THE GAME
North Carolina Central University "Eagles" vs. University of New Hampshire "Wildcats"

THE KICKOFF
Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022 – Kickoff at 6:00 p.m.

THE SITE
Wildcat Stadium (11,015 capacity) - Durham, N.H.

THE RECORDS (2021)
N.C. Central (2-0 overall, 0-0 MEAC); #25 New Hampshire (2-0, 2-0 CAA)

MEDIA COVERAGE
Audio: NCCU Sports Network - NCCUEaglePride.com (Jonathan Duren, play-by-play)
TV/Video: Streaming live on FloSports

QUICK HITS
• NCCU is coming off a 41-0 shutout victory over Winston-Salem State University on  Sept. 10 in Durham, N.C.
• NCCU opened the season with a 28-13 triumph over rival North Carolina A&T in the Duke's Mayo Classic inside Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte on Sept. 3.
• With convincing wins over NC A&T (28-13) and WSSU (41-0), NCCU has picked up 24 votes in the AFCA FCS Coaches' Top 25 Poll and 20 votes in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25.
• NCCU is off to a 2-0 start for the first time as a Division I (FCS) program (since 2007). In 2006, NCCU's final season on the Division II level, the Eagles opened the campaign with 11 victories to win the CIAA Championship.  
• This will be the first meeting between NCCU and the University of New Hampshire (UNH) Wildcats, members of the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA).
• New Hampshire has opened the season with conference victories over Monmouth (31-21) and UAlbany (28-23).
• New Hampshire has moved into the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 at No. 25 with 138 votes. The Wildcats have earned 13 votes in the AFCA FCS Coaches' Top 25 Poll.
• NCCU earned a pair of Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference weekly football awards, as redshirt freshman Max U'Ren was tagged Rookie of the Week and sophomore center Torricelli Simpkins III was named Offensive Lineman of the Week.
• Following the 28-13 win over North Carolina A&T in Bank of America Stadium on Sept. 3, NCCU improves its record to 6-2 in games played in an NFL stadium since 2000.
• NCCU won three consecutive games to end the 2021 season as the MEAC runner-up with a 4-1 conference record and a 6-5 overall mark. The Eagles' current five-game win streak matches the program's longest since 2017. In 2016, NCCU won nine straight contests to win the MEAC Championship.
• Seventeen NCCU Eagles have already earned their undergraduate degrees, and are currently pursuing a master's degree or second degree.
• Among NCCU's 44 student-athletes listed on the season-opening offensive and defensive two-deep chart, 25 (57%) are underclassmen (16 sophomores, 9 freshmen), including 14 underclassmen (9 sophomores, 5 freshman) on offense, while 28 (64%) are from North Carolina. 
• Since the start of the transition to NCAA Division I-FCS in 2007, NCCU is 3-13 against nationally-ranked FCS opponents.
• NCCU is under the direction of third-season head coach Trei Oliver, who was an all-region safety and punter (1994-97) at NCCU, as well as an Eagles' assistant coach (2003-06).
• NCCU's Davius Richard is just the second quarterback in NCCU history to record 2,000 passing yards in consecutive seasons, joining NCCU hall of famer Earl Harvey (1985-88). Richard threw for 2,020 yards in 2019, 2,133 yards in 2021. Richard's 4,566 career passing yards ranks eighth at NCCU, needing 111 yards to move into the sixth spot. With 182 total yards, Richard will slide into the top-5 in total offense.
• NCCU junior Brandon Codrington ranked third in the nation in punt returns last season with a MEAC-high average return of 15.0 yards. His 77-yard punt return touchdown versus Alcorn State in the season-opener was the second special teams touchdown of his young career. In 2019, in the final minute of a tie game versus Delaware State (Oct. 26, 2019), he returned a kickoff 75 yards for the game-winning touchdown.
• NCCU kicker Adrian Olivo was 11-for-12 on field goals in 2021, the most made field goals in the MEAC and second-highest field-goal percentage (91.7%) in FCS.
• Running back Latrell "Mookie" Collier led NCCU with nine touchdowns (6 rushing/3 receiving) last season. The West Virginia native also topped the Eagles in 2019 in touchdowns scored with five trips to the end zone (3 rushing/2 receiving).
• Davius Richard's 74-yard touchdown run versus S.C. State (Oct. 30, 2021) is the longest rush by an NCCU quarterback since Lawrence Fuller raced 74 yards against Morris Brown on Sept. 30, 2000.
• Marvin Reed's 94-yard interception return at Marshall (Sept. 11, 2021) is equal to the sixth-longest return of a pick in NCCU history.
• Since the start of the 2012 season, NCCU has scored 42 touchdowns on defense and special teams, including a 77-yard punt return by Brandon Codrington in the 2021 season-opener.
• As a freshman in 2019, NCCU quarterback Davius Richard achieved the sixth-best passing performance in school history versus Norfolk State (Nov. 9, 2019), amassing 384 passing yards with three touchdowns, completing 30 of 46 throws. Only NCCU hall of fame quarterback Earl "Air" Harvey (1985-88) has thrown for more passing yards, as he holds the top five single-game passing efforts in school history.

