# 2018 North Carolina Central Eagles football team

The 2018 North Carolina Central Eagles football team represented North Carolina Central University as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) during the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by Granville Eastman in his first and only season as interim head coach, the Eagles compiled an overall record of 5–6 with a mark of 3–4, tying for sixth place in the MEAC. North Carolina Central played home games at O'Kelly–Riddick Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.

## Preseason
### Award watch lists

| Award | Player | Position | Year |
| Buck Buchanan Award | Davanta Reynolds | S | SR |

### MEAC preseason poll

In a vote of the MEAC head coaches and sports information directors, the Eagles were picked to finish in third place.
| Predicted finish | Team |
| 1 | North Carolina A&T |
| 2 | Howard |
| 3 | North Carolina Central |
| 4 | Bethune–Cookman |
| 5 | Florida A&M |
| 6 | Norfolk State |
| 7 | South Carolina State |
| 8 | Savannah State |
| 9 | Morgan State |
| 10 | Delaware State |

### Preseason All-MEAC Teams

The Eagles had nine players selected to the preseason all-MEAC teams. Defensive back Davanta Reynolds was selected as the preseason defensive player of the year.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 2 | 12:00 p.m. | vs. Prairie View A&M* | Georgia State StadiumAtlanta, GA (MEAC/SWAC Challenge) | ESPN2 | L 24–40 | 10,274 |
| September 8 | 6:00 p.m. | St. Augustine's* | O'Kelly–Riddick StadiumDurham, NC | NSN | W 51–14 | 6,142 |
| September 22 | 3:30 p.m. | at Duke* | Wallace Wade StadiumDurham, NC | ACCN Extra | L 13–55 | 30,477 |
| September 29 | 4:00 p.m. | Florida A&M | O'Kelly–Riddick StadiumDurham, NC | ESPN3 | L 14–55 | 8,451 |
| October 6 | 2:00 p.m. | Howard | O'Kelly–Riddick StadiumDurham, NC | ESPN3 | W 40–35 | 6,702 |
| October 20 | 2:00 p.m. | at Norfolk State | William "Dick" Price StadiumNorfolk, VA | | W 36–6 | 13,186 |
| October 27 | 2:00 p.m. | at Delaware State | Alumni StadiumDover, DE | | L 13–28 | 1,466 |
| November 3 | 2:00 p.m. | Edward Waters* | O'Kelly–Riddick StadiumDurham, NC | ESPN3 | W 52–12 | 11,968 |
| November 8 | 4:00 p.m. | at Bethune–Cookman | Daytona StadiumDaytona Beach, FL | ESPNU | L 25–28 $^{2OT}$ | 3,145 |
| November 17 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 12 North Carolina A&T | O'Kelly–Riddick StadiumDurham, NC (rivalry) | ESPN3 | L 0–45 | 11,055 |
| November 24 | 12:30 pm | at South Carolina State | Oliver C. Dawson StadiumOrangeburg, SC | | W 21–17 | 3,996 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from STATS Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||
* ↑ Game originally scheduled for September 15, but moved in anticipation of Hurricane Florence.

## Game summaries
### vs Prairie View A&M

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 20 | 3 | 3 | 14 | 40 |
| Eagles | 0 | 7 | 14 | 3 | 24 |

### St. Augustine's

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Falcons | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| Eagles | 14 | 9 | 14 | 14 | 51 |

### At Duke

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| Blue Devils | 20 | 7 | 21 | 7 | 55 |

### Florida A&M

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Rattlers | 24 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 55 |
| Eagles | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 |

### Howard

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bison | 5 | 14 | 7 | 9 | 35 |
| Eagles | 7 | 17 | 7 | 9 | 40 |

### At Norfolk State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| Spartans | 3 | 9 | 7 | 17 | 36 |

### At Delaware State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 0 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 13 |
| Hornets | 14 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 28 |

### Edward Waters

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Tigers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 12 |
| Eagles | 14 | 3 | 21 | 14 | 52 |

### At Bethune–Cookman

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Eagles | 6 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 25 |
| Wildcats | 2 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 28 |

### North Carolina A&T

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No.12 Aggies | 14 | 10 | 14 | 7 | 45 |
| Eagles | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

### At South Carolina State

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