By Sully Haq

There certainly is a lot of buzzing going into this week’s matchup between JMU and Charlotte. Both teams have rosters that experienced massive turnover during the offseason, but both rosters brought in intriguing reinforcements through the transfer portal. 

While JMU fans have been paying close attention to the Charlotte 49ers football roster, every JMU fan might not be as knowledgeable as to what the school culture is like in Charlotte. By no means is this a knock to the school culture at Charlotte, but life as a G5 football fan means that sometimes certain schools fly under the radar, especially since the current iteration of Charlotte football began in only 2013.

Charlotte as a school itself has been growing immensely in recent years, hitting an enrollment of 30,298 undergraduate students in the fall of 2023. For context, JMU’s undergraduate enrollment was 21,006 students in the fall of 2023.

North Carolina has been a hotbed for football recruiting for a longtime, and Charlotte is the 15th most populous city in the United States. It makes sense that a FBS college football program finally exists there.

We’ll take a look at the football history of Charlotte, but also let’s take a dive into the culture of the school. 

Get To Know Charlotte Football

Football History

FBS All-Time Record: 32-71

Record Against JMU: 0-2

The Highs:

• 2019 Bahamas Bowl appearance vs Buffalo
• 31-28 win over Duke (09/03/21)
• 24-13 win over Marshall (11/23/19)

The Lows:

• Finished with a 1-11 record in 2017
• Only one bowl appearance in school history
• 126th in points per game last season

School Traditions:

Putting a penny in Norm’s pan:  There’s a statue of a ‘49er Miner’ located near the College of Education at Charlotte. The tradition is quite simple, as students are encouraged to put a penny on the statue for good luck. What’s interesting about Norm is it appears he didn’t originally have a name, but rather was affectionately given the name of the school mascot over time.

Rubbing the Golden Nugget: Before every game, fans are encouraged to rub the Golden Nugget for good luck. Located outside of the Barnhardt Student Activity Center, the Golden Nugget is actually quite large and is a quartz rock with specks of gold splattered throughout. If Charlotte quarterback Max Brown ends up lighting up the Dukes on Saturday, the Golden Nugget might deserve some credit.

The “Picks Up” gesture: Stick your thumb and pinky out if you want to show you are one with the 49ers. 

Mascot Analysis:

Norm the Niner

Norm the Niner has been around since the early 1990s. Compared to some of the other human based mascots in college football, Norm the Niner is pretty well done and gives off a friendly vibe. 

Words From a Charlotte Fan

Huge shoutout to the CLT Goldmine, Charlotte’s student section, for answering some questions about the Charlotte sports culture.

Question: How do Charlotte fans feel overall about their time in FBS so far, and how do they feel about the future of the football program?

CLT Goldmine: We feel that we have been set back pretty far because we didn’t have football for so long even though we’ve been a really big school for quite some time now. However, all fans are very optimistic about the future of this program. We have massive stadium renovations upcoming, we are bringing in much better recruits that we haven’t been able to get in the past, and our NIL is growing rapidly. We hope in a couple of years Biff can turn us into a conference contender

Question: How do Charlotte fans view JMU both in athletics, and as a school itself?

CLT Goldmine: We all recognize the success that JMU has had in football for a long time now and know that it will be a tough game. We saw JMU win a March Madness game last year so we can see that the athletic department is on the rise. I’ll be completely honest we don’t know really anything about JMU other than athletics

Question: What are popular bars/restaurants for fans near Jerry Richardson stadium?

CLT Goldmine: Places right by campus that are good are Boardwalk Billy’s, Picasso’s Sports Cafe, Armored Cow brewery, and Flying Saucer. Bars that students go to are Jack Beagles, Rose Honkeytonk, Bulldogs Taproom, Gin Mill, and Clutch.

Charlotte’s School Atmosphere is Worthy of FBS

Say what you want about Charlotte’s struggles on the field since joining the FBS ranks, their fanbase has done the best they can to support the team despite the slow start. For a team that has been below .500 for a while, their attendance numbers have been decent, and the team aspires to expand their stadium accordingly in the coming years.

Give these 49ers fans a few winning seasons, and they could very well surprise some folks with their fan support. The American Athletic Conference is no joke. The AAC includes strong G5 contenders such as Memphis and Tulane. 

As a campus itself, Charlotte has shed the commuter school label, and is growing rapidly both in culture and presence within the state of North Carolina, as seen by their rapid increase in student applications. 

As an academic institution, Charlotte ranked #178 in the US News national rankings in 2023, and they have an R2 research status much like JMU.

For a season opener, Charlotte may not be the biggest strength of schedule booster, but they won’t be a cakewalk either (even with the injuries). This JMU team has so many new pieces, there’s a good chance it’ll take them a few quarters to fully figure out their chemistry together. The 49ers will have a chance to make the start of the game interesting. 

Regardless of what happens on the field this Saturday, Charlotte fans do care about their team, and they’ll do their best to make their presence known in the stands. 

Expecting a sleepy atmosphere from Charlotte would be a huge mistake for any opposing team.