Rain and storms could once again impact Saturday’s college football action, but five North Carolina FCS programs are set for important Week 5 matchups.
Elon opens CAA play at home against Hampton, while Western Carolina and Campbell square off in what could be one of the nation’s most explosive offensive showcases. North Carolina A&T travels north to Maine for the first time in program history, while North Carolina Central heads to Texas for the first time to face East Texas A&M after setting a program record for total yards last week.
Davidson and Gardner-Webb are idle.
[UPDATE: All FCS games have gone final for the day. Read below for scores, storylines and our takeaways]
Follow our FCS Game Day thread for live updates and scores from today’s North Carolina football excitement. Bookmark and check back throughout the weekend. We’ll add quick hitters and top performers as the day and weekend progresses.
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📅 North Carolina FCS Football Schedule | Saturday, Sept. 27
- Elon 41, Hampton 20 — FINAL
- Maine 37, North Carolina A&T 30 — FINAL
- 🔥 Western Carolina 42, Campbell 35 — FINAL
- North Carolina Central 50, East Texas A&M 42 — FINAL
- Idle: Davidson, Gardner-Webb
⚡ FCS Storylines We’re Following Today
🏆 Elon Opens CAA Play
The Phoenix begin conference action at home against Hampton. The teams are meeting for the fourth straight season, with Elon leading the series 2-1. Elon QB Landen Clark, already a two-time CAA Rookie of the Week this season, looks to keep the offense rolling. Hampton, under second-year head coach Trenton Boykin, is seeking its first CAA win after falling to Howard last week.
What Happened: Elon improved to 3-2 — its first time above .500 this season — and got CAA play off to a winning start. Jimmyll Williams rushed for 172 yards and a score, while TJ Thomas earned two TDs on the ground to go with 67 rushing yards. Isaiah Furhmann caught an 81-yard TD from Landen Clark. The Phoenix are positioned well heading into the heart of CA action.
🐻 Aggies Head to Maine
North Carolina A&T visits Maine for the first time in football program history. The Aggies are in their third CAA season, while the Black Bears (0-4) have been competitive despite a tough schedule that included FBS foes Liberty and Georgia Southern. Former UNC Pembroke star Sincere Baines (Fayetteville, Jack Britt HS) has been a breakout for Maine, leading the CAA in yards per carry (7.49) and ranking fourth in rushing yards (352).
What Happened: Baines broke out for 98 yards and a touchdown against an opponent from his home state. Kevin White had a solid day at QB for NC A&T — 279 passing yards and two TDs — but the Aggies played from behind all day and never could catch all the way up.
🦅 Eagles Fly to Texas
North Carolina Central makes its first-ever trip to face East Texas A&M (formerly Texas A&M Commerce). The Lions are 0-3 but battled Grambling close last week and have already faced SMU and Florida State. NCCU is fresh off a program-record 745 yards of offense, led by RB Chris Mosley, who scored five TDs in the win.
What Happened: The Eagles survived a furious fourth-quarter rally from East Texas A&M and will head to the bye week with a 4-2 overall record. The Lions recovered an onsides kick as part of a 21-point final period but NCCU covered a second and ran out the clock. Walker Harris threw for 288 yards and 2 TDs. Arthur Rodgers notched two of the Eagles’ four rushing TDs.
💥 Shootout Potential: WCU vs Campbell
Last week, Western Carolina racked up 700+ yards of offense in a win over Samford, with QB Taron Dickens throwing for 582 yards and 6 TDs. Campbell matched the fireworks in a 50-48 double-OT win over Bryant behind QB Kamden Sixkiller and WR Randall King (4 TDs). This matchup could easily top 100 combined points and 1,000 combined yards if the weather cooperates.
What Happened: We had 1,000 yards of total offense (1,001!). But we didn’t quite get to 100 points. Dickens threw for 427 yards and 4 TDs, but the Catamounts struggled to shake the Camels after jumping to a 28-10 lead. WCU needed a fourth-down conversion on its final drive to run out the clock and take the win.
📊 Live Scoreboard: North Carolina D2
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Hampton | 6 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 20 | Final | |
 | Elon | 7 | 10 | 7 | 17 | 41 | FloCollege | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | NC A&T | 0 | 16 | 0 | 14 | 30 | Final | |
 | Maine | 7 | 23 | 7 | 0 | 37 | FloCollege | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | WCU | 7 | 21 | 7 | 7 | 42 | Final | |
 | Campbell | 0 | 10 | 8 | 17 | 35 | FloCollege | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | NC Central | 14 | 17 | 16 | 3 | 50 | Final | |
 | E Texas A&M | 7 | 14 | 0 | 21 | 42 | ESPN + |
✅ FCS Football Wrap-Up
Check back later this weekend for our main takeaways from today’s action across North Carolina FCS football. We’ll highlight:
🏆 Biggest Win of the Day
Elon stumbled surprisingly last season at Hampton, but that was certainly not the case on Saturday. The Phoenix used a punishing rushing attack to take out the Pirates 41-20 and start the CAA portion of the schedule with an important win. This marks the first time Elon has been above .500 since September 2023.
💪 Standout Performance
This may end up being the “FCS Standout Performance Brought to You By Taron Dickens” by season’s end. The Western Carolina QB lands in this spot for the second week in a row, throwing for 427 yards and 4 TDs in a shootout win over Campbell. Dickens spread the wealth around with touchdowns throws of 17, 32, 9 and 10 yards to Brayden Blackmon, David Hulbert, Marcus Striggles and Patrick Boyd Jr.
⚡ Biggest Upset
Campbell and North Carolina A&T both came within a touchdown of landing here this week. Both battled favored opponents to the wire and never gave up.
🔥 Other Highlights & Takeaways
While Dickens had another stat-stuffer day, the biggest WCU pass play of the day didn’t come from his cannon arm. A 61-yard TD throw from wide receiver James Tyre to Painter Richards with less than five minutes left proved the dagger to the Camels’ comeback. The trick-play on a reverse put WCU up 42-28, enough cushion to hold on.
🔗 More North Carolina Football Coverage
- North Carolina D2 Football Game Day
- North Carolina FBS Football Game Day
- Full North Carolina College Football Scoreboard | Week 5
- North Carolina High School Football Scores | Sept. 26
