| North Carolina A&T players and fans will have to wait until after Saturday’s game to find out if the football team will make a bowl appearance but the “celebration” can begin now that the Aggies have claimed their second-straight MEAC championship.
After defeating Delaware State 27-6 in Aggie Stadium, the No. 14 Aggies (9-1, 7-0 MEAC) clinched at least a share of the conference title. A&T has produced back-to-back 9-win seasons for the first time since 1990 when the Aggies won three straight seasons from 1990-92.
The Aggies must go through their arch-rivals N.C. Central (7-3, 6-1 MEAC) Saturday at Aggie Stadium to claim the title outright. A win over the Eagles would also give Aggies a berth to the inaugural Celebration Bowl, which pits the MEAC champion against the SWAC champion at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta on Dec. 19. Bethune-Cookman also has a chance to claim a share of the conference title.
Junior running back Tarik Cohen became the Aggies all-time leading rusher in the first quarter of Saturday's game, as he surpassed Mike Mayhew on a 28-yard run. Cohen had 132 yards on 17 carries.
“It’s an honor to have a record like this considering all of the great running backs who came before me,” said Cohen. “This school has produced some great running backs like Maurice Smith, Maurice Hicks and the guy whose record I broke, Mike Mayhew.”
Freshman quarterback Kylil Carter accounted for three Aggie touchdowns including one on the ground. As a runner, he finished with 84 yards on 21 carries. Underdog Delaware State (0-10, 0-7 MEAC) tried to throw off the Aggies' plans, but could not generate enough offense. The Hornets were held to 14 yards rushing and 174 yards of offense as the Aggies held a team to under 100 yards rushing for the sixth straight game. |
