A quick look at the calendar reveals that the regular season is now halfway in the books.
Both the MEAC and the SWAC are still anyones to win (well, almost, anyone sorry FAMU and Mississippi Valley) but there are two huge matchups featuring teams in the HBCU Gameday FCS Power Rankings that could swing the pendulum of power this weekend.
Grambling (4-2) and Alcorn State (4-1) both saw a return to glory in 2014 and remain on the upswing in 2015. Both were picked to win their respective divisions, Grambling in the West and Alcorn in the East. So far, so good, as both teams remain undefeated in the SWAC.
When the two teams meet in Mississippi this week, somethings got to give. Both teams are awesome on offense, with Grambling leading the way with 44.5 points per game and Alcorn at a solid 38.6 points per game. The discrepancy lies on defense, however, where Alcorn allows a SWAC-low 23.6 per game while Grambling gives up 39 points per game.
All signs point to a game that will be exciting to watch. If were lucky, we may get a new millennium version of the 1994 battle between Alcorns Steve McNair and Gramblings Kendrick Nord that folks still talk about to this day.
Over in the MEAC, North Carolina A&T (4-1) and Bethune-Cookman (5-1) are set to meet in a game that will likely put the winner in the driver’s seat in the race for the Celebration Bowl.
HBCU Gameday Weekly for Week 7. -We have a possible championship preview in The Southwestern Athletic Conference When Grambling State Tigers football travels to take on Alcorn State University in matchup of SWAC unbeatens? -Are the FSU Broncos for real and does it even matter when The CIAA’s best teams appear to be in the Northern Division?
Posted by HBCU Gameday on Friday, October 16, 2015
Other than a “Money Game” loss to UNC and a grind-it-out win over Elon, A&T has been pretty much on cruise control, stomping D2 Shaw and winning comfortably over Hampton and Norfolk in back-to-back weeks. Other than its usual pounding of Savannah State, Bethune-Cookman has had to grind it out in wins against Lane, Grambling, North Carolina Central and South Carolina State.
Finding success through the air would be a big benefit for A&T as the BCU defense is likely to key on running back Tarik Cohen. If the game comes down to the wire, and it looks like it very well could, does BCU have enough magic left to pull victory from the jaws of defeat again?
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