One of the highest profile FCS coaching hires went down in Norfolk over the offseason as the Spartans brought in Michael Vick to turn their fortunes around. While that acquisition drew much of the attention
over the last several months, though, it seems as though the other big coaching change in the MEAC… the one that happened in Dover, Delaware… is the one that appears to be producing more immediate results. Delaware State, like Norfolk State, looked to a former NFL star to lead its program and so far it seems to have been the right move. The DeSean Jackson era is well underway and, for the first time in a long time, hope is abound for the Hornets.
Throughout the non-conference portion of its schedule, DSU went 4-3 and those three losses were all understandable. In-state rival and now FBS Delaware got the better of the Hornets to start the year as did a Monmouth bunch that’s looking at winning a CAA title this year. Sacred Heart also got by Jackson’s team but that was just barely at the Pioneers are a five-win team right now. The four wins were solid but, admittedly, just two came over Division I opponents and even one of those was against soon-to-be DIII St. Francis. It was a nice start to the season for a team that only won one game last year.
Last week, though, Delaware State really put itself on the map in its first league game. The Hornets hit the road and took on perennial HBCU power North Carolina Central. The Eagles entered this season as a sexy pick to represent the conference in the Celebration Bowl this December and were certainly favored to beat DSU at home. None of that, however, really mattered to Jackson and his team last Saturday. The Hornets walked out of Durham with a 35-26 victory and, in one afternoon, flipped the entire MEAC outlook.
It’s all started with an offense that is averaging upwards of 37 points per game this year; a far cry from the 17.8 is dropped in 2024. Big changes came to that side of the ball over the offseason after Jackson’s hiring, most notably at quarterback with Kaiden Bennett transferring over form Sac State. Bennett has been a spark for the offense since he came in. In eight games so far this year, Bennett has thrown for 945 yards and six scores while rushing for 424 yards and nine more touchdowns. The grad senior has been a day one difference maker.
So too has another grad senior in running back Marquis Gillis. Gillis, though, is not new to the program at all. He’s been a Hornet since 2021 but is having a career year now in his final season of eligibility. Gillis has run for 831 yards and found the end zone seven times, good enough to lead the conference. Perhaps even more impressive, he’s only had two outings this fall in which he hasn’t hit 100 yards on the ground. He’s been darn-near impossible to stop since late September specifically, having at least one score in every game since Week 5.
Defensively, the Hornets have improved as well, just not as starkly as the offense. Defensive linemen Quincy Robinson and Jaydon Mifflin have been terrific up front, accounting for a combined 11 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks. Linebacker Brian Bates is currently third in the MEAC with 60 tackles as well while redshirt junior DB Wayne Favors has five pass breakups and 26 more stops of his own. It’s a solid bunch on that side of the field also for Delaware State.
It all has resulted in a 5-3 record as October ends and, more importantly, a 1-0 start to conference play against a team that many thought would represent in the Celebration Bowl this year. Now, however, DSU controls its own destiny in that race and it should be favored in its next three games starting on Thursday night against a struggling Norfolk State unit. That game should draw some extra interest as it will air on ESPNU from Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, the former NFL home of both coaches in the contest; Jackson and Vick.
Delaware State is currently favored by as many as 20.5 points per the books and sits in a prime opportunity to continue to show its newfound prowess among its MEAC counterparts if it can do what its supposed to do against the Spartans. For a team that went 1-11 last year and has never even so much as sniffed the Celebration Bowl, it certainly seems like now might the time for the Hornets.
They will kick off with Norfolk State at 7:00 PM (ET) on Thursday evening.
