North Carolina Central is coming into the 2024 season looking to take the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship back.
During Tuesday’s Football Media Day event, the conference’s sports information directors and coaches think the Eagles will do just that, naming them the preseason favorite to earn a trip to Atlanta and the Cricket Celebration Bowl.
Howard University, last season’s MEAC champions, were picked the finish second. Morgan State was selected third, followed by South Carolina State (fourth), Norfolk State (fifth) and Delaware State (sixth).
The Bison lead the conference’s all-preseason teams with running back Jarett Hunter and defensive back Kenny Gallop Jr. winning offensive and defensive players of the year respectively. South Carolina State led the number of all-conferences picks with 7, while the Bison placed 6 players.
The Eagles finished 2023 with a 9-3 record (4-1 MEAC) but finished second to the Bison as Howard had the head-to-head tiebreaking advantage. Central accepted an at-large bid to the FCS playoffs, where they lost to Richmond 49-27.
The Eagles placed four players on the conference’s preseason first-team, led by offensive lineman Trevon Humphrey, defensive lineman Jaden Taylor, defensive back Kole Jones and punter Juan Velarde.
The Bison (6-6 overall, 4-1 MEAC) won their first MEAC crown since 1993 with a 50-20 win over NCCU last Nov. 11. Howard went on to lose a tough 30-26 decision to SWAC champion Florida A&M in the Celebration Bowl.
Joining Hunter and Gallop on the MEAC all-preseason first team are running back Eden James, receiver Kasey Hawthorne, offensive lineman Darius Fox, defensive lineman Jamel Stewart and placekicker Dylan West.
Morgan State finished 4-6 in 2023, 3-2 overall in conference play. The Bears started off 2023 with a win over Richmond and nearly beat FBS opponent Akron but ran into trouble when homecoming was cancelled following a campus altercation and lost a few other games by one possession.
The Bears placed offensive lineman Treyvon Branch, defensive lineman Elijah Williams, linebacker Erick Hunter and return specialist Keith Jenkins Jr. on the conference’s first team.
South Carolina State, now led by former Benedict coach Chennis Berry, finished 5-6 overall, 3-2 in conference 2023, Buddy Pough’s last season leading the team. Five Bulldogs are on the MEAC first-team preseason offense, – receiver Justin Smith-Brown, tight end Keishawn Toney and linemen Eric Brown Jr., Nick Taiste and Cam Johnson.
Norfolk State went 2-9 (1-4) in 2023, losing a few close decisions along the way. Dawson Odums returns first-team all-preseason pick Otto Kuhns at quarterback, as well as linebacker A.J. Richardson, defensive lineman Keshawn Lynch and defensive back Terron Mallory.
Delaware State finished 2023 1-10, 0-5 overall in conference play and have not recorded a winning season since 2012. The Hornets begin the 2024 season with a Week 0 trip to Hawaii to play the Rainbow Warriors Sat. Aug. 24, in a game that will be televised by CBS.
