GAME NOTES: NCCU Football at SC State

THE GAME
North Carolina Central University "Eagles" vs. South Carolina State Univ. "Bulldogs"

THE KICKOFF
Saturday, November 24, 2018 – Kickoff at 1:30 p.m.

THE SITE
Oliver C. Dawson Bulldog Stadium (22,000 capacity / Poly Turf) - Orangeburg, S.C.

THE RECORDS
N.C. Central (4-6 overall, 2-4 MEAC); S.C. State (5-5, 4-2 MEAC)

MEDIA COVERAGE
Audio: NCCU Sports Network "GameCentral" at NCCUEaglePride.com (internet stream). Broadcast starts at 1:20 p.m.
Video: To be determined.

QUICK HITS
• Saturday's contest was rescheduled from Sept. 15 due to Hurricane Florence.
• Saturday will be the 24th football meeting between S.C. State and NCCU since the two schools first played on Oct. 15, 1927. SCSU leads the series 12-11.
• S.C. State opened the season with four straight losses, but the Bulldogs have won five of their last six games, including four in-a-row.
• NCCU has an 11-5 record in the month of November since 2014, but the Eagles are 0-3 this season.
• NCCU has a 1-4 record on the road in 2018.
• NCCU amassed at least 200 rushing yards for five straight games before being held to -21 yards on the ground against North Carolina A&T, the No. 1 run defense in FCS.
• NCCU leads the conference and ranks 17th in the NCAA Division I-FCS in tackles for loss with an average of 7.6 per game.
• NCCU boasts the top red-zone offense in the MEAC and ranks ninth in FCS, scoring 90.9 percent of the time. The Eagles are 30-of-33 inside the 20-yard line, with 19 touchdowns and 11 field goals.
• NCCU senior safety Davanta Reynolds, the Preseason MEAC Defensive Player of the Year and a member of the STATS FCS Preseason All-America Team (Second Team), ranks third in the MEAC with 78 tackles (7.8 per game).
• NCCU senior defensive lineman Darius Royster owns 12.0 takedowns behind the line of scrimmage (4th in MEAC, 56th in FCS) and four forced fumbles (1st in MEAC, 7th in FCS).
• Since the start of the 2012 season, NCCU has scored 38 touchdowns on defense and special teams, including three defensive scores last year and two this season.
• NCCU is under the direction of first-year head coach Granville Eastman, who accepted the interim role after Jerry Mack left to be the offensive coordinator at Rice.
• S.C. State has the second-best rushing attack in the MEAC with an average of 190.3 ground yards per game.
• S.C. State quarterback Tyrece Nick is the second-leading rusher in the MEAC with an average of 86.4 rushing yards per contest (864 yards), and leads the conference with 12 rushing touchdowns.
• NCCU and S.C. State are atop the MEAC with a turnover margin of +6.

ABOUT NCCU FOOTBALL
NCCU won three consecutive MEAC championships from 2014-16, and represented the MEAC in the 2016 Celebration Bowl versus Grambling in the Georgia Dome.
NCCU Recent Records:
2017: 7-4 overall, 5-3 MEAC
2016: 9-3 overall, 8-0 MEAC – MEAC champions
2015: 8-3 overall, 7-1 MEAC – MEAC co-champions
2014: 7-5 overall, 6-2 MEAC – MEAC co-champions

THE SERIES
This will be the 24th football meeting between S.C. State and NCCU since the two schools first played on Oct. 15, 1927. SCSU leads the series 12-11. The Bulldogs have won eight of the last 11 match-ups dating back to 1976, while the Eagles have won two in-a-row. In 2012, NCCU snapped a seven-game losing skid to the Bulldogs by cruising to a 40-10 victory at the Circle City Classic in Indianapolis. In 2013, S.C. State returned the favor by beating the Eagles 44-3 in Durham.

