Four North Carolina college football players earned recognition Monday when Stats Perform released its 2026 FCS Preseason All-America Team. Linebacker Brodie Carroll and placekicker Luke Barnes represented Elon on the second team, while Western Carolina defensive back Ken Moore Jr. and North Carolina A&T return specialist Elijah Kennedy also received second-team honors.
Elon Phoenix
Carroll, from Haymarket, VA (Battlefield HS), led Elon with 104 tackles during his first season with the Phoenix in 2025, adding 9.5 tackles for loss while finishing with three consecutive double-digit tackle games.
Barnes, from Greensboro (Grimsley HS), compiled an outstanding sophomore season in which he connected on 14 of 15 field-goal attempts inside 50 yards and converted all 40 extra points. He was an Associated Press honorable mention All-American last season and continues a recent trend of exceptional special teams at Elon, where punter Jeff Yurk twice earned All-America honors.
Stats Perform FCS Preseason All-American honors. 🔥
Congratulations Brodie and Luke! #PhoenixRising | #AED pic.twitter.com/3vwJjDvVyp — Elon Football (@ElonFootball) July 13, 2026
Western Carolina Catamounts
Moore, from Miami (Christopher Columbus HS), returns after another productive season in Cullowhee, recording 43 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, three interceptions and seven pass breakups.
He tied for the Catamount lead in interceptions and ranked among the Southern Conference leaders in passes defended. Moore has eight career interceptions over three seasons.
North Carolina A&T Aggies
Kennedy earned preseason All-America honors after emerging as one of the nation’s most dangerous return specialists. He led the FCS with 979 combined kick-return yards in 2025 while averaging 16.1 yards per punt return and scoring two punt-return touchdowns.
His signature performance came against Campbell, when he returned both a punt and a kickoff for fourth-quarter touchdowns to rally the Aggies to a 28-24 victory. Kennedy became the first player in program history to return both a punt and kickoff for touchdowns in the same game.
North Carolina Connections
Two players who suited for North Carolina high school programs but chose out-of-state colleges also appear on the Stats Perform FCS honors list:
- Joshua Stoneking (Furman): The former Cardinal Gibbons standout from Raleigh landed on the first-team defense.
- Steve Zayachkowsky (Charleston Southern): The former Porter Ridge High player from Indian Trail earned third-team recognition.
Defending national champion Montana State led all programs with eight preseason selections, while all 13 FCS conferences, 53 schools and 101 players were represented on the 2026 Stats Perform Preseason All-America Team.
👉 The preseason recognition also puts these North Carolina standouts on the early watch list for our NC Football News’ 2026 Small-College Football Awards. Throughout the season, we’ll honor standout performances with Offensive, Defensive and Special Teams Player of the Week awards before naming the North Carolina Small-College Football Player of the Year after the season.
