We’re seven weeks into the college football season, and the same seven schools have settled in as regulars in our weekly Division II power rankings.
The latest results have reshuffled the order a bit. UNC Pembroke, which set school rushing records in a 49-7 win over Fairmont State, moves up and switches places with Wingate, which dropped a defensive battle with Limestone.
Other than that, everyone else stands pat, with Lenoir-Rhyne and Mars Hill from opposite divisions of the South Atlantic Conference standing heads above the rest.
Here is an updated look at our Best In State Division II power rankings with four Saturdays remaining in conference play:
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7. Johnson C. Smith (5-2)
The Goldens Bulls have been winning with defense this season, and Saturday’s 14-6 win over St. Augustine’s was no different. JCSU held the Falcons to 193 total yards and just 62 on the ground. The offense struggled (179 yards) but got enough production to give the program its fifth win of the season — the most since the Bulls tallied a 5-5 mark in 2013.
6. Fayetteville State (5-2)
The Broncos don’t win pretty — the team averages just 15.9 points per game this season — but they do win. And ultimately that is the name of the game. Fayetteville State has mostly squeaked through five straight CIAA contests, winning two with kicks at the buzzer and taking Saturday’s contest with a late fourth- touchdown run by quarterback Demari Daniels.
5. Wingate (4-3)
The Bulldogs, winners of 11 games a year ago with one of the best defenses in the nation, have been a bit of an enigma this year. They’ve been in every game but have lost three. The ‘Dogs got a solid defensive effort again Saturday against Limestone, but were undone by three first-half turnovers. One one play, quarterback Brooks Bentley hit Carlos Estranza on a 44-yard pass, but the ball was fumbled, and Limestone took over at the 1.
Wingate still could have a say in the SAC championship race, with games remaining against Barton, Lenoir-Rhyne and Newberry.
4. UNC Pembroke (4-3)
The Braves raised eyebrows with its dominant performance against a Fairmont State team coming in on a three-game win streak. UNCP rushed for a school-best 470 yards and six touchdowns, averaging 10.2 yards per play. The defense earned eight sacks. The game was 21-0 before many in the stands settled in. Coach Mark Hall’s team could play spoiler in the Mountain East the rest of the way. They are not an easy out.
3. Barton (5-2)
Despite the lopsided loss, the Bulldogs are still enjoying a special season — the best since restarting the football program in 2020. Running back Jordan Terrell needs 12 more yards to reach 1,000 for the third year in a row. He’s 257 yards shy of 5,000 for his college career. Meanwhile Shane Perry, who had 14 tackles against Lenoir-Rhyne, is 12 stops shy of 300 for his career.
2. Mars Hill (5-1)
The Lions play in the SAC Mountain Division, apart from the rest of their North Carolina counterparts Barton, Lenoir-Rhyne, Wingate and Catawba. So, it’s can be tempting to overlook what they are achieving this season, especially as Lenoir-Rhyne dominates the NC headlines. But this is a solid team as well, keeping itself in the running for another appearance in the SAC title game.
1. Lenoir-Rhyne (7-0)
Lenoir-Rhyne has been a standard-bearer in Division II college football for awhile. The Bears went 13-2 a decade ago and advanced to the D2 championship game. They won 11 games in 2014, posted a 12-2 mark in 2018 and rolled to a 13-1 record in 2019.
As this year’s team enjoys an unbeaten start to the season — with the best record of any college team in the state at any level — it begs the question: how good can this group be when all is said and done.
So far, coach Mike Jacobs’ group has answered every challenge. They came from behind and won on the road in overtime two weeks ago (Limestone). They fended off their nearest challenger in the South Atlantic Conference standings on Saturday in convincing fashion (Barton, 47-3).
They prepare for a road trip to defending conference champion Newberry this weekend holding a No. 10 national ranking in the latest coaches poll, released Monday. The Bears are listed at No. 11 in the D2Football.com poll.
Knocking on the door
Winston-Salem State stayed within reach of the CIAA Southern Division leaders with a 41-20 triumph at Shaw. The Rams (3-4, 3-2 CIAA) scored 24 points in the second quarter to pull away. If WSSU can keep winning, the team could break through into our top seven.
Catawba (3-4, 1-4) has a tough schedule remaining but could jump back into our rankings with some upsets over Limestone, Barton, Lenoir-Rhyne and/or Carson-Newman.
