The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference outlined a number of scenarios for the league’s automatic bid to the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs on Wednesday, and Morgan State would advance via two potential paths.
If the Bears (6-5 overall and 5-2 in the league) finish in a four-way tie for first place with No. 24 North Carolina A&T (9-2, 6-1), South Carolina State (7-4, 5-2) and North Carolina Central (6-5, 5-2), then they would receive the automatic berth based on their overall record against those three teams (2-1).
If Morgan State finishes in a first-place tie with North Carolina A&T, South Carolina State, North Carolina Central and Bethune-Cookman (8-3, 5-2), the team would earn the automatic bid due to its 2-1 record against those four teams. The Bears did not play against Bethune-Cookman this season.
Both scenarios require North Carolina Central upending North Carolina A&T and South Carolina State defeating Norfolk State (4-7, 4-3) at the very least, but the most critical element involves Morgan State beating Delaware State (2-9, 2-5) on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Hughes Stadium in Baltimore. A loss would render both scenarios moot.