Johnson C. Smith overcame an early 10-0 deficit and made a huge early-season statement with a 28-16 win over perennial D2 power Valdosta State on Saturday afternoon in Charlotte.
Meanwhile, UNC Pembroke outlasted regional rival Fayetteville State in the Two Rivers Classic, Winston-Salem State rallied past Mars Hill, Lenoir-Rhyne shut down Tusculum and Livingstone topped Allen in evening games. Elizabeth City State gave a strong effort against FCS Hampton before falling by a touchdown (and inches on the final play).
In early afternoon D2 action around our state, Chowan battled West Alabama – a playoff team last season – to the limit before falling 38-28. Catawba suffered a 35-7 loss at Emory & Henry, while Barton fell 28-14 West Virginia State – the second year in a row the Bulldogs have suffered defeat to the Yellow Jackets.
North Carolina D2 Scoreboard: Sept. 6
(Scroll to bottom of story for live scoreboard)
- Johnson C. Smith 28, Valdosta State 16
- West Virginia State 28, Barton 14
- Emory & Henry 35, Catawba 7
- West Alabama 38, Chowan 28
- Hampton 27, Elizabeth City State 20
- UNC Pembroke 31, Fayetteville State 24
- Lenoir-Rhyne 28, Tusculum 7
- Livingstone 28, Allen 17
- Winston-Salem State 28, Mars Hill 25
Saturday Storylines
- Johnson C. Smith became only the second HBCU program to defeat Valdosta State, which has won three national titles, according to HBCU Sports. Virginia Union (2022) is the other. Quarterback Kelvin Durham rushed for three scores in the JCSU triumph. He also threw a TD pass to Reginald Daniel.
- The Golden Bulls, which made school history last season by winning their first eight games, jump out to a 2-0 record so far this season. Valdosta