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THE GAME    
North Carolina Central University "Eagles" vs. Duke University "Blue Devils"

THE KICKOFF    
Saturday, September 3, 2016 – Kickoff at 6:04 p.m. 

THE SITE    
Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium (40,004 capacity/natural grass) - Durham, N.C.

THE RECORDS (2015)    
2015: N.C. Central (8-3 overall, 7-1 MEAC); Duke (8-5 overall, 4-4 ACC)

MEDIA COVERAGE    
Audio: NCCU Sports Network "GameCentral" at NCCUEaglePride.com (audio internet stream). Broadcast starts at 5:30 p.m. (Jonathan Duren, play-by-play; Joe Simmons, color analyst).
Video:  ESPN3 (Shawn Kenney, play-by-play; Stan Lewter, color analyst).

QUICK HITS    
•    Saturday will be the fifth meeting between Durham foes NCCU and Duke (2009, 2012, 2013, 2015).
•    Having won its last seven games of the 2015 season, NCCU boasts the second-longest current win streak in FCS behind North Dakota State (10) and fourth in all of NCAA Division I football (Alabama 12, San Diego State 10).
•    Third-year head coach Jerry Mack has not only captured conference titles in each of his first two seasons at NCCU, but he became the first head coach in school history to win 15 games in his first two years. 
•    Since the start of the 2012 season, NCCU has scored 30 touchdowns on defense and special teams.

FLASHBACK TO 2015    
•    NCCU repeated as co-champions of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) with a 7-1 conference record.
•    The Eagles posted the most wins as a NCAA Division I-FCS program with an 8-3 overall record.
•    The Eagles earned the program's second win over a nationally-ranked FCS opponent by defeating No. 13/16 North Carolina A&T in the final game of the season on Nov. 21, 2015.
•    NCCU closed out season on a seven-game winning streak.
•    NCCU ranked No. 1 in the nation (FCS) in fourth down conversion percentage defense (8.3%) - allowing only one fourth down conversion all season (12 attempts) - and fourth down conversion percentage offense (81.8%/9 of 11).

THE SERIES    
This will be the fifth meeting between the Eagles of NCCU and the Blue Devils of Duke University. Duke leads the series 4-0 after a 49-14 win on Sept. 26, 2009, a 54-17 victory on Sept. 15, 2012, a 45-0 triumph on Aug. 31, 2013, and a 55-0 win on Sept. 12, 2015, all played inside Wallace Wade Stadium.  The Blue Devils have out-scored the Eagles 203-31 in the four match-ups.

THE LAST MEETING    
(Sept. 12, 2015 - Duke 55, NCCU 0) Duke used a balanced offensive attack to pile up more yards than any other NCCU opponent in school history, as the Blue Devils amassed 655 yards of total offense in a 55-0 shutout over the Eagles at the newly renovated Wallace Wade Stadium. Duke passed for 367 yards and added 288 yards on the ground to better the 644 yards posted by Appalachian State against the Eagles in 2009 (Oct. 10). NCCU managed 186 total yards with 132 through the air. The Blue Devils scored first with 2:49 left in the first quarter for a 7-0 lead after the first 15 minutes. Duke led 24-0 at halftime and 41-0 through three quarters. NCCU quarterback Malcolm Bell completed half of his 24 passes for 127 yards. Khalil Stinson had four catches for 54 yards, while Jalen Wilkes tallied four receptions for 27 yards. The NCCU defense stayed on the field for 34:11 of the contest.

THE COACHES    
NCCU: Jerry Mack (Arkansas State, 2003) is in his third season as a college head coach. He boasts 11 years of coaching experience, including stints with five NCAA Division I programs and three conference championship teams. A native of Memphis, Tennessee, Mack has held positions as wide receivers coach at the University of South Alabama (2012-13) and the University of Memphis (2011), as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (2010), as passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach at the University of Central Arkansas (2008-09), as wide receivers and tight ends coach at Jackson State University (2006-07), and as an offensive graduate assistant at Delta State University (2004-05). Mack began his collegiate playing career at Jackson State before transferring after one season (1999) to Arkansas State University.  He lettered three years at Arkansas State (2001-03) before earning his bachelor's degree in management information systems in 2003. Mack completed his master's degree in physical education from Delta State in 2006.