THE SERIES
This will be the first meeting between NCCU and the University of New Hampshire Wildcats.

THE COACHES
NCCU: Trei Oliver (N.C. Central, 1998) is in his third season as a college head coach. With 23 years of college coaching experience that includes five conference championships and three Black college football national titles, Oliver returned to his alma mater as North Carolina Central University's 24th head football coach in December 2018. A native of Yorktown, Virginia, Oliver earned all-conference and all-region honors as a defensive back and punter during his four-year playing career at NCCU from 1994-97. The 1998 graduate later returned to NCCU as an assistant coach from 2003-06, helping the Eagles to back-to-back Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) championships in 2005 and 2006.

New Hampshire: On Dec. 7, 2021, the University of New Hampshire announced the hiring of alumnus Rick Santos as the 20th head coach in UNH football history. Santos served the last three seasons as associate head coach/quarterbacks coach, including a six-month term as interim head coach in 2019, leading the Wildcats to a 6-5 record. Santos, a record-setting Wildcat quarterback from 2004-07 and a 2016 UNH Athletics Hall of Fame inductee, oversaw offensive strategy while simultaneously coaching the QBs. A native of Bellingham, Mass., he worked three seasons (2016-18) as the QB coach/passing game coordinator at Columbia University of the Ivy League between his two stretches as an assistant coach and associate head coach at his alma mater.

ALUMS AS HEAD FOOTBALL COACHES AT NCCU
Trei Oliver is the third alumnus to lead the NCCU football program, following in the footsteps of Bishop Harris, a 1963 graduate who coached the Eagles from 1991-92, and Herman Riddick, a 1933 graduate who guided the Eagles to a school record 112 victories from 1945-1964.

