Since becoming an FBS program in 2015, Charlotte has not experienced much success. The 49ers have posted just one winning FBS season, going 7-6 in 2019.
Last season, a new era started with the hiring of veteran coach Tim Albin, who enjoyed great success at Ohio. In four seasons, he was 33-19, including the final three years of winning 10 games each campaign.
While Albin had a rough first season at Ohio when the Bobcats were 3-9, it was even more difficult last year in his first season at Charlotte. The 49ers went 1-11, with the lone win a 42-35 victory over FCS Monmouth.
Now he hopes to see the second-year improvement that he experienced at Ohio, but most of all the 49ers hope to be more competitive in the American Conference after going 0-8 with an average losing margin of 24.8 points.
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Charlotte Season Preview
While many Group of Six teams have to rely on transfers, and that is also the case for Charlotte, the 49ers do have numerous players who return with ample experience.
Key Players To Replace
Receiver Javen Nicholas, who had 60 receptions for 740 yards and five touchdowns last season, transferred to Duke. Sean Brown, who had 36 receptions for 508 yards and one touchdown, used up his eligibility as did E. Jai Mason, who had 31 receptions for 431 yards and four touchdowns.
Rod Gainey Jr., who led the team in rushing with just 273 yards, transferred to LSU. Reid Williford is also gone after he had a team-high 74 tackles and 174 during his four seasons at Charlotte.
The Quarterback Situation
The 49ers have three players who have been college starters. Redshirt senior Conner Harrell started the first four games last year before suffering a season-ending knee injury. Harrell, who began his career at North Carolina, completed 66.7% of his passes for 737 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions.
When Harrell went down, redshirt junior Grayson Loftis became the primary starting quarterback. Loftis, who began his career at Duke, completed 55% of his passes for 1,415 yards, eight touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Another player in the mix is transfer Cole Gonzales. He began his career at FCS Western Carolina, where he threw for 6,682 yards, 51 touchdowns and 22 interceptions in three seasons. Gonzales had a brief stay at Oklahoma, staying only in the spring of 2025 before transferring to Pitt, where he was on the roster last year and played sparingly.
The other quarterbacks are redshirt freshman Luke McNulty and true freshman Jaylen White.
Key Returning Players
Graduate offensive tackle Kristos Fernandez appeared in 10 games last season, starting seven. Redshirt junior Rod Green appeared in nine games with one start, all at right guard. Graduate tight end Gus McGee played in all 12 games, making nine starts. He had 14 receptions for 127 yards and one touchdown. Graduate running back and return man Henry Rutledge only played one game last season due to injury. In 2024, he led the American with 605 kick return yards.
Senior linebacker Kadin Schmitz was second on the team with 66 tackles. Senior linebacker Gavin Willis had 54 tackles, including 3.5 tackles for loss. Redshirt senior defensive tackle Jamarrion Solomon had 29 tackles, including 3.5 tackles for loss. Senior defensive end Jaylon Johnson appeared in 10 games, making seven starts and recording 20 tackles, including one sack.
Redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Caleb Irving appeared in 10 games with four starts. He had a career-high six tackles against South Florida. Redshirt sophomore defensive end Curtis Simpson appeared in 11 games with four starts. He recorded 30 tackles and finished third on the team with 4.5 tackles for loss.
Redshirt senior cornerback CJ Clinkscales Jr. started 12 games and contributed 48 tackles. Sophomore safety Dy’Lon Womack appeared in 10 games, making 10 tackles. Redshirt junior defensive back Collin Gill, who began his career at Georgia, saw action in all 12 games last season for Charlotte and totaled 35 tackles.
Redshirt senior punter Bronson Long appeared in all 12 games and had the second-most punts of 50 or more yards in a single season in program history (15).
Key Newcomers
Redshirt junior tackle J’Ven Williams is a transfer from Penn State who could be among the better offensive linemen in the American. Interior lineman Luke Sandy is a transfer from Wyoming who is expected to be a contributor.
Redshirt junior running back D’Mariun Perteet didn’t play last season at Coastal Carolina, but in 2024 he rushed for 1,360 yards and 16 touchdowns in junior college. Senior receiver Jaden Barnes is a transfer from Appalachian State. Last year, Barnes had six receptions for 134 yards and a touchdown in an opening 34-11 win over Charlotte. For the season, he had 55 receptions for 608 yards and seven touchdowns.
Cam Pedro was the leading receiver for Southeast Missouri State with 85 receptions for 814 yards and four touchdowns and could make an impact for Charlotte. Redshirt sophomore Tank Boston only appeared in three games last season for North Carolina State, but he should be a big part of the passing game. Kansas transfer Jameel Croft Jr. is expected to make an immediate impact in the secondary. Last year, he appeared in five games for the Jayhawks.
Maryland transfer Shamar McIntosh is also expected to be a contributor in the secondary. He appeared in six games over two years for the Terrapins.
Charlotte’s 2026 Schedule
- 9/5 vs. The Citadel
- 9/12 at Ole Miss
- 9/19 at Appalachian State
- 9/26 vs. Louisiana
- 10/3 vs. Memphis
- 10/10 at North Texas
- 10/17 at Temple
- 10/30 vs. Tulane
- 11/7 at UAB
- 11/14 vs. East Carolina
- 11/21 at Tulsa
- 11/28 vs. Navy
Bold indicates American contests
Charlotte’s American Conference Title Betting Odds
Charlotte’s college football betting odds to win the conference are +30000, via BetMGM.
Charlotte’s Betting Odds & Over/Under Win Total
- Charlotte’s win total Over/Under is 2.5
- The Under is at -155
- The Over is at +120
Charlotte Season Prediction
I like Charlotte to go over 2.5 wins – barely. The 49ers should win the opener against The Citadel in my opinion but a key for them is how they do against Sun Belt teams Louisiana and Appalachian State. Louisiana could be the tougher opponent, but that game is at home, while the 49ers have to visit an Appalachian State team that is rebuilding with many transfers on a team that went 5-8 last year.
If Charlotte can win one of those two games, then the 49ers will still need to upset one of the eight American Conference teams. Possibly the best chance would be to win at UAB, which Charlotte is tied with for the worst odds to win the American. That also won’t be easy since UAB seems to have improved.
Still, Albin had a big second year at Ohio, and while there likely won’t be such a dramatic jump in the win total, Charlotte should be much more competitive, although anything past three wins should be considered a monumental success.