Sept. 21, 2017 - NCCU 33, SCSU 28 (Durham, N.C.)
Oct. 11, 2014 - NCCU 48, SCSU 35 (Orangeburg, S.C.)
Oct. 10, 2013 - SCSU 44, NCCU 3 (Durham, N.C.)
Oct. 6, 2012 - NCCU 40, SCSU 10 (Indianapolis, Ind.)
Oct. 8, 2011 - SCSU 49, NCCU 38 (Orangeburg, S.C.)
Oct. 23, 1993 - SCSU 42, NCCU 13 (Orangeburg, S.C.)
Oct. 24, 1992 - SCSU 69, NCCU 0 (Orangeburg, S.C.)
Oct. 27, 1979 - SCSU 26, NCCU 6 (Charleston, S.C.)
Oct. 28, 1978 - SCSU 17, NCCU 15 (Orangeburg, S.C.)
Oct. 29, 1977 - SCSU 45, NCCU 12 (Durham, N.C.)
Oct. 30, 1976 - SCSU 30, NCCU 0 (Orangeburg, S.C.)
Nov. 1, 1975 - NCCU 6, SCSU 3 (Durham, N.C.)
Nov. 2, 1974 - SCSU 21, NCCU 3 (Orangeburg, S.C.)
Oct. 27, 1973 - SCSU 24, NCCU 3 (Durham, N.C.)
Oct. 28, 1972 - NCCU 43, SCSU 0 (Orangeburg, S.C.)
Oct. 30, 1971 - NCCU 21, SCSU 12 (Durham, N.C.)
Nov. 3, 1956 - SCSU 26, NCCU 12 (Orangeburg, S.C.)
Nov. 5, 1955 - NCCU 26, SCSU 7 (Durham, N.C.)
Oct. 1, 1949 - NCCU 7, SCSU 6 (Durham, N.C.)
Oct. 2, 1948 - NCCU 19, SCSU 0 (Durham, N.C.)
Sept. 26, 1941 - NCCU 19, SCSU 0 (Durham, N.C.)
Oct. 20, 1928 - NCCU 6, SCSU 0 (Durham, N.C.)
Oct. 15, 1927 - SCSU 10, NCCU 6 (Orangeburg, S.C.)

THE LAST MEETING
NCCU 33, SCSU 28 (Sept. 21, 2017): North Carolina Central University overcame a 14-point, first-half deficit and scored the only two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to earn a 33-28 victory over MEAC foe South Carolina State University during a Thursday night nationally-televised ESPNU contest at O'Kelly-Riddick Stadium.

LAST WEEK
#12/13 North Carolina A&T 45, NCCU 0 (Durham, N.C.) - The 90th gridiron meeting between the rival Eagles and Aggies resulted in the series' most lopsided outcome in 27 years, as nationally-ranked North Carolina A&T blanked NCCU 45-0 in front of a capacity crowd at O'Kelly-Riddick Stadium. NC A&T (9-2, 6-1 MEAC) amassed 539 yards of total offense and held the Eagles to just 41 total yards, including negative-21 yards rushing.

S.C. State 21, Savannah State 17 (Orangeburg, S.C.) - S.C. State trailed 17-7 at halftime, but rallied for a 21-17 win over Savannah State. The Bulldogs managed just 155 yards of total offense, compared Savannah State's 221 total yards.

THE COACHES
NCCU: Granville Eastman (Saint Mary's, 1992) is in his first season as a college head coach. With 20 years of collegiate coaching experience to his credit, Eastman joined the NCCU staff in January 2014, serving as assistant head coach, defensive coordinator and safeties coach until his promotion to interim head coach on Dec. 8, 2017. Prior to joining NCCU, Eastman spent nine seasons (2005-13) as the defensive coordinator at Austin Peay State University in Clarkesville, Tennessee. During his 11 total seasons at APSU, he coached defensive backs and linebackers, and also served as special teams coordinator (2003-04) and interim head coach (winter 2013). Eastman coached four seasons (1999-2002) at Tiffin University in Ohio, including the last three seasons as defensive coordinator and recruiting coordinator, while working with defensive backs and defensive line during his tenure. A native of Toronto, Canada, Eastman secured his first coaching position at York University in his hometown, where he spent two seasons (1994-95) working with defensive backs. He then served as a defensive graduate assistant for three seasons (1996-98) at Arkansas State University, earning a master's degree in sociology in 1999. Eastman was a two-time all-city defensive back at Stephen Leacock High School in Toronto before attending Saint Mary's University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, where he was a three-year letterman as a defensive back. Twice Saint Mary's played in national title games while he was there. Eastman earned his bachelor's degree from Saint Mary's University in 1992.

