This was not a week for nailbiters and down-to-the-wire finishes in North Carolina D2 football.
None of the nine games involving teams from the Old North State were remotely competitive. In terms of point spread, Fayetteville State’s 31-13 win at Shaw proved the tightest. Livingstone “only” beat Virginia-Lynchburg by 22, the next closest margin.
Lenoir-Rhyne, Wingate and Catawba combined to win their South Atlantic Conference games 113-6. Elizabeth City State unleashed 62 points on winless Lincoln. UNC Pembroke beat Chowan 42-10.
The good news is that a North Carolina D2 football team won eight of the nine games we’re referencing. Four of the five teams that lost today did so to an in-state opponent. Overall, a thumbs up day to what is collectively the strongest division of college football in our state.
🔗 Jump To: Today’s D2 Games | Live Scoreboard | Wrap-Up
🏈 More NC College Football Game-Day Threads: FBS | FCS | D2 | D3
🏆 Full Scoreboard: Complete North Carolina College Scoreboard
📅 NCAA D2 Football Scores | Saturday, Oct. 25
🔥CIAA Football Schedule & Scores
Johnson C. Smith 52, Winston-Salem State 27
Elizabeth City State 62, Lincoln (PA) 14
Fayetteville State 31, Shaw 13
Virginia Union 24, Bowie State 7
Virginia State 51, Bluefield State 34
Livingstone 44, Virginia-Lynchburg 22
🚨 STILL UNBEATEN: Fayetteville State (5-0) and Virginia Union (5-0) continue to set the pace in CIAA play, each winning their fifth conference game against no defeats.
💪 Conference Carolinas Schedule & Scores
Ferrum 35, Erskine 33
Shorter 33, Barton 7
Valdosta State 35, North Greenville 24
UNC Pembroke 42, Chowan 10
🚨 RENEWING ACQUAINTANCES: UNC Pembroke and Chowan met for the first time since 2011 and the third time overall. UNCP has won all three meetings.
⚡South Atlantic Conference Schedule & Scores
Lenoir-Rhyne 45, Mars Hill 0
Wingate 30, Anderson 3
Carson-Newman 35, UVA Wise 14
Newberry 36, Emory & Henry 34
Catawba 38, Tusculum 3
443 total yards. 8-of-12 on 3rd down.
Vikings offense clicking in the win over Lincoln! ⚡️ #ECSUFootball #CIAA pic.twitter.com/5gqJ7pnqGp— ECSU Athletics (@ECSUVikings) October 25, 2025
✅ D2 Football Wrap-Up
Refresh this page later tonight for quick-hit recaps and top performances from across North Carolina D2 football ranks.
🏆 Biggest Win of the Day
Take your pick for lopsided margins. Lenoir-Rhyne blanked Mars Hill 45-0 (Count us surprised by that margin). Wingate whipped Anderson 30-3. Elizabeth City State rolled up 62 points on Lincoln. Livingstone doubled up Virginia-Lynchburg, 44-22. Catawba finished off Tusculum 38-3. On and on.
Johnson C. Smith’s 52-27 trouncing of Winston-Salem State and Fayetteville State’s 31-13 triumph at Shaw proved the most monumental in terms of effects on conference standings. FSU improved to 5-0 in CIAA play, while JCSU stayed within reach at 4-1. Guess who plays next Saturday? Johnson C. Smith travels to Fayetteville State. The winner likely faces Virginia Union (5-0) in the CIAA title game in mid-November.
Wins by Catawba and Wingate kept both of those squads within reach of South Atlantic leader Newberry (6-1). The Indians and Bulldogs improved to 4-2 in SAC play. Catawba has the benefit of the tiebreaker edge over Newberry by virtue of its 21-10 win over the Wolves in September. Wingate beat Catawba head-to-head a few weeks ago.
💪 Standout Performances
Both Johnson C. Smith and Winston-Salem State had 100-yard running backs and 100-yard receivers, as the teams combined for 924 yards of offense. Bobby Smith finished with 102 rushing yards and two scores for the Golden Bulls. Noah Marshall netted 122 yards on the ground for the Rams, averaging 8.1 yards per carry.
Deandre Proctor (136 yards, 2 TDs) and Brian Lane (127 yards, 1 TD) paced Johnson C. Smith’s receiving game, powered by quarterback Kelvin Durham. Ja’Hari Mitchell caught five passes for 101 yards and a TD for Winston-Salem State.
Final: @JCSUFootball 52, Winston-Salem State 27. Third straight win for Golden Bulls in the series, longest streak since 1972-76 when Richard Nixon ('73 and '73) and Gerald Ford ('74-'76) were president. Largest margin of victory vs. the Rams since 56-6 drubbing in 1975. pic.twitter.com/YuhSMjbQBr — The Charlotte Post (@thecharpost) October 25, 2025
🔥 Other Highlights & Takeaways
- Kelvin Durham threw three touchdown passes and rushed for two scores, leading Johnson C. Smith to a commanding win over Winston-Salem State. Durham finished with 351 yards through the air and another 74 yards on the ground.
