The Real Season Starts Today
By Craig R. Turner
Published: September 26, 2012

North Carolina A&T is standing in familiar territory going into Thursday’s game against Morgan State in A&T first conference challenge this time live from Aggie Stadium before a national audience on ESPNU from Aggie Stadium.

The Aggies opened up with off a tough deceiving close two touchdown loss to Coastal Carolina on the road after some late unforeseen preseason bumps in the week leading up before that game that left the Aggies very short handed of many of its most important weapons.

A week later the Aggies were back to what we thought they would be by blasting Division II opponent in West Virginia State 77-0 and then again just ten days ago with a 40-6 thumping of Virginia-Lynchburg.

The Aggies currently stand as the MEAC’s most prolific scoring offense at 43.3 points per game and also with the league’s best total defense (215.7 yds.pg), scoring defense (12.0 pts.pg), and the top special teams unit by a country mile during this first third of the season.

Now granted A&T has not gone on the road to play a bunch of guarantee games against BCS programs to fill its financial coffers like a SCSU or a Norfolk State so all the stats are subject to the interpretation of “not playing anyone.”

However, in the few games against like competition, the Aggies have outperformed their sister schools dramatically in terms of their dominance in games where the MEAC member has been the heavy favorite whether it was against the SWAC, CIAA, SIAC or some independent teams.

Now the season begins in earnest as Morgan State comes to town and the competition steps up considerably both in terms of physicality and talent.

Morgan picked ahead of the Aggies in the conference preseason polls has gotten off to a slow 1-2 start with crushing defeats at the hands of an average Akron team (66-6) and a so-so D-I Buffalo squad 54-36.

Morgan’s lone win has been against a winless Sacred Heart team from the Northeast Conference 30-27 in four time overtimes at home.

This will be an interesting contest as to how good A&T may be and if Morgan State is not quite the team that everyone expected Coach Don Hill-Ely to put out this season.

Coach Rod Broadway has had a chance to rest his people and to go into a short week with a bye week sandwiched in beforehand and the opportunity to rest a couple of dinged people on both sides of the ball that will be needed this week.

All eyes will be on A&T and Rod Broadway for the first time since his move to Greensboro two years ago. Hundreds of people will be anxious to see if this will be the benchmark to see if the Aggies have turned the corner in putting a decade of despair behind them.

Are they now headed up the leader to its place of one time prominence in the Mid-Eastern Athletic conference? It should be worth to DVR it Thursday night if you are not one of those loyalist in Aggie Stadium come 7:30.

 

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How does this game stack up? Morgan State has been on the road for the last two weeks , not counting the bye this past week, taking some serious lumps at the hands of a couple of Division-I teams while strangely platooning quarterbacks despite having a promising sophomore in big quarterback Seth Higgins who was their total offense leader from last year.

While the Bears have scored some points they have been inconsistent and much of what was done in the Buffalo game was done well after the final outcome had been long been determined.

Morgan’s offense has only put up 32 points so far in the first half of its three games and playing behind is not their strong suit.

Morgan’s defense has even bigger problems under co-defensive coordinators Alonzo Lee and Herbert Parham giving up 228 yards on average per game on the ground and another 365 yards in the air and a whopping 49.7 points per game.

The really distressing factor if you are a Bear fan is that Morgan have given up scores at a 76.7 % rate within the red zone .

Whether you are playing Akron or Scared Heart, that is simply not good.

I expect A&T will be fired up for this national spotlight game and offensively expect A&T to present some new wrinkles that have not been seen through the first three games.

Special Teams will be key ingredient and the Aggies lead in practically every kicking stat and also leads the conference in like return capability as well.

Expect a loud and enthusiastic crowd in the “Dawg Pound” in Aggie Stadium with the Blue and Gold Marching Machine and Golden Delight having something truly special for the TV cameras.

Look for 10-12,000 fans to turn out even during a work night to show up and a A&T team that will be ready to play and play at a fast pace.

The bet? Take the A&T offense over a struggling Morgan defense and an A&T defense that is playing itself toward mid-season form against an offense still trying to find itself.

Key plays from special teams and turnovers early usually will set the tone and eventually will take its toll in these ESPNU TV games and I see no reason why the trend should change.

 

PREDICTION

N.C. A&T – 38

Morgan State – 10

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