The 2026 college football season has has a multitude of conferences with intriguing storylines and teams to watch, but the battle for the MEAC could be the most interesting of them all.
South Carolina State has been the dominant team in the MEAC over the last two seasons and are coming off an HBCU National Championship.
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Several teams have the potential to take the top spot from SCSU. North Carolina Central and Delaware State are coming off eight win seasons and are looking to build into the 2026 season.
With the preseason awards recently announced, let's take a look at five things you should about the MEAC conference ahead of the 2026 college football season.
Preseason MEAC Standings
- South Carolina State 49 (5)
- North Carolina Central 42 (1)
- Delaware State 40 (2)
- Morgan State 25
- Norfolk State 18 (1)
- Howard 15
Preseason All-MEAC Honors
- Preseason Offensive Player of the Year – Chance Peterson, North Carolina Central
- Preseason Defensive Player of the Year – Jordan Franklin, South Carolina State
Preseason First Team All-MEAC
Offense
- QB - Josh Jones (North Carolina Central)
- RB - Eden James (Howard)
- RB - Tyler Smith (South Carolina State)
- WR - Chance Peterson (North Carolina Central)
- WR - Darius Thompson (South Carolina State)
- TE - Alex Simmons (Morgan State)
- C - James Reddick II (South Carolina State)
- OL - Moses Umoren (South Carolina State)
- OL - AC McMoore (North Carolina Central)
- OL - Ryan Nolan (Norfolk State)
- OL - Diu Dau (Delaware State)
Defense
- DL - Joshua Barker (South Carolina State)
- DL - Ka’Von Chisolm (South Carolina State)
- DL - Jordan Dollard (South Carolina State)
- DL - Jaylen Williams (Norfolk State)
- LB - Jordan Franklin (South Carolina State)
- LB - Isaiah Lawson (North Carolina Central)
- LB - Arturo Mattocks (Morgan State)
- DB - Kedrick Green (Howard)
- DB - Wayne Favors (Delaware State)
- DB - Sharmari Reed (South Carolina State)
- DB - Aki Harvey (Morgan State)
Special Teams
- P - Liam Allen IV (Howard)
- K - Matt Conord (Howard)
- RS - Mehki Wall (North Carolina Central)
Preseason Second Team All-MEAC
- QB - Ja'Shawn Scroggins (Howard)
- RB - Josh Shaw (South Carolina State)
- RB - Keith Jenkins Jr. (Morgan State)
- WR - Justin Perry (Morgan State)
- WR - Nate Stewart (Delaware State)
- TE - Rodney Lesane (North Carolina Central)
- C - Holly Saint-Melus (North Carolina Central)**
- C - Jack Smoot (Norfolk State)**
- OL - Kiande Marsh (South Carolina State)
- OL - Tyler Leinberger (Norfolk State)
- OL - Taron Williams (North Carolina Central)
- OL - Victor Goree (North Carolina Central)
Second Team (Defense)
- DL - Quoy Rainey (Delaware State)
- DL - Miguel Rijo (Norfolk State)
- DL - Justin Dutton (Morgan State)
- DL - Kristopher Boyd (Morgan State)
- LB - Kaleb Broadbent (Norfolk State)
- LB - Roderick Kelly (South Carolina State)
- LB - Quentin Johnson (Delaware State)
- DB - Kwantre Harry (South Carolina State)
- DB - Nasir Bashir (Norfolk State)
- DB - Jakarri Martin (North Carolina Central)
- DB - Stephon Hall (Norfolk State)
Special Teams
- P - Shane Messenger (Morgan State)
- K - Jake Walker (Norfolk State)
- RS - Malique Leatherbury (Morgan State)
The MEAC Could Be Anybody’s Conference
The MEAC is as wide open as any conference in college football coming into the 2026 season. Four of the six teams received first-place votes, making for an interesting battle for the conference title.
South Carolina State has won the conference in two consecutive seasons, and is favored in preseason voting to go for a three-peat. North Carolina Central and Delaware State are also coming off successful seasons and have a good shot of taking the crown.
Norfolk State is the wild card of the conference. Four-time NFL Pro Bowl quarterback Mike Vick is coming into his second season after going 1-11 in his inaugural season. The Spartans have the talent to compete for the conference if they can string wins together.
With talent spread out across all six teams, the race for the MEAC will be interesting to watch.
Who Won Each Football National Championship For The 2025-2026 Season?
- Division I FBS – Indiana def. Miami, 27-21
- Division I FCS – Montana State def. Illinois State 35-34 (OT)
- Division II – Ferris State def. Harding, 42-21
- Division III – University of Wisconsin-River Falls def. North Central (Ill.), 24-14
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