- Tre Robinson had a complete game for UNC Pembroke, tossing three touchdown passes and rushing for another. Que Kennedy (2 TDs) and Jaquan Albright (7 catches, 125 yards, 1 TD) once again were his favorite targets. Joel Felder and Devyn Grant had rushing touchdowns as UNCP used a bevy of backs to amass 298 rushing yards.
- Wingate’s Caleb Bonesteel, one of the top kickers in our state, hit field goals from 45, 38 and 20 yards. Bonesteel also was 3-for-3 on extra points.
- Elihu Lipscomb earned 2.5 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks, part of a dominant Wingate defensive effort that surrendered just 3 points and 171 yards of total offense.
- Fayetteville State turned Shaw over five times and pulled away after a 0-0 first quarter. Keyshawn Monk picked off a pass and recovered a fumble. Joseph Woodard and Marcus Thompson also pounced on loose balls, while Theniias Moss picked off a pass. Matthew Leach led the stopping unit with 10 tackles and 2.5 tackles-for-loss. Woodard also had a pair of sacks.
- Fayetteville State’s 0-3 start seems like a distant memory now. The Broncos mustered no points against Benedict in their opener and then lost back-to-back games to UNC Pembroke and North Carolina Central. As it turns out, Benedict is 7-1, UNCP is 7-2 and NCCU has won five games at the FCS level. Fayetteville State looks like a legit contender for the CIAA title game along with preseason favorites Virginia Union and Johnson C. Smith.
- Tye Roberson returned the opening kickoff 87 yards for a touchdown, and Lenoir-Rhyne cruised past in-state rival Mars Hill 45-0. Songa Yates later returned a punt 70 yards for a score and earned his 16th career receiving touchdown.
- According to Lenoir-Rhyne sports information, the Bears’ 45-0 win was the first shutout of Mars Hill since 1929. The Lions threatened in the final minute, but Ryan Fletcher forced a fumble to stall a drive at the 7.
- Catawba got a 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown from Avery Fields III after Tusculum’s lone score in the second quarter. Preston Brown completed touchdown passes to Jalen Brown and Marquece Williams. Brown and Williams also had rushing TDs.
- Tusculum managed just 187 total yards against Catawba’s stopping unit. Jaylen Hinton paced the Indians with 7 solo tackles, 9 total hits and a quarterback pressure.
- Livingstone held VUL to just 15 rushing yards on 31 carries. The Blue Bears recorded 13.0 tackles for loss and seven sacks on the day, led by defensive lineman Kenyon Garner (4.0 TFLs, 3.5 sacks, one forced fumble).
- Javen Parker (Livingstone) rushed for 139 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries against VUL. He also caught a 27-yard pass. Ronald Lindsey led the receiving game with six catches for 132 yards and two scores. Elijah Alexander and Alfredo Sotelo each threw one TD pass.
- Elizabeth City State quarterback Christopher Perkins threw for 258 yards and four TDs at Lincoln, without an interception. Navian Hilliard added one TD in relief. Terrance Holland and Joe Griffin each caught two TDs on the day. Shamar Sutton had the other.
- Chowan’s Dominic Haney carried 27 times for 151 yards, shaking free for a 58-yard gain on one play.
𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭. 𝐀. 𝐃𝐚𝐲.#GOBEARS | #BetweenTheBricks pic.twitter.com/EBDVjxmg57 — Lenoir-Rhyne Football (@LRBearsFootball) October 25, 2025
📊 Score By Quarters: North Carolina D2 Football
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | ECSU | 14 | 20 | 7 | 21 | 62 | Final | |
 | Lincoln (PA) | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 | CIAA-SN | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Fayetteville St | 0 | 14 | 14 | 3 | 31 | Final | |
 | Shaw | 0 | 0 | 7 | 6 | 13 | CIAA-SN | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Lenoir-Rhyne | 7 | 21 | 14 | 3 | 45 | Final | |
 | Mars Hill | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | FloCollege | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | WSSU | 3 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 27 | Final | |
 | JCSU | 7 | 21 | 7 | 17 | 52 | CIAA-SN | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Virginia Lynchburg | 0 | 14 | 0 | 8 | 22 | Final | |
 | Livingstone | 7 | 7 | 21 | 9 | 44 | CIAA-SN | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Shorter | 0 | 10 | 13 | 10 | 33 | Final | |
 | Barton | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | CCDN | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Wingate | 6 | 14 | 7 | 3 | 30 | Final | |
 | Anderson | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | FloCollege | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Tusculum | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | Final | |
 | Catawba | 14 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 38 | FloCollege | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | UNCP | 14 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 42 | Final | |
 | Chowan | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 | CCDN |
