His journey started as a first-year walk-on in 2022 and ended with his name stamped in the history books of N.C. A&T football.

The 2025 football season has been a fresh start in many ways, but it still yielded results that fell short of the team’s opening ambitions for the year. Among the tough losses and hard-fought battles on the gridiron, some Aggies have still proven to be unique talents in their field and a source of hope for success in the games that close out the season.

One of those players is Elijah Kennedy, a grad student from High Point, NC, who not only stands out as a utility player for the team but also as one of the rare instances in sports where a student walks on and sets a new standard.

After a preseason knee injury ended Kennedy’s season in 2024, his return to the field was pushed to 2025. However, nothing could have prepared the Aggies for the spectacular performance that #88 had in store for their week eight matchup.

With under seven minutes to go in a game against Campbell University and trailing by one touchdown, Elijah Kennedy returned a punt for 96 yards, tying the school record for longest punt return and tying the score. Kennedy’s 85-yard kickoff return secured the Aggies’ victory before fans could recover from the game-changing play.

This marked the first time any Aggie had ever scored off a kickoff return and a punt return in the same game in program history.

Kennedy started his athletic career playing three years of varsity football at High Point Central High School, recording over 3,000 career all-purpose yards, with an average of 168.6 yards per game in his senior season.

He also competed in several track and field events during high school, a key contributor to why Kennedy embraces a do-it-all style as a competitor.

“As soon as I started playing ball and that I had some type of talent, I knew that I wanted to play at the highest level,” he said.

After high school, Kennedy walked onto A&T’s football team in the spring of 2022 as a wide receiver, playing in four games off the bench on the special teams unit, returning three punts for a total of 34 yards throughout the season.

Fast forward three years and nearly 1,000 all-purpose yards later, and the redshirt junior has made a name for himself, winning awards such as CAA Football Special Teams Player of the Week and Stats Perform FCS National Special Teams Player of the Week.

However, celebrations did not persist, as A&T suffered a blowout loss against Towson University the next week, immediately halting their attempt at a streak and once again leaving doubt to linger amidst campus.

“Obviously, after a loss like that, it’s hard to deal with, especially when you put in the work and go into the game feeling and knowing that you want to win,” he said.

Despite this, Kennedy remains hopeful for the future of the team, both short- and long-term.

“I’m definitely hopeful because I just know what this team has. We’ve been through a lot over the course of this season and the past few seasons, so just being able to persevere through the things that we have for this whole year, it feels good.”

Regaining lost momentum is a challenging task for a team with a new coaching staff and players striving to reestablish their reputation in the conference, yet their efforts remain unrelenting in search of hope.

Kennedy spoke about the unwavering support and encouragement that is fostered among his teammates and loved ones, both in moments of triumph and uncertainty throughout the year.

“My community around me has been the best because over the course of the years it’s been hard, battling through being a walk-on, being a backup, not playing, and injuries,” he said. “It’s hard, but my circle has given me the energy and the strength to get through all of this.”

Though A&T’s season has now ended, Kennedy’s contribution to one of the season’s highest peaks continues to echo across the CAA and will remain in the record books of A&T. Morale is bound to ebb and flow throughout each season but Elijah Kennedy stands as an example that the program can still make waves even with the world betting against it.