Jalon HillThough COVID-19 canceled the Fall 2020 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) football season, the conference is set to return to action in the Spring of 2021.
The athletic directors of each team in the conference met in December to discuss the plans for the upcoming season in order to handle scheduling and COVID-19 safety protocol.
The conference has been shortened to seven teams after Bethune-Cookman and Florida A&M deciding not to participate in the spring season.
A revised schedule was released on Dec. 14 to make up for the loss of the two absent MEAC teams.
According to MEACsports.com, the conference will be split up into two divisions: Northern Division and Southern Division.
Howard, Morgan State, Norfolk State, and Delaware State will make up the Northern Division while North Carolina Central University, North Carolina A&T, and South Carolina State will compete in the Southern Division.
Each team must play four conference games within their respective divisions. Teams in the Northern Division will play one opponent twice while those in the Southern Division will each other twice.
The teams with the best record of each division will face off on Apr. 17 for the MEAC championship. The winner of this game will then advance to the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision playoffs.
Teams will have the option to fill open dates to play non-conference games throughout the season.
This season marks the last season of N.C. Central’s rival, North Carolina A&T, in the MEAC as they plan to join the Big South conference in the fall of 2021. The two will face off on Mar. 6 and April 3.
N.C. Central will play its first conference game away at South Carolina State on Feb. 20. Time is to be announced.
