DURHAM, NC — A Friday night showcase of top HBCU football programs turned into Fight Night after the game between North Carolina Central and Howard University.
The game ended in a decisive 26-3 win for North Carolina Central. But shortly after NCCU head coach Trei Oliver and HU head coach Larry Scott shook hands things descended into chaos with pushing, shoving and punching between players and coaches as well. The action went on for well over five minutes before the two teams separated and moved towards their locker rooms.
A few minutes later things began to bubble up in the parking lot near the visiting locker room, with multiple sources indicating North Carolina Central assistant coaches were involved in another altercation.
NC Central head coach Trei Oliver was asked if — given the chippy-ness in the game and the history between the two programs, he thought about not sending his team out to shake hands.
“I always shake hands. Last year I didn’t like the vibe at the end of the game, so I told my guys to go to the locker room,” Oliver said. “I went across the field and shook the coach’s hand. I took the loss. I was down there talking to another coach, I didn’t see what happened, but that’s not our football team. That’s not who we are, I don’t care what happened. We go to the locker room. Go to the band, then go to the locker room. That’s not us, that’s not who we are. That won’t be tolerated in my program.”
The tension hung over the game like the cloud of smoke emanating from NCCU’s industrial center at the edge of venerable O’Kelly-Riddick Stadium. You could credit Howard’s frustration at being unable to take advantage of a standout performance from its defense and special teams in the first half, as it accumulated just 113 yards of total offense.
But go back a few months ago to the HBCU Legacy Bowl, when Howard University coach Larry Scott ran former NCCU quarterback Davius Richard on a goal-line play, leading to an injury that kept him out of proper NFL Draft workouts. Oliver instinctively aired out his displeasure via Twitter
“I promise he would not have played if I knew that those dumbass coaches were going to run him,” Oliver wrote. He later apologized and rectracted his statement.
But even before that, the two programs spent the last two years battling for MEAC supremacy, which was also a point of contention within itself.
Howard University claimed a share of the 2022 MEAC title based on record even though NCCU put up 50 points on it in a head-to-head win that propelled it to the Celebration Bowl. Oliver was annoyed by the co-champion claim as his team went on to win the HBCU national title by knocking off Jackson State in the Celebration Bowl. Howard returned the favor last fall when it handed NCCU a 50-20 loss to take the lead and claim the MEAC title and moved on to the Celebration Bowl.
These two programs aren’t traditionally rival HBCU football programs, but that would be hard to tell given the back-and-forth between them over the past few seasons.
Rivalries are compelling and fun, and they do often involve fights. But Friday night’s unscheduled bout between the two schools, captured on ESPN, was a bad look for both programs and should not be swept under the rug by the universities or the MEAC. All eyes will be on Norfolk, VA to make sure things don’t get that out of control again.