DURHAM – North Carolina Central football showcased flashes of athleticism and offensive firepower during its spring game Saturday at O’Kelly-Riddick Stadium, but questions remain as the Eagles head into the summer.
Multiple quarterbacks made plays throughout the afternoon, highlighting an ongoing competition to replace last season’s starter, Walker Harris, the reigning MEAC Offensive Player of the Year.
One of the top moments came from transfer quarterback Nelson Layne, who broke free for a long touchdown run, underscoring the dual-threat ability present in the room.
Head coach Trei Oliver indicated the competition is far from settled. NCCU’s spring roster lists five quarterbacks in all, including Cobey Thompkins (transfer from The Citadel), Jaquez Crawford, Josh Jones and Carter Merck.
All are competing to replace the Eagles’ single-season passing leader. Harris threw for 3,214 yards and 24 TDs in 2025.
“It’s still going to be a battle going in,” Oliver said in comments to media after the spring game. “I like the way those guys compete. I like the way they got a grasp of the offense. I think some guys kind of separated themselves from the rest, but that’s an athletic room.
“We want to have dual-threat quarterbacks and I think we have those.”
⚡ Offense Finds Rhythm Early
Using a modified scoring system that rewarded both sides of the ball, the offense piled up points throughout the afternoon, consistently moving the chains and producing big plays.
Oliver acknowledged that imbalance, noting the offense “had the upper hand on the defense quite a bit.”
Despite the offensive success, the performance came with expected growing pains.
“Obviously a little too inconsistent … when you have new coaches and new players, you’re going to get a lot of that,” he said.
🛑 Defense Responds in Key Moments
While the offense controlled much of the action, the defense showed signs of progress during situational drills late in the scrimmage, tightening up and getting stops when it mattered most.
Oliver pointed to those moments as encouraging signs, even as consistency remains a work in progress.
“Situational stuff, the defense won. It was good to see these guys competing.”
One area that drew attention was edge discipline and pass rush integrity, particularly against a group of mobile quarterbacks. To be fair, NCCU is replacing significant production along the defensive front after multiple departures to the FBS level.
“The defense gave up a lot on the edges,” Oliver said. “With the pass rush, we lost contain quite a bit. We’ve got some athletic quarterbacks in here so we’ve got to do a better job with our pass rush lanes.
“But all the stuff I saw, we can get fixed.”
🔄 A Team Still Taking Shape
NCCU (8-4 in 2025, 3-2 MEAC) underwent significant coaching staff turnover in the off-season. Oliver brought in two new coordinators and six new assistants in all. The newcomers include:
- Chris Barnette: Offensive coordinator, assistant head coach
- Tommy Thigpen: Defensive coordinator, safeties coach
- Grayson Reed: Offensive line coach
- Elijah Coleman: Cornerbacks coach, recruiting coordinator
- Thomas Stallworth II: Strength and conditioning coach
- Omar Beasley: Director of speed development
With new coaches, new schemes and a wave of roster turnover fueled in part by the transfer portal, NCCU used the spring as a foundation-building period.
The Eagles must replace elite production on its defensive and offensive lines after losing multiple standouts to FBS programs:
- OL Ja’Quan Sprinkle → LSU
- OL Trevon Humphrey → Boston College
- EDGE Thomas Johnson → Cincinnati
- DL Wisdom Simms → Purdue
- DE Donquaruis Parker → Arkansas State
Notable defensive backs also departed (Eric Adams, Malcolm Reed, Tomondrey Braxton, Lionell Burns III, Ant Fisher).
Oliver came away encouraged by the progress made over 15 practices. “We got a lot accomplished. We’re a little bit further along than what I thought we would be at this time,” he said.
The Eagles have leaned into the realities of modern college football, adjusting their approach to roster building in an era defined by transfer movement and NIL opportunities.
“The transfer portal, NIL and all that stuff, it’s not going anywhere,” Oliver said. “Either you can sit here and complain about it or you can accept it and adjust. I had to adjust my approach.”
📈 What It Means
NCCU has been the steadiest of our state’s FCS programs since the COVID pandemic. The Eagles have won eight or more games in each of the last four years, including a 10-2 conference and Celebration Brown championship campaign in 2022. This year isn’t a full-on rebuild by any means, but much retooling needs to be done to keep NCCU in the hunt for more success this fall.
The quarterback battle remains open, the defense is working to replace key production, and the roster continues to take shape.
“We’ve been consistent around here but we’ve got to take things to another level,” Oliver said. “Our team speed and the competitive nature that we have, we’ve got a chance. We’ve got to build off this for the summer and into the season.”
North Carolina Central will kick off 2026 on Saturday, Aug. 29 at Texas Southern, which plays in the SWAC. The home opener will be the following Saturday, Sept. 5, against former CIAA rival Elizabeth City State.
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👉 2026 NCCU football schedule: See who North Carolina Central plays this season and when
👉 North Carolina FCS Transfer Tracker: Follow player movement across all seven of our state’s FCS programs
