N.C. Central Eagles claim another chapter in their historic rivalry with the North Carolina A&T Aggies in a close 30-22 victory on their home field.
Even through a second half rain delay that lasted nearly two hours, O’Kelly-Riddick Stadium remained packed with fans without a single dip in energy throughout the stadium.
The Eagles have extended their win streak over the Aggies to five wins following the victory.
Senior running back Plez Lawrence had the performance of the game with 210-yards on 22 carries scoring three touchdowns.
The crowd roared for Lawrence’s 73-yard touchdown rush that made the camera on the broadcast shake. This was the first NCCU 200-yard rushing game since former running back J’Mari Taylor’s 206-yard game against Howard in 2024.
Lawrence was rewarded with a BOXTOROW HBCU National Co-Player of the Week for his impressive showing.
Freshman quarterback Nelson Layne had a high efficiency performance against his former school throwing 146-yards with 13 completions on 19 attempts and one touchdown. Layne has had four passing touchdowns in just three games.
Long time Eagle wide receiver Mehki Wall had his own highlight play to start the game with a 27-yard touchdown reception within the first five minutes of play.
Eagles freshman kicker Riley Daniels extends his perfect field goal streak to six after a 37-yard completion in the first quarter.
The Eagles defense closed the game with five seconds left when senior defensive back Jakarri Martin II caught the game winning interception that halted the Aggies last chance to tie the game.
N.C. Central now has a 2-1 record with two straight victories at home. This win is also the Eagles second victory over another North Carolina based university.
The Eagles will travel to Boiling Springs, NC to take on the Gardner-Webb Bulldogs on Sept. 19 with kickoff starting at 6 p.m., streaming on ESPN+.
