Eagles clipped 48-0

On Sept. 1, in the N.C. Central University coaching debut of Henry Frazier III, at High Point Solutions Stadium in Piscataway, N.J., turnovers, dropped passes, and poor execution contributed to NCCU's 48-0 loss to Rutgers.

The Eagles mustered only 120 yards of total offense and surrendered nine sacks.

"Their defense dominated us and defense wins championships. The defense really dictated the game," said Frazier.

Both teams struggled to gain traction in the first quarter, but a 1-yard rushing touchdown by Rutgers running back Savon Huggins with 38 seconds left in the quarter marked the first score of the game.

Constant pressure by Rutgers' defensive line caused problems for Eagles quarterbacks Michael Johnson and Jordan Reid. In addition to the nine sacks, they were hurried eight times, which caused errant throws.

"Yes (that was the key for them). They are very big up front and fast," said Johnson. "They had a lot of movement, some stunts up front, caused some confusion. They had a very good front four. They were pretty tough up front," he said.

Down by 21 points at halftime, NCCU continued to struggle in the second half. A tumultuous third quarter included a fumble recovery in the end zone and a 37-yard interception return by the Rutgers defense brought the score to 42-0.

The final score was 48-0.

The defense was led by senior linebacker Brandon Outlaw, who notched a game-high 14 tackles. Rutgers only managed 3.3 yards per carry on 41 rushing attempts.

"They are a good team and this was a good measurement to test where we are, what we need to work on and what our strengths are," said Outlaw.

Despite their errors, head coach Henry Frazier was encouraged with his team's perseverance.

"We will take a lot from this game. We didn't quit. We played a first-class football game. Our kids fought all the way to the end," said Frazier.

"We will identify the errors that we made and we have another ball game next week."

NCCU hits the road again Sept. 10 to take on Central State in the inaugural Cleveland Classic in Cleveland.