaring behind defensive end Elijah Williams (MEAC-high seven sacks) and linebacker Erick Hunter, plus the return of D-lineman Nana Asante and Carlvainsky Decius and Ja’son Prevard in the secondary. Quarterback Tahj Smith comes back seasoned after starting the final four games.
4. South Carolina State (5-6, 3-2) – Coach Buddy Pough retired after 22 seasons and a 151-93 record with the Bulldogs, with the program turned over to Chennis Berry, a long-time HBCU coach who went 27-7 at Benedict in the last three seasons. Potential success would start up front, as All-America offensive linemen Nick Taiste, Cam Johnson and Eric Brown Jr. and tight end Keshawn Toney were named to the All-MEAC preseason first team. That’s welcome news for top-returning rusher Josh Shaw. As a redshirt junior, LB Aaron Smith led the defense in tackles (63), TFLs (11) and sacks (five).
5. Norfolk State (3-8, 1-4) – It probably turned some heads that Norfolk State landed the most All-MEAC preseason selections with 13. Four were first-teamers: QB Otto Kuhns (who was later announced to be suspended for the first four games due to an NCAA ruling), D-lineman Keshawn Lynch (41 tackles), LB AJ Richardson (69 tackles, 11 TFLs as a freshman) and cornerback Terron Mallory (four interceptions). A stout O-line will open running room for Kevon King, who scored seven TDs from scrimmage in the final four games.
6. Delaware State (1-10, 0-5) – The Hornets beat only a sub-FCS program in coach Lee Hull’s first season, so they’re seeking significant progress this year. Quarterback Marqui Adams had an encouraging season as a redshirt freshman, accounting for 1,730 yards of total offense and 10 TDs. He can target his favorite receivers again in TE EJ Core and WR NyGhee Lolley. D-lineman Darren Cook and defensive back Eric Montes will try to lift a unit that ranked last in the MEAC.
How the Conference Predicted the Race
Five Players to Know
Walker Harris, QB, North Carolina Central – Passed for 263 yards and five touchdowns in a non-conference start against Mississippi Valley State last year. He’s yet to throw an interception in 97 career attempts.
Kenny Gallop Jr., DB, Howard (Buck Buchanan Award and HBCU+ FCS National Player of the Year Award preseason nominee) – The MEAC’s 2023 defensive player of the year has 242 tackles and three takeaways in 31 career games.
Erick Hunter, LB, Morgan State (Buck Buchanan Award and HBCU+ FCS National Player of the Year Award preseason nominee) – Led the MEAC in tackles per game (7.5), posting a season-high 11 stops against three different postseason qualifiers.
Jarett Hunter, RB, Howard (Walter Payton Award and HBCU+ FCS National Player of the Year Award preseason nominee) – Named the MEAC’s 2024 preseason offensive player of the year, Hunter has posted three straight seasons over 600 rushing yards and 200 receiving yards
Nick Taiste, OL, South Carolina State (HBCU+ FCS National Player of the Year Award preseason nominee) – Anchored the MEAC’s top-ranked rushing attack a year ago while pushing his streak of consecutive starts to 36.
Five Must-See Matchups
1. Howard at North Carolina Central (Nov. 15) – NCCU (in 2022) and Howard (2023) scored 50 points against the other en route to claiming a Celebration Bowl bid. The Bison are 0-4 in trips to Durham.
2. Howard at Morgan State (Nov. 23)
3. North Carolina Central at South Carolina State (Oct. 31)
4. Norfolk State vs. Florida A&M (Aug. 24 in Atlanta)
5. Morgan State at North Carolina Central (Oct. 26)
Fast Fact
Norfolk State gains a spotlight on ABC in the MEAC-SWAC Challenge (Aug. 24). MEAC teams are 11-6 against the SWAC in the season-opening matchup between FCS HBCU conferences, and 6-2 in the season-ending Celebration Bowl.
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