ATLANTA – The beginning ended up being the end.
North Carolina A&T concludes the 2018 HBCU football season where it began as the
No. 1 team in both the BOXTOROW Coaches and Media Polls following last
Saturday’s 24-22 victory over Alcorn State in the Air Force Reserve Celebration
Bowl.
The Aggies, who finished 10-2, received every first place vote in both national
HBCU polls.
North Carolina A&T Aggies wide receiver Elijah Bell #13 scores a touchdown
against Alcorn State Braves in the second quarter of the Celebration Bowl at
Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 15, 2018 in Atlanta, GA. Photo by Brett
Davis/USA TODAY Sports.
This is Sam Washington’s first national championship as head coach at N.C. A&T
in his first season since being promoted to replace Rod Broadway. Washington was
named BOXTOROW Coach of the Year last week and also named MEAC Coach of the
Year. The Aggies have now won HBCU national championships in 2018, 2017 and
2015. Washington was defensive coordinator for the first two titles.
“It’s important to our program to play in the postseason, (and) it is cream on
top when you win in the postseason and you win the Celebration Bowl,” Washington
said. “It is a well-deserved honor for this program and these young men. We
fought through a lot of adversity this year.”
The Aggies were ranked atop the polls for a majority of the season with the
exception of two weeks, after losses to Morgan State and Florida A&M by a
combined total of four points. The Aggies never fell below No. 2 and regained
the top spot in Week 10 with a win over Norfolk State, coupled by then-No. 1
Florida A&M’s loss to Howard. N.C. A&T never relinquished its top spot in the
national polls afterwards.
The Celebration Bowl pitted the consensus top two teams among Historically Black
Colleges and Universities, and the game didn’t disappoint. The MEAC champion
Aggies led 17-6 after dominating the first half, but the SWAC champion Braves
rallied in the second half until N.C. A&T sealed it by running out the clock on
the game’s final drive to preserve the two-point victory.
Senior quarterback Lamar Raynard passed for 292 yards and two touchdowns to win
Celebration Bowl MVP honors, and capped his career by leading the Aggies to a
34-2 record as a starter. Alcorn State, which finished 9-4, outgained the Aggies
451-324 in total yards but couldn’t overcome a sluggish first half or a
controversial “no-catch” ruling on a two-point conversion late in the game.
“We didn’t execute the way we should have in the first half, but in the second
half we made some adjustments and played a lot better,” Braves coach Fred McNair
said. “It just came down to a two-point conversion we thought was a catch. As
hard as these young men played, for it to come down to a play like that is
(tough). But we played a great football team. Give them credit. We’ll learn from
this.”
Alcorn State finished second in the Boxtorow national polls and SWAC runner up
Southern was third.
The BOXTOROW HBCU FCS coaches poll and the media poll is administered by FROM
THE PRESS BOX TO PRESS ROW. The coaches poll is voted on by the HBCU Football
Championship Subdivision coaches, and the media poll is voted on by media
members around the country who cover HBCU football.
“The rewards of winning that type of game extend to other honors like winning
the BOXTOROW title again,” Washington said. “BOXTOROW does an excellent job of
highlighting black college football, so we’re proud to have this honor.”
Having won four MEAC titles and three Celebration Bowl national championships
over the past five seasons, it’s safe to assume the Aggies haven’t had to
rebuild in a long time. But coach Sam Washington must replace perennial
All-Conference stars in QB Lamar Raynard, RB Marquell Cartwright, OL Micah Shaw
and return specialist Malik Wilson among others. N.C. A&T is always prepared to
reload, but next season’s path through the MEAC will be treacherous.
There is absolutely no shame in losing on a controversial 2-point conversion
call to arguably the best team in modern HBCU football history. But those aren’t
comforting words right now to Braves coach Fred McNair or QB Noah Johnson. The
good news is that Johnson, the SWAC offensive player of the year, and RB
De’Shawn Waller, the SWAC newcomer of the year, return with a shot to continue
the Braves’ SWAC East dominance. They should be favored to make it back to
Atlanta.
After a tough stretch of NCAA issues that led to scholarship sanctions a few
years back, coach Dawson Odums showed he’s finally got the Jaguars firmly headed
in the right direction. Beating in-state rival Grambling in the Bayou Classic
and getting to the SWAC title game have now set next season’s expectations much
higher for Southern. With QB Ladarius Skelton ready to build on a remarkable
finish after taking over midseason, the Jaguars should hit the ground running in
2019.
The Wildcats proved to be capable of knocking off the best, yet losing to just
about anyone in 2018. But coach Terry Sims talked about raising the bar after
ending the season with an impressive win streak, capped by a victory over
Florida A&M that knocked his in-state rival out of a MEAC title. Can the
Wildcats move beyond spoilers and become true title contenders next year? The
MEAC/SWAC Challenge against Jackson State to open the 2019 season will be a
telling next step.
The MEAC and SWAC have dominated the HBCU polls as the lone conferences playing
at the FCS level. But graduating senior QB Amir Hall elevated Division II Bowie
State into the discussion of HBCU’s elite teams with a record-setting four-year
run as one of the most prolific players the NCAA has seen on any level. The
Bulldogs will have huge shoes to fill after losing the CIAA’s career leader in
passing yards and TDs. But their success with Hall should have a huge impact on
recruiting.
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