It was a nail-biting, thrill-of-victory, agony-of-defeat kind of Saturday for North Carolina FCS college football teams.
Davidson beat nationally ranked Presbyterian by a point, while Gardner-Webb and North Carolina Central held on for 3-point victories against Southeast Missouri State and Norfolk State, respectively. Campbell dropped an overtime contest to William & Mary, while Western Carolina lost a barnburner to Mercer when a 33-yard field goal sailed wide right on the final play.
North Carolina A&T dropped a 38-12 decision at Stony Brook, while Elon couldn’t overcome a slow start against Rhode Island in a 34-20 defeat.
With all games now complete, let’s wrap up a day that has left us feeling every emotion on the spectrum.
🔗 Jump To: Live FCS Scoreboard | Wrap-Up
🏈 More NC College Football Game-Day Threads: FBS | FCS | D2 | D3
🏆 Full Statewide Scoreboard: Complete North Carolina College Scoreboard
📰 North Carolina FCS Scores & Summaries
Mercer 49, Western Carolina 47: Heartbreak in Cullowhee as a furious fourth-quarter comeback falls just short – or in this case wide-right. 📖 Full Story »
Gardner-Webb 27, Southeast Missouri State 24: The Runnin’ Bulldogs keep playoff hopes alive, holding on for a key OVC/Big South triumph. Charlie Viorel kicked an important field goal with 1:55 left to provide the final cushion.
Davidson 14, Presbyterian 13: The Wildcats got first-quarter touchdowns from Mason Sheron (rushing) and Langston Green (receiving), then turned to its defense to preserve the biggest win in Saj Thakkar’s first season as head coach. Dominic Njoku came up with the clinching interception with 2:13 left.
North Carolina Central 31, Norfolk State 28: The Eagles lost to DeSean Jackson (new coach at Delaware State) in its MEAC opener a few weeks back but beat Michael Vick (coach at Norfolk State). Walker Harris added to his impressive season with 3 TD passes.
William & Mary 30, Campbell 27 (OT): The Tribe scored with less than two minutes to play to force overtime, then got a TD from Tyler Hughes on a 6-yard run for the win. The Camels suffered their fourth loss this season by 7 or fewer points.
Tough-luck team of the year: 🐪
🔶Led Rhode Island going into 4th quarter (31-20 loss)
🔶Had ball at Furman 10 in final minute (28-24 loss)
🔶Rallied but fell short against WCU (42-35 loss)
🔶Led New Hampshire heading into 4th (24-10 loss)
🔶Led A&T 21-7 early 4th quarter (28-24… https://t.co/2K4Bam3pUP— NC Football News (@NCFootballNews) November 9, 2025
Rhode Island 34, Elon 20: The Rams, ranked 10th in the latest FCS coaches poll, improved to 6-0 in CAA play. Luke Barnes kicked a 50-yard field goal for Elon early in the first quarter, but Rhode Island answered with 24 points in a row before halftime.
Stony Brook 38, North Carolina A&T 12: The Aggies struggled to contain Stony Brook’s Quinn Boyd, who threw for 351 yards and three TDs. Andrew Brown kicked field goals of 45 and 22 yards, while Antoine Bell caught a TD pass from Kevin White for A&T.
✅ FCS Football Wrap-Up
Parting thoughts and notes on Nov. 8 games in North Carolina FCS college football:
🏆 Biggest Win of the Day
Per Davidson Sports Information, the Wildcats had not hosted a nationally ranked opponent in 84 years. Presbyterian came to town carrying an 8-1 overall record and a No. 23/25 ranking in the two major FCS polls. The Blue Hose had bagged wins over No. 11 Mercer and Furman. With Davidson sitting at 1-8, most expected this contest to be one-sided.
But Davidson had other plans, retaining the prized 1919 Cup given to the winner in this rivalry series. Interceptions bookended the stunning victory. Hayden Bender picked off an early Presbyterian pass, setting up a Langston Green TD reception from Coulter Cleland. Mason Sheron added the second TD on a short pass from Cleland. Dominic Njoku’s INT in the final minutes sealed the contest, ending Presbyterian’s final drive.
💪 Standout Performance
Enjoy him why you can, Western Carolina fans. Taron Dickens is truly a special quarterback. His stat line today included 33-of-49 passing for 551 yards and SEVEN (7!) touchdown passes.
It’s too bad the Catamounts didn’t have him during the first three weeks – all losses. It’s also tough luck WCU couldn’t pay off today’s amazing performance with what would have been a program-defining win over the defending SoCon champs. Let’s hope the FCS playoff committee will make room for the Catamounts if they can win out the next two weeks.
📊 Live Scoreboard: North Carolina FCS Football Score By Quarters
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | NC A&T | 3 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 12 | Final | |
 | Stony Brook | 14 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 38 | FloFootball | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Presbyterian | 0 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 13 | Final | |
 | Davidson | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | ESPN+ | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | SEMO | 7 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 24 | Final | |
 | Gardner-Webb | 14 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 27 | ESPN+ | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Norfolk St | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 28 | Final | |
 | NC Central | 10 | 7 | 3 | 11 | 31 | ESPN+ | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Rhode Island | 7 | 17 | 3 | 7 | 34 | Final | |
 | Elon | 3 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 20 | FloFootball | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | William & Mary | 3 | 10 | 0 | 11 | 6 | 30 | Final OT |
 | Campbell | 7 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 27 | FloFootball |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Mercer | 7 | 11 | 21 | 10 | 49 | Final | |
 | WCU | 7 | 14 | 6 | 20 | 47 | ESPN+ |