EIGHT NCCU EAGLES VOTED TO PRESEASON ALL-MEAC TEAMS
Six North Carolina Central University Eagles earned recognition on the 2022 Preseason All-MEAC Football Team. NCCU junior quarterback Davius Richard, junior offensive lineman Corey Bullock, junior placekicker Adrian Olivo, and junior return specialist Brandon Codrington were voted to the Preseason All-MEAC First Team, while senior defensive lineman Jessie Malit and junior defensive back Manny Smith were selected to the Preseason All-MEAC Second Team.
• Richard (Jr., 6-3, 215, Belle Glade, Fla.) claimed All-MEAC Second Team recognition in 2021, after ranking second in the MEAC with 2,496 yards of total offense, an average of 226.9 total yards per contest. He threw for 2,133 yards to become just the second quarterback in NCCU history to register more than 2,000 passing yards in consecutive seasons, while completing 58.0% of his passes (177-for-305) and accounting for 23 total touchdowns (15 passing, 8 rushing). After his first two seasons (2019, 2021), Richard ranks eighth on NCCU's all-time career passing list with 4,153 passing yards, and seventh in career total offense with 4,761 total yards.
• Bullock (Jr., 6-4, 315, Accokeek, Md.) captured All-MEAC Second Team merit last season, topping the Eagles with a grade of 85%, along with team-highs of 14 pancake blocks and nine knockdowns. He played multiple positions on the offensive front, surrendering just one sack in 11 games.
• Olivo (Jr., 5-10, 185, Plant City, Fla.) garnered an All-MEAC First Team citation after leading the MEAC with 11 field goals made and ranking second in the nation in field goal percentage (91.7%), converting 11 of 12 field goal attempts with a long of 43 yards. He also topped the Eagles in scoring with 58 points.
• Codrington (Jr., 5-9, 180, Raleigh, N.C.) earned All-MEAC First Team and BOXTOROW HBCU All-America awards as the third-leading punt returner in NCAA Division I-FCS with a MEAC-best 15.0-yard punt return average. He also ranked second in the league with a 22.5-yard kickoff return average.
• Malit (R-Sr., 6-3, 250, Concord, N.C.) received All-MEAC Third Team honors after collecting 28 tackles with 5.5 stops behind the line of scrimmage. His 3.5 sacks tied for the team lead and ranked fifth in the conference.
• Smith (R-Jr., 6-0, 195, Laurel Hill, N.C.) placed third on the squad with 61 tackles, including a team-high 44 solo stops, with a sack, two pass break-ups, an interception, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. He was named Defensive MVP of the MEAC/SWAC Challenge with 10 takedowns, a sack, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery in the win over Alcorn State. 

YOUTH MOVEMENT
Among NCCU's 44 student-athletes listed on the season-opening offensive and defensive two-deep chart, 25 (57%) are underclassmen (16 sophomores, 9 freshmen), including 14 underclassmen (9 sophomores, 5 freshman) on offense. Of the nine freshmen, seven are true freshmen, who were playing high school football last year. With nine seniors on the depth chart, 35 Eagles (80%) are projected to return next season (10 juniors, 16 sophomores, 9 freshmen).

FOCUS ON RECRUITING NORTH CAROLINA
The NCCU football program's emphasis on recruiting talent in North Carolina is demonstrated with 28 Eagles calling the Tar Heel state their home, out of the 44 student-athletes listed on the team's season-opening two-deep chart (64%). The next most-represented states are South Carolina and Florida with three each, followed by Virginia and Maryland with two apiece.

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 104 games, NCCU has scored 42 touchdowns on defense and special teams, including two in 2021, two in 2019, two in 2018, 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 16 punt returns, seven kickoff returns, three blocked field goal returns, 12 interceptions and four fumble recoveries. 

EAGLES AGAINST NATIONALLY-RANKED OPPOSITION                                            
Since the start of the transition to NCAA Division I-FCS in 2007, NCCU is 3-13 against nationally-ranked FCS opponents.
9/7/2019 - #8 Towson - 3-42 L
11/17/2018 - #12 North Carolina A&T - 0-45 L
11/18/2017 - #7 North Carolina A&T - 10-24 L
12/17/2016 - #14 Grambling - 9-10 L
11/19/2016 - #9 North Carolina A&T - 42-21 W
11/21/2015 - #13 North Carolina A&T - 21-16 W
11/22/2014 - #24 North Carolina A&T - 21-14 W
11/1/2014 - #20 Bethune-Cookman - 20-34 L
11/2/2013 - #13 Bethune-Cookman - 14-38 L
9/21/2013 - #4 Towson - 17-35 L
10/23/2010 - #14 Bethune-Cookman - 10-23 L
9/18/2010 - at #1 Appalachian State - 16-44 L
10/10/2009 - at #9 Appalachian State - 21-55 L
9/12/2009 - at #24 Liberty - 10-35 L
11/8/2008 - at #3 Cal Poly - 3-49 L
9/6/2008 - at #8 James Madison - 7-56 L

