Josh Jones enters North Carolina Central’s 2026 season with an unusual distinction. The MEAC’s coaches and sports information directors voted him the preseason first-team quarterback, even though NCCU coach Trei Oliver has not named him the starter.
Oliver expected the competition to look different by now.
“I was expecting Josh to come out of spring being number one,” Oliver said at MEAC Football Media Day.
Instead, transfers Cobey Thompkins and Nelson Layne pushed Jones throughout spring practice. Oliver left spring with three options rather than the clear successor he anticipated.
“These guys — it’s a quarterback battle,” Oliver said. “Any one of them can start.”
For an HBCU program picked second in the MEAC, the uncertainty matters. NCCU must replace 2025 MEAC Offensive Player of the Year Walker Harris while installing an offense under new coordinator Chris Barnett. The quarterback eventually selected will inherit expectations built by Harris and an NCCU program that has spent the Oliver era competing near the top of the conference.
The preseason vote says Jones is ready. Oliver is making him prove it.
Jones’ NCCU résumé requires some context
Jones’ 2025 passing numbers hardly resemble the typical résumé of a preseason first-team quarterback. He completed 5 of 7 passes for 36 yards without a touchdown or interception. NCCU used him more often as a runner, where Jones carried 26 times for 110 yards. However, 2025 does not tell the entire story.
Jones completed 18 of 23 passes for 294 yards and three touchdowns in 2024. His two interceptions that season came across a limited sample, but he demonstrated the passing ability that was largely unnecessary behind Harris last fall.
The MEAC voters are therefore projecting what Jones could become rather than rewarding extensive 2025 production. NCCU’s own evaluation remains more complicated.
Jones was Harris’ backup last season, giving him continuity within Oliver’s program. Still, spring practice provided Thompkins and Layne an opportunity to make the succession less predictable. They took advantage.
Oliver said Jones had a “very good spring.” He also described the performances of Thompkins and Layne as “phenomenal.”
That distinction matters. Jones did not lose ground because Oliver said he played poorly. The competition remained open because the quarterbacks around him gave the staff something to consider.
The transfers bring experience of their own to NCCU
Neither challenger arrives at NCCU without college production.
Thompkins played 12 games as a redshirt freshman at The Citadel in 2025. He completed 35 of 56 passes for 503 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. His 62.5% completion rate came on eight times as many attempts as Jones had last season.
Layne played four games as a freshman at North Carolina A&T. He completed 24 of 36 passes for 236 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. He also rushed 40 times for 153 yards and a touchdown.
That leaves NCCU with an unusual quarterback room. Its preseason first-team All-MEAC selection has the least 2025 passing production of the three candidates.
That does not make Jones less qualified. It does explain why Oliver has little reason to rush the decision.
Jones provides familiarity with NCCU’s program. Thompkins arrives after throwing for 503 yards in a rotational role at The Citadel. Layne brings another dual-threat option after getting college snaps as a freshman at A&T.
Oliver also likes how the competition has developed inside the room.
“I love the way these guys are, the continuity in the room, the chemistry in the room,” Oliver said. “The guys compete, but they’re good teammates. And they help each other and help push each other.” Now Barnette has to decide which skill set best fits his offense.
Chris Barnett adds another variable for NCCU
The quarterback competition would be significant by itself. NCCU changing offensive coordinators makes the decision more important. Matt Leone left after directing an offense led by Harris. Oliver turned to Barnette, a coach he previously worked with at North Carolina A&T and someone whose adaptability stood out during his time at Alabama State.
Oliver pointed specifically to Barnette navigating quarterback turnover there. Alabama State went deep into its depth chart, yet Oliver came away impressed with Barnette’s ability to adjust and keep the offense competitive. “I love his approach to the game, how he tries to get his playmakers the ball and how we attack defenses,” Oliver said.
That could matter as much as previous experience when NCCU chooses its quarterback. Barnette inherits an established target in Chance Peterson, the MEAC’s 2026 Preseason Offensive Player of the Year. Peterson caught 48 passes for 720 yards last season and believes the transition began taking shape during spring. “We’re all learning this offense and it’s been good since the spring,” Peterson said. “The chemistry is being built and it’s, you know, been built. So now we’re just working to get it better.” Peterson’s presence gives all three quarterbacks a proven option. Oliver said Barnette’s ability to create matchups and get Peterson into space is one reason he is excited about the new offense. The larger question is who will be distributing the football.
NCCU can afford to make Jones earn it
There is an easy way to misread this competition. Jones earning preseason first-team All-MEAC honors while remaining QB2 on an unofficial depth chart might look like a contradiction. It is better understood as two different evaluations happening at different times. The preseason team measures expectations. Oliver’s decision determines who actually plays. The conference vote reflects Jones’ potential as NCCU’s presumed successor to Harris. Oliver, meanwhile, watched Thompkins and Layne compete against Jones throughout spring. His assessment carries a different burden. NCCU finished 8-4 and 3-2 in the MEAC last season. Both conference losses came at home against Delaware State and eventual conference champion South Carolina State. Oliver called two losses “not acceptable in my book,” and the Eagles enter 2026 picked second behind South Carolina State. Choosing the quarterback is therefore tied directly to NCCU’s attempt to get back to the top of the MEAC.
The Eagles are not searching for someone merely capable of replacing Harris. They need the quarterback who can operate Barnette’s offense, distribute the ball to Peterson and NCCU’s other playmakers, and win against a conference that Oliver believes has become deeper. Jones may eventually be that quarterback. His preseason honor suggests plenty of people around the MEAC expect him to be.
NCCU is making him win the vote that matters inside its own building first.