Wake Forest made a statement to the College Football Playoff committee. UNC Pembroke played its way into the D2 playoffs.
ECU edged upset-minded Charlotte. Elon upstaged Campbell’s historic season, and Johnson C. Smith came up one point short of a CIAA championship repeat.
These are just some of the highlights from a supercharged Week 11 of the North Carolina college football season. This page recaps each of the 20 college football games played on Saturday, Nov. 14 involving North Carolina teams.
Jump to Recaps: FBS | FCS | Division II | Division III
North Carolina FBS Games
Wake Forest 49, SMU 7: Deacons make a statement in Dallas
Wake Forest delivered one of the most decisive wins in college football on Saturday, jumping to a 42-0 lead by halftime. The Demon Deacons completely overwhelmed the Mustangs, who had never lost a regular season ACC game at home before Saturday.
Star quarterback Gio Lopez rushed for two scores and threw for another. Wake Forest’s defense forced three SMU turnovers.
👉 Read more about Wake Forest’s seventh-straight win with our rapid recap.
Syracuse 34, NC State 31: Wolfpack gives up late touchdown
The Orange improved to 2-0 in the Triangle this season, rallying past the Wolfpack and spoiling the final home game of the season at Carter-Finley Stadium. Steve Angeli’s 11-yard touchdown pass to Justus Ross-Simmons with 48 seconds left completed the comeback.
Angeli finished with 272 passing yards and two scores, with teammate Calvin Russell II catching 17 throws for 137 yards and a score.
Duke Scott returned to the NC State lineup and finished with 127 rushing yards and a touchdown. Quarterback CJ Bailey added 211 yards through the air with a TD pass to Chance Robinson.
Miami 36, Duke 25: Hurricanes too much for Sheppard, Devils
Former Duke quarterback Darian Mensah led his new team to a pivotal ACC win, passing for 382 yards as the Hurricanes remained unbeaten in conference play. Javian Mallory scored three touchdowns as Miami held off a determined Duke upset bid.
Nate Sheppard had another outstanding game for Duke, rushing for 131 yards against the No. 1 run defense in the nation. He enjoyed two 47-yard bursts. Sheppard also made 12 catches for 93 receiving yards and even threw for a 16-yard gain.
“What an advertisement for one of the best players in the United States,” Duke coach Manny Diaz told media afterward (Associated Press). “He was unbelievable. That’s a very, very hard defense to run the ball against.”
East Carolina 17, Charlotte 16: Pirates avert upset-minded 49ers
Ashton Gray rushed for two touchdowns, and Noah Perez hit a 43-yard field goal with 8:42 left to lift ECU past American Conference rival Charlotte. The Pirates won their sixth game and achieved bowl eligibility for the third year in a row.
The 49ers led 16-7 at halftime but the Pirates kept them off the board following intermission. Charlotte managed just 22 yards of offense in the second half.
Aiden Bui hit three field goals for the 49ers, including a 50-yarder. Connor Harrell threw a touchdown pass to Jaden Barnes but was picked off twice, including on Charlotte’s final possession.
App State 20, Marshall 16: Mountaineers get bowl eligible
The Mountaineers rallied from a 13-3 deficit and collected their sixth victory of the season – good enough for bowl eligibility.
Quarterback Henry Hasselbeck rushed a pair of touchdowns, including a 37-yard footrace to the end zone in the fourth quarter. Jaquari Lewis added 137 rushing yards to the App State tally.
James London kicked two field goals. Carson Sloan made 13 tackles, while teammate Colton Phares added 12.
Louisville 16, UNC 14: Too many missed opportunities for Heels
Benjamin Hall rushed for touchdowns on North Carolina’s first and next-to-last possessions, but the Tar Heels struggled to take advantage of other opportunities.
Hall’s second TD cut Louisville’s lead to 16-14 with 3:43 left. UNC forced a Louisville punt, but backup quarterback Travis Burgess – subbing for the injured Billy Edwards Jr. – threw an interception with 58 ticks left to end it.
Carson Hilbert made three field goals for Louisville. Rece Verhoff missed his only attempt for UNC – a 39-yarder with 8:50 left in the third.
The loss dropped North Carolina to 5-5. The Heels need to beat either Virginia or NC State the next two weeks to make a bowl game.
North Carolina FCS Games
Dayton 34, Davidson 3: Wildcats fall to Pioneer front-runner
The Flyers (9-1) strengthened their Pioneer Football League championship aims with a dominating win over Davidson (4-7).
The Wildcats got on the board first with a 35-yard Christos Tzoumakas field goal with 10:15 left in the opening quarter. But Dayton took control from there, outgaining Davidson 366-179 and picking off two passes.