COMMUNITY SERVICE LEADER
NCCU senior defensive end Jessie Malit (Concord, N.C.) won the 2020-21 STATS Perform FCS Doris Robinson Scholar-Athlete Award, presented to the nation's top FCS student-athlete who excels both in the classroom and in the community and was named to the 2021 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team. Malit spearheaded the NCCU Student-Athlete Advisory Committee's E.A.G.L.E.S. (Educated Actions Generate Lifelong Empowerment & Success) Vote initiative in October 2020, including a campus-wide March to the Polls event (289 out of a possible 315 eligible student-athletes registered to vote [92%], including 100% of the football team), organized a book drive to create a library in his mother's home village in Kenya (currently has collected more than 400 books with a goal of 1,000), volunteered at a battered women's shelter, led his church youth group in providing food and shelter for homeless men, volunteered at the Food Bank of North Carolina, and has advocated for support for poverty issues including housing, food security and quality education. The SAAC (Student-Athlete Advisory Committee) Vice President at NCCU, he owns a 3.305 overall grade point average while pursuing a bachelor's degree in political science with a concentration in pre-law and theory, and is on track to graduate in December 2021, with plans to attend graduate school to study public policy.

ABOUT NCCU FOOTBALL
• North Carolina Central University is in its 11th season of full NCAA Division I (FCS) athletics competition as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. 
• The Eagles have won 11 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, 2016), and have made three appearances in the NCAA Division II playoffs (1988, 2005, 2006). 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 149 all-conference selections (first team), 70 all-Americans, 41 NFL draft picks, 11 conference championships and two Black College National Championships (1954, 2006).
• Three Eagles have represented NCCU on the National Football League's grandest stage - the Super Bowl. The first NCCU Eagle to make a Super Bowl appearance was Richard Sligh, who was a reserve tackle with the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl II against the Green Bay Packers on Jan. 14, 1968. Sligh, who holds the distinction as the tallest player in NFL history (7'0"), played at NCCU from 1962-64 and was later drafted by the Raiders in the 10th round of the 1967 NFL draft. On Jan. 24, 1982, former NCCU Eagle Louis Breeden was a starting cornerback for the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XVI against the San Francisco 49ers. Earlier in the season (Nov. 8, 1981), Breeden intercepted a pass thrown by San Diego Chargers quarterback Dan Fouts and returned it a team-record 102 yards for a touchdown. The following year, he was selected as a First-Team All-Pro. He completed his 10-year NFL career with 33 interceptions for 558 return yards and two touchdowns. The third Eagle to play in the Super Bowl was Ryan Smith with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Feb. 7, 2021, as Smith became the first NCCU Eagle to play in a Super Bowl victory.
• The first Eagle selected in the NFL Draft was Matt Boone, who was taken by the Giants with the eighth pick in the 18th round in 1956. The latest Eagle announced during the NFL Draft was Ryan Smith, who was chosen by the Buccaneers in the fourth round in 2016. NCCU's highest draft pick was Doug Wilkerson, who was selected in the first round with the 14th overall pick of the 1970 NFL Draft by the Oilers. The Eagles have also had three second-round NFL draft picks, including Robert Massey in 1989 by the Saints, Charles Smith in 1975 by the Broncos and Chuck Hinton in 1962 by the Browns. 
• HBCU football pioneer John Brown, who represented NCCU (then North Carolina College) on the gridiron in the 1940s, was one of the first to play professional football out of a historically Black college or university. Brown shares the honor with Ezzret Anderson of Kentucky State and Elmore Harris of Morgan State, who all began their professional football careers in 1947. Brown and Anderson were teammates on the Los Angeles Dons, while Harris was a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers. According to NCCU records, Brown was the first of the three to sign a professional football contract. He played center and linebacker with the Dons from 1947-49, before moving to the Canadian Football League.