South Carolina State: Oliver "Buddy" Pough is in his 17th season as head coach at South Carolina State, his alma mater. Since succeeding head coach emeritus Willie Jeffries as Bulldog head coach in 2002, Pough has built the SC State football program into a perennial power in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). During his 17-year tenure at the school, where he earned a bachelor's and a master's as well as All-MEAC honors as an offensive lineman, Pough has compiled an enviable 120-66 overall record. His teams have also captured two MEAC titles (2008 & 2009) outright and shared three others (2004, 2010, 2013), and made four trips to the FCS playoffs (2008, 2009, 2010 and 2013).

EAGLES TURN DEFENSE, SPECIAL TEAMS INTO POINTS
Since the start of the 2012 season, the Eagles have demonstrated a knack for finding the end zone when the offense is off the field. In the past 79 games, NCCU has scored 38 touchdowns on defense and special teams, including two this season, three in 2017, three in 2016, six in 2015, five in 2014, nine in 2013 and 10 in 2012. In that time, the Eagles have made trips to the end zone on 14 punt returns, six kickoff returns, three blocked field goal returns, 11 interceptions and four fumble recoveries.

LEVERETT RECOGNIZED FOR COMMUNITY SERVICE
NCCU offensive lineman Nick Leverett is one of only 22 college football players selected for distinguished recognition on the 2018 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team®, as announced by Allstate Insurance Company and the American Football Coaches Association. The Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® has been one of the most esteemed honors in college football for more than 25 years, celebrating the remarkable accomplishments of college football student-athletes on the field, in the classroom and in the community. A native of Concord, North Carolina, Leverett is a two-time All-MEAC offensive lineman and team captain, a three-year graduate with a degree in criminal justice and a 3.37 overall grade point average, a campus leader, and an active participant in community service. Two other NCCU football student-athletes have earned distinction on the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team®, Jordan Reid (current NCCU running backs coach) in 2013 and Carl Jones in 2016.

NINE NCCU EAGLES VOTED TO PRESEASON ALL-MEAC TEAMS
Nine NCCU Eagles were voted to the Preseason All-MEAC Football Teams. Earning All-MEAC First Team honors for NCCU are Preseason MEAC Defensive Player of the Year senior defensive back Davanta Reynolds, sophomore running back Isaiah Totten, junior offensive lineman Nick Leverett, and junior defensive lineman Kawuan Cox. Three NCCU Eagles on the Preseason All-MEAC Second Team are senior tight end Josh McCoy, sophomore offensive lineman Andrew Dale, and senior defensive lineman Randy Anyanwu. Receiving Preseason All-MEAC Third Team honors are junior wide receiver Xavier McKoy and senior defensive back De'Mario Evans.

LONG SNAPPER SCHLECKER EARNS PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA HONOR
NCCU senior long snapper Erik Schlecker was named to the HERO Sports 2018 FCS Preseason All-American Team. A native of Sunrise, Florida, Schlecker earned a spot on the FCS Preseason All-American Third Team for achieving a 99 percent success rate on his snaps with only one errant snap in the past two seasons at NCCU. The transfer from ASA College also boasts a snap time average of 0.75 seconds. To his credit, each NCCU teammate Schlecker has snapped for during the 2016 and 2017 seasons – two placekickers and a punter – has garnered all-conference recognition.

NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION