North Carolina Central under Trei Oliver reached a program pinnacle by winning the Celebration Bowl and HBCU national championship in his third year as coach.
But that was four years ago.
The Eagles have not won the MEAC outright since then, finishing behind Howard and South Carolina State (which hasn’t lost a MEAC regular-season game in two years) the last three seasons.
Though the team did make an FCS postseason appearance in 2023, NC Central has not met the bar set after the 2022 run to No. 1 in HBCU football.
For Oliver, the expectations are to win titles, not just be good anymore.
“The expectations don’t change. It’s about winning championships,” Oliver said at MEAC Media Day to BCSN GameTime. “People tell you that you need to be happy with eight wins and all this stuff. Eight wins isn’t enough.”
“It’s about winning championships. That’s what it’s about at the end of the day. We spend too much time in this thing not to win it,” he said.
Consistency is great. But championships are the goal
North Carolina Central has been one of the MEAC’s more consistent programs in recent seasons, but Oliver said last year’s success still left room for more. He believed the Eagles failed to capitalize on opportunities that could have pushed them back to the top of the conference.
There were one-possession losses to Delaware State and SC State that kept the Eagles from the top of the MEAC standings last year despite another 8-win campaign.
“I thought we had a good team. We’ve always had a good team, but I think we kind of lost focus in certain areas,” Oliver said of last year’s group.
He said that starts with him.
Stronger leadership will make the difference
“I wasn’t pleased with our leadership, and that starts at the top with me,” Oliver said.
Oliver also pointed to the need for stronger leadership from veteran players during difficult stretches. He said younger players must be willing to follow the example of those with more experience when adversity hits.
“At times, we could’ve used a little bit more leadership. Sometimes when you’re facing adversity, you’ve got to lean on some of those older guys and some of those experienced guys. The young guys have got to listen. You’ve got to be willing to be led,” he said.
The Eagles, who will enter the season with expectations again among the MEAC’s top contenders, are chasing a return to Atlanta for the Celebration Bowl. Oliver said that goal remains the program’s focus.
“We’re going to work our butts off because we’ve got to get back to Atlanta,” he said.
