2016 North Carolina Central Eagles football team

2016 North Carolina Central Eagles football
MEAC champion
Celebration Bowl, L 9–10 vs. Grambling State
Conference	Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
Ranking
STATS	No. 22
FCS Coaches	No. 20
Record	9–3 (8–0 MEAC)
Head coach	Jerry Mack (3rd season)
Offensive coordinator	T. C. Taylor (2nd season)
Defensive coordinator	Granville Eastman (3rd season)
Home stadium	O'Kelly–Riddick Stadium

2016 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 22 North Carolina Central $		8	–	0					9	–	3
No. 20 North Carolina A&T ^		7	–	1					9	–	3
Hampton		5	–	3					5	–	6
South Carolina State		5	–	3					5	–	6
Bethune–Cookman		4	–	4					4	–	6
Florida A&M *		4	–	4					4	–	7
Norfolk State		3	–	5					4	–	7
Savannah State *		3	–	5					3	–	7
Morgan State *		3	–	5					3	–	8
Howard *		2	–	6					2	–	9
Delaware State		0	–	8					0	–	11
$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant * Florida A&M, Howard, Morgan State, and Savannah State ineligible for postseason due to APR violations Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2016 North Carolina Central Eagles football team represented North Carolina Central University as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) during the 2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by third-year head coach Jerry Mack, the Eagles compiled an overall record of 9–3 with a mark of 8–0, winning the MEAC title. North Carolina Central earned a berth in the Celebration Bowl, where the Eagles lost to Grambling State. The team played home games at O'Kelly–Riddick Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 3	6:00 pm	at Duke*		Wallace Wade Stadium Durham, NC (Bull City Gridiron Classic)	ESPN3	L 6–49	35,049
September 10	7:00 pm	at Western Michigan*		Waldo Stadium Kalamazoo, MI	ESPN3	L 21–70	23,727
September 17	6:00 pm	Saint Augustine's*		O'Kelly–Riddick Stadium Durham, NC	NSN	W 65–7	4,016
September 24	2:00 pm	at Norfolk State		William "Dick" Price Stadium Norfolk, VA	SSC	W 34–31	8,296
October 1	4:00 pm	at Bethune–Cookman		Municipal Stadium Daytona Beach, FL	CEN	W 31–14	4,216
October 8	4:00 pm	Florida A&M		O'Kelly–Riddick Stadium Durham, NC	NSN	W 17–13	617
October 15	2:00 pm	Savannah State		O'Kelly–Riddick Stadium Durham, NC	NSN	W 33–3	12,966
October 22	1:00 pm	at Morgan State		Hughes Stadium Baltimore, MD		W 21–17	8,534
November 5	2:00 pm	at Delaware State		Alumni Stadium Dover, DE	WDSU-TV	W 38–19	1,597
November 12	2:00 pm	Howard		O'Kelly–Riddick Stadium Durham, NC	NSN	W 30–21	6,897
November 19	2:00 pm	No. 9 North Carolina A&T	No. 24	O'Kelly–Riddick Stadium Durham, NC (rivalry)	ESPN3, ESPNU (tape delay)	W 42–21	15,715
December 17	3:00 pm	vs. No. 16 Grambling State*	No. 20	Georgia Dome Atlanta, GA (Celebration Bowl)	ABC	L 9–10	31,096
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Game summaries

At Duke

	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	0	0	3	3	6
Blue Devils	21	28	0	0	49

See also: 2016 Duke Blue Devils football team

At Western Michigan

	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	7	14	0	0	21
Broncos	28	14	14	14	70

See also: 2016 Western Michigan Broncos football team

Saint Augustine's

	1	2	3	4	Total
Falcons	0	7	0	0	7
Eagles	21	20	7	17	65

At Norfolk State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	10	7	10	7	34
Spartans	0	10	0	21	31

See also: 2016 Norfolk State Spartans football team

At Bethune–Cookman

	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	0	7	10	14	31
Wildcats	7	0	0	7	14

See also: 2016 Bethune–Cookman Wildcats football team

Florida A&M

	1	2	3	4	Total
Rattlers	5	0	0	8	13
Eagles	0	3	0	14	17

See also: 2016 Florida A&M Rattlers football team

Savannah State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Tigers	0	0	0	3	3
Eagles	3	16	7	7	33

See also: 2016 Savannah State Tigers football team

At Morgan State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	14	0	0	7	21
Bears	7	10	0	0	17

See also: 2016 Morgan State Bears football team

At Delaware State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	9	22	7	0	38
Hornets	0	7	0	12	19

See also: 2016 Delaware State Hornets football team

Howard

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bison	7	0	0	14	21
Eagles	6	3	7	14	30

See also: 2016 Howard Bison football team

North Carolina A&T

	1	2	3	4	Total
#9 Aggies	0	0	7	14	21
#24 Eagles	0	14	14	14	42

See also: 2016 North Carolina A&T Aggies football team and North Carolina A&T–North Carolina Central rivalry

Celebration Bowl–Grambling State

	1	2	3	4	Total
#16 Tigers	0	0	10	0	10
#20 Eagles	3	0	0	6	9

See also: 2016 Grambling State Tigers football team and 2016 Celebration Bowl

Ranking movements

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Final
STATS FCS	RV	—	—	—	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	24	20	22
Coaches	RV	—	—	—	—	—	RV	RV	RV	RV	25	20	18	20