Plenty of Blue Devil fans consoled themselves after Duke lost to Richmond with the idea that the team could only count one win over an FCS opponent toward bowl eligibility, anyway, and N.C. Central was still on the schedule.
Unfortunately, that premise wasn’t exactly correct. Even if Duke beats the Eagles Sept. 26, the Blue Devils will still need six other total wins to reach bowl eligibility.
The (Raleigh) News and Observer’s J.P. Giglio, who covers the ACC, reported last Thursday that the NCAA “does not technically consider N.C. Central a full-fledged FCS team.” The Eagles are a “reclassifying” team that is still making the transition from Division II to Division I, which includes both the FCS and FBS divisions.
Duke Football spokesman Art Chase confirmed that the program was aware of N.C. Central’s status when the game was scheduled. As such, the Blue Devils needed to go 6-5 against the remaining 11 opponents on their schedule—including Richmond.
Duke’s Homecoming matchup with N.C. Central was scheduled very late, and replaced a scheduled game with Louisville that Duke backed out of in 2007.
The new information makes the loss to the Spiders much more gut-wrenching for Duke supporters. Now, the Blue Devils will have to go 5-4 against their remaining FBS opponents, which include five teams ranked in the top 25.
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