#14 NC A&T tops #6 Jacksonville State in a FCS Showdown
The Celebration Bowl champs, North Carolina A&T, matched up against the #6 ranked FCS team in the country, Jacksonville State. This game was highly anticipated amongst the fans FCS level.
Congratulations to Coach Washington on his first win as head football coach. 🏈 #AGGIEPRIDE #AGGIESALLIN #NCAT pic.twitter.com/ONcJO9dNko
— NC A&T Football (@FOOTBALL_NCAT) August 26, 2018
The Aggies are the reigning HBCU football champions. They have been criticism of the champions since they did not participate in the FCS playoffs. The Meac champion and Swac champion, which are HBCU conferences, decided to make the HBCU Championship bowl known as the Celebration Bowl. But the big question was, how will the Aggies fare against a top-10 FCS opponent, and last night we got our answer.
North Carolina A&T had a 98-YARD kick return TD thanks to a BIG TIME block 😤 pic.twitter.com/sO2bg0VYkM
— ESPN CollegeFootball (@ESPNCFB) August 26, 2018
The Aggies defeated the Gamecocks 20-17 in a close win. the Aggies undefeated quarterback Lamar Raynard did not play his best game in the win, but his defense was able to lead his Aggies to another win. The teams win streak is now at 13. But the biggest stat is about Raynard is that as a starter he has not loss yet. He is currently holding onto a 27-game win streak as a starter.
Those Aggies got something to say 👀 @ncatsuaggies starting QB @lamarraynard has some words for the #HBCU haters after @FOOTBALL_NCAT win over @JSUNews 🐶 🗣🗣 #NCAT @NCATAGGIES #FCSKickoff pic.twitter.com/WbUVhF3k9q
— True Bulll (@TrueBulllfr) August 26, 2018
As for the Jacksonville State Gamecocks, they start the year off with a loss. The Gamecocks had an influx of transfers from the FBS level so it may take a game or two for the Gamecocks to find chemistry. One of the big transfers from the FBS level was Zerrick Cooper.
You all better understand how big that North Carolina A&T win is to the school, the football program, and HBCUs. What a night!!!! #AggiePride 🏈 #FCSKickoff
— Ron Carthen (@rcarthen) August 26, 2018
Cooper is a transfer from the Clemson Tigers. He was one of the back-ups to Kelly Bryant last season, but due to the new addition in the quarterback room at Clemson, Cooper decided it was best that he transfer so he could get the opportunity to play.
Zerrick Cooper to Josh Pearson for a Jacksonville State Touchdown!!! pic.twitter.com/hMLVkYbliz
— NCAAF Nation (@NCAAFNation247) August 26, 2018
Although it took some time for Cooper to get settled in, he did not disappoint. Cooper played like an FBS quarterback, putting up 320 yards through the air and 37 rushing yards. He also threw 2 touchdowns in the loss
Zerrick Cooper had been struggling all night but he connects here for a Jacksonville State TD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/sWJlNjCwqW
— CFB 24/7 (@NCAAFBNation247) August 26, 2018
This game came down to the last 17 seconds where Aggie’s Daryl Johnson forced a fumble on a strip sack on Cooper. This game was an excellent way to open the 2018 college football season.
(Featured photo credit to: TheShadowLeague.com)