Duke: David Cutcliffe (Alabama, 1976) was named Duke University's 21st head football coach on December 15, 2007. Cutcliffe 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. He owns a 5-2 record as a head coach in bowl tilts with victories over Oklahoma, Nebraska, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech and Indiana.

HARD TIMES AGAINST FBS OPPONENTS    
Since departing the NCAA Division II ranks at the end of the 2006 season, the Eagles have lined up against a NCAA Division I-FBS opponent seven times, all resulting in losses.
Sept. 19, 2015 at FIU (14-39 L)
Sept. 12, 2015 at Duke (0-55 L)
Aug. 30, 2014 at East Carolina (7-52 L)
Aug. 31, 2013 at Duke (0-45 L)
Sept. 15, 2012 at Duke (17-54 L)
Sept. 1, 2011 at Rutgers (0-48 L)
Sept. 26, 2009 at Duke (14-49 L)

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 fifth 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 seven occasions, boasting a record of 2-5. 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, and since in 2012, 2013 and 2015.

MACK OFF TO FAST START AS NCCU HEAD COACH    
Jerry Mack is the first NCCU football head coach to win 15 games in his first two seasons. Willie Smith, who died on Aug. 22 in Durham at the age of 84, won 14 in 1973 (7-4) and 1974 (7-2-2). After the Eagles went 7-5 in Mack's first season for a share of the MEAC title, his squad posted an 8-3 record in 2015 to earn a second straight conference co-championship. 

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 46 games, NCCU has scored 30 touchdowns on defense and special teams, including 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 12 punt returns, six kickoff returns, three blocked field goal returns, seven interceptions and two fumble recoveries. 

BELL NEAR PASSING, TOTAL OFFENSE MILESTONES    
Among NCCU career leaders, redshirt-senior quarterback Malcolm Bell (Richmond, Va.) ranks eighth in passing yards (3,909) and sixth in total offense yards (4,838) through his first three seasons (2013-15). Bell enters his senior season needing 91 passing yards to become the seventh Eagle quarterback with 4,000 passing yards and 162 yards of total offense to become the sixth NCCU student-athlete with 5,000 yards of total offense.

TEN EAGLES EARN PRESEASON ALL-MEAC HONORS    
Ten NCCU Eagles were voted to the 2016 Preseason All-MEAC Football Team. Leading the way for NCCU on the All-MEAC First Team are senior quarterback Malcolm Bell (Richmond, Va.), senior center Carl Jones (Nashville, Tenn.), senior offensive lineman Desmond Cooper (Stafford, Va.) and senior linebacker Jeremy Miles (Durham, N.C.). All-MEAC Second Team distinction was awarded to sophomore running back Dorrel McClain (Cary, N.C.), senior offensive lineman Tarrance Wells (Oxon Hill,, Md.), junior defensive lineman Antonio Brown (Jacksonville, Fla.), sophomore defensive back Davanta Reynolds (Tucker, Ga.) and senior return specialist LaVontis Smith (Maben, Miss.). Junior defensive lineman Ja'Quan Smith (Miramar, Fla.) rounded out NCCU's selections with a spot on the All-MEAC Third Team.

ABOUT NCCU FOOTBALL    
North Carolina Central University is in its sixth season of full NCAA Division I (FCS) athletic competition as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. The Eagles have won 12 conference championships as members of the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (1953, 1954, 1956, 1961, 1963, 1980, 2005, 2006) and the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (1972, 1973, 2014, 2015), and have made three appearances in the NCAA playoffs (1988, 2005, 2006).