Bryce Schondelmyer threw for 183 yards and two touchdown passes for Dayton. Casey Bullock finished with 154 passing yards for Davidson. Jamal Chandler-Fuller and Hudson Altenburg led Davidson’s defense with eight tackles each.
North Carolina A&T 41, Hampton 14: Fourth win in five games for Aggies
North Carolina A&T dominated its former MEAC partner and garnered its fifth win of the season – the most since joining the CAA in 2023. NC A&T (4-3 CAA) will finish no worse than .500 in conference play.
Shimique Blizzard rushed for 131 yards and two touchdowns. Kevin White threw for 188 yards and one touchdown – a 74-yard play to Elijah Kennedy as part of a 21-0 outburst in the first quarter.
Kennedy made five catches for 156 yards and returned a punt 57 yards for another touchdown.
South Carolina State 38, North Carolina Central 24: Bulldogs win MEAC again
South Carolina State clinched the MEAC championship and a Celebration Bowl berth for the third year in a row, pulling away from North Carolina Central in the second half.
The Eagles were held off the board after intermission following a productive first two quarters that saw Gino Addison run 59 yards for a touchdown and Joshua Jones throw TD passes to Mehki Wall and RJ Lancaster.
Keely Watson tossed three touchdowns for South Carolina State, and Marquis Lane-Owens had a pick-six. NCCU came up empty on multiple possessions in Bulldog territory in the fourth quarter.
Elon 28, Campbell 24: Phoenix claim another ranked victim at home
Elon rallied from a 17-0 halftime deficit, spoiling Campbell’s conference championship hopes in the process. Brady Stober completed the comeback with a 2-yard touchdown run with 2:21 left. Jevean Brown broke up a fourth-down pass on Campbell’s final series.
Elon captured its 11th win against a ranked foe in the Tony Trisciani coaching era and improved to 5-1 at Rhodes Stadium. Kamerin McDowell-Moore finished with 117 rushing yards and two TDs – his eighth 100-yard game this season.
Campbell has never beaten Elon in football, losing for the fifth time. Kamden Sixkiller threw for 429 yards and two touchdowns for the Camels. Jyron Waiters caught seven passes for 176 yards and both scores.
Western Illinois 45, Gardner-Webb 7: Tough day for the Runnin’ Bulldogs
Kennedy McGill threw four touchdown passes and rushed for 102 yards, helping the Leathernecks to their seventh win of the season. Christian Anaya made five catches for 162 yards and one score.
Gardner-Webb dropped to 3-8. Sean Brady scored the Runnin’ Bulldogs’ lone touchdown, catching a 32-yard pass from Cole Pennington. Western Illinois outgained GWU 445-193 and held the Bulldogs to just 37 rushing yards.
Western Carolina 17, Samford 12: Catamounts pick up sixth win
Lex Thomas threw touchdown passes to AJ Colombo and Michael Rossin, and Bryan McCollum hit a 47-yard field goal to lift WCU to its sixth win of the season. The Catamounts will be guaranteed at least a .500 season.
Thomas finished 22-of-36 for 243 yards. Ken Moore led the Western Carolina defense with 10 tackles, and interception and 1.5 sacks.
North Carolina D2 Games
UNC Pembroke 21, North Greenville 14: Braves win Conference Carolinas championship
Malik Brown caught a 91-yard pass from Josh Ehrlich with 2:14 left, and UNCP avenged a 2025 loss to North Greenville in the Conference Carolinas Bowl. The Braves claim the conference’s automatic berth into the D2 playoffs, which start next weekend.
Ehrlich was voted championship game MVP. He completed 11-of-19 passes for 251 yards and accounted for three touchdowns without an interception. Brown caught six throws for 139 yards and two score.
👉 Read more about UNC Pembroke’s championship afternoon with our rapid recap.
Virginia Union 15, Johnson C. Smith 14: Panthers win third CIAA title in four years
A year after surrendering their reign in the CIAA, Virginia Union won it back. VUU has now captured three of the last four conference championship games.
Ramon Brown provided the winning points for Virginia Union with a 69-yard touchdown run with 12:37 left in the fourth quarter, erasing a 14-9 JCSU lead.
CIAA offensive player of the year Fabian Duncan ran wild for Johnson C. Smith, finishing with 232 yards and a touchdown. But the Golden Bulls committed three turnovers and went just 3-of-12 on third down, falling just short of a title repeat.
Edward Waters 35, Chowan 29: Stellar season comes to an end for Hawks
Chowan quarterback Tyler Adkins became the Hawks’ new single-season passing leader with a 317-yard afternoon. He threw three touchdown passes and cemented himself in the Chowan record books with 3,179 passing yards – besting the old season mark set by Bryce Witt in 2021.
Chowan finished its best season since 2022 with a 6-5 record and a share of the Conference Carolinas regular season title. Amir Alexander caught 10 passes for 181 yards and a touchdown. Dezmond Randolph made six grabs for 72 yards and two scores.
Edward Waters (7-4), which plays in the SIAC, got two touchdown throws from Tavion Faulk, both to Izaiah Jean-Baptiste. Lemar Harris had four tackles-for-loss and forced a fumble.
Wingate 27, Mars Hill 20: Bulldogs hand Lions their fifth-straight loss
Ethan Wallace rushed for 164 yards and a touchdown, and Wingate finished the 2026 season on a winning note – and with a winning record (6-5, 5-4 SAC). Wallace also caught one of Brooks Brien’s two touchdown passes. Tanner Mays had the other.
Mars Hill’s season ends at 5-5 (4-5 in the SAC). The Lions started with five straight victories but struggled after beating Tusculum in four overtimes on Oct. 3.
Leading rusher Rayvon Durant found the end zone once on Saturday for Mars Hill. Ryder Bush-Ivanko caught six passes for 108 yards. Russell Barnett made 12 tackles, and Jamarion Farrior made 10.
Lenoir-Rhyne 45, Catawba 38: Wild finish to South Atlantic season
The final game of the South Atlantic Conference regular season featured plenty of points and an absurd amount of yardage. Lenoir-Rhyne finished with 668 total yards, including 305 on the ground. Catawba answered with 493 total yards and 229 in rushing.
Lenoir-Rhyne quarterback Wells Bettenhausen threw for 363 yards and three scores. Shermon Davis rushed for 232 and two scores, averaging 17.8 yards per attempt. Davis also caught five passes for 111 yards and another TD.
Catawba’s Jayden Jones netted 178 rushing yards and two touchdowns, and he averaged 16.2 yards per tote. Quarterback Mason Fortune threw for 264 yards. Bennett Galloway added three touchdowns and 77 yards. Receiver James Gilchrist hauled in seven passes for 110 yards.
Catawba led 38-24 heading into the final period but was outscored 21-0 in the fourth quarter. All three Lenoir-Rhyne touchdowns came on explosive plays – a 41-yard TD pass to Shamil Saadiq, a 77-yard Davis run and a 62-yard reception from Davis.
Earlier this week
- Thursday: Erskine 28, Barton 26
- Friday: Fayetteville State 31, Virginia State 29
🏆The CIAA announced its 2026 football awards and all-conference team on Friday night. Fabian Duncan (JCSU) and Zyking Patillo (Fayetteville State) earned two of the top player awards. View full CIAA all-conference teams.
North Carolina D3 Games
Shenandoah 42, Guilford 7: Quakers’ season comes to an end
Shenandoah outgained the Quakers 451-331 and forced five turnovers. Guilford’s season ends at 1-9, 0-7 in the ODAC.
Tristan Gabrels quarterbacked Guilford much of the way, finishing with 214 passing yards, one touchdown throw and 55 rushing yards. Shane Shapiro made 13 catches for 156 yards and one TD. Garrett Wilson made 11 tackles.
Brevard 24, North Carolina Wesleyan 20: Tornados complete sweep of in-state foes
Christian Conley threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Mason Miles with 51 seconds left to lift Brevard past the Battling Bishops. North Carolina Wesleyan had just taken a 20-17 lead with 1:18 to play on a two-yard TD run by Robert Wayne Trip III.
Brevard’s Gavin Pegram returned the kickoff 55 yards, and the Bishops were whistled for a face mask penalty, setting the Tornados up at the 13-yard line.
King Faison and Favian Williford rushed for TDs for Brevard. The Tornados completed a clean sweep of North Carolina D3 opponents this season (Guilford, Greensboro, Methodist and NC Wesleyan) and finished 8-2 overall and 5-2 in the USA South.
Greensboro 49, Methodist 0: Pride defense holds Monarchs to 61 yards
Camron Torrence-Kelly and Kyjuan Westmoreland rushed for two touchdowns each, and Greensboro finished the 2026 season on a two-game win streak. Dwight Hall-Lassiter also had a rushing score.
Greensboro outgained Methodist 440-61. The Pride logged eight sacks and 10 tackles-for-loss, holding the Monarchs to minus-38 yards rushing.
Brayden Anderson-Sidbury led Greensboro with three sacks. Teammate Ziere Ray added two sacks.
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