Game Notes: NCCU Football at Duke (Aug. 31)

DURHAM, North Carolina  -- Complete Game Notes 
THE GAME
North Carolina Central University "Eagles" vs. Duke University "Blue Devils"

THE KICKOFF
Saturday, August 31, 2013 – Kickoff at 4:00 p.m.

THE SITE
Wallace Wade Stadium (33,941 capacity/Natural Grass) - Durham, N.C.

THE RECORDS
N.C. Central (0-0 overall, 0-0 MEAC); Duke (0-0 overall, 0-0 ACC)

MEDIA COVERAGE
Audio: NCCU Sports Network mobile app (iPhone, iPad, iPod, Android, Kindle Fire HD); "GameCentral" at NCCUEaglePride.com (audio internet stream); Satellite radio: XM 190/Sirius 110. Broadcast starts at 3:30 p.m. (Chris Hooks, play-by-play; Joe Simmons, color analyst; Anthony Sharp, sideline reporter)

Video: ESPN3 (http://es.pn/NCCUvsDUKE) #NCCUvsDUKE

QUICK HITS
• Saturday will be the third meeting between Durham foes NCCU and Duke.
• NCCU's projected starting quarterback Jordan Reid performed well off the bench in last year's game against Duke, earning the starting job the rest of the season and breaking the NCCU single-season record for pass completion percentage (62.3%).
• Both NCCU and Duke are coming off notable seasons, with the Eagles posting their first winning season since 2007 and the Blue Devils playing in their first bowl game since 1994.
• NCCU has three student-athletes from Durham that are expected to suit up against hometown opponent Duke on Saturday: Zachary Giles (Hillside H.S.), Micah Martin (Southern H.S.) and Jeremy Thompson (Southern H.S.).
• NCCU and Duke cross country teams will start Saturday's dual meet inside Wallace Wade Stadium at approximately 3:45 p.m., 15 minutes prior to the kickoff of the football game.

THE SERIES
This will be the third meeting between the Eagles of NCCU and the Blue Devils of Duke University. Duke leads the series 2-0 after a 49-14 win on Sept. 26, 2009 and a 54-17 victory on Sept. 15, 2012, both played inside Wallace Wade Stadium.

NCCU EAGLES NO STRANGERS TO WALLACE WADE STADUIM
Durham neighbors North Carolina Central University and Duke University will meet on the gridiron for just the third time on Saturday inside Wallace Wade Stadium, but the Eagles are no strangers to Duke's home field. NCCU has played football contests at Wallace Wade Stadium on five occasions, boasting a record of 2-3. The Eagles made their first known appearance at Wallace Wade Stadium on Nov. 18, 1972, in a game against rival North Carolina A&T that determined the MEAC championship. NCCU edged the Aggies 9-7. Two weeks later (Dec. 2, 1972), NCCU returned to Wallace Wade Stadium for the first Pelican Bowl against Grambling, in an event that was tagged as the National Black Championship game. The Tigers cruised to a 56-6 victory. On Nov. 23, 1974, the Eagles once again defeated rival North Carolina A&T, this time by a score of 29-18. NCCU faced Duke for the first time inside Wallace Wade Stadium on Sept. 26, 2009, which the Blue Devils won 49-14. Last season on Sept. 15, 2012, Duke beat the visiting Eagles on its home field 54-17.

ABOUT NCCU FOOTBALL
North Carolina Central University enters its third season of full NCAA Division I (FCS) athletic competition as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. The Eagles won back-to-back football conference championships and a Black College National Championship in their final two years in the Division II ranks (2005 and 2006) before starting the transition to Division I in 2007. During its storied gridiron tradition, NCCU has produced 131 all-conference selections, 64 all-Americans, 40 NFL draft picks, 10 conference championships and two Black College National Championships.

THE COACHES
North Carolina Central: Dwayne Foster (Delaware State, 1993) joined NCCU in 2011 as assistant head coach, recruiting coordinator and offensive line coach, before being elevated to interim head coach prior to the 2013 season. Previously, he served as running backs coach at Prairie View A&M University (2005-10), tight ends and running backs coach at Catholic University (2004), and offensive line coach at Bowie State University (2003). Foster made his name on the high school level in Washington, D.C., as the head coach of Archbishop Carroll High School from 1997-2003. At Archbishop, Foster received coach of the year honors by the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference Committee in 1998. Foster played college football at Delaware State University from 1989-93 and helped the Hornets capture two MEAC Championships during his freshmen and junior seasons before graduating in 1993. Foster is a member of the Black Coaches and American Football Coaches Associations, was part of the NFL Minority Coaching Fellowship Program in 2010 with the Buffalo Bills and in 2012 with the Cincinnati Bengals, and participated in the NCAA Men's Football Coaching Academy in Indianapolis, Ind., in June 2006.

Duke: David Cutcliffe (Alabama, 1976), who was voted 2012 ACC Coach of the Year after leading the Blue Devils to the program's first bowl game appearance since 1994, was named Duke University's 21st head football coach on December 15, 2007. Cutcliffe is 21-40 in five seasons at Duke and owns an overall head coaching ledger of 65-69 in 11 seasons. Cutcliffe, born September 16, 1954, came to Duke after serving the previous two seasons as assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at the University of Tennessee. His head coaching experience includes a six-year stint at the University of Mississippi from 1999-2004, where he compiled a 44-29 (.603) ledger with five winning seasons, five bowl game appearances and a share of the SEC Western Division championship in 2003. Cutcliffe was named the SEC Coach of the Year in 2003 after leading the Rebels to a 10-3 record, including a 31-28 victory over Oklahoma State in the Cotton Bowl. Cutcliffe has participated in 22 bowl games including the 1982 Peach, 1983 Florida Citrus, 1984 Sun, 1986 Sugar, 1986 Liberty, 1988 Peach, 1990 Cotton, 1991 Sugar, 1992 Fiesta, 1993 Hall of Fame, 1994 Florida Citrus, 1994 Gator, 1996 Florida Citrus, 1997 Florida Citrus, 1998 Orange, 1998 Independence, 1999 Independence, 2000 Music City, 2002 Independence, 2004 Cotton, 2007 Outback, 2008 Outback and 2012 Belk. He owns a 4-2 record as a head coach in bowl tilts with victories over Oklahoma, Nebraska, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech. As a member of the coaching staff at Tennessee from 1982-98, Cutcliffe helped the Volunteers to four SEC championships, 16 bowl games in 17 seasons and the national title in 1998. His first tenure with the Vols featured the mentoring of quarterbacks Andy Kelly, Heath Shuler, Tee Martin and Peyton Manning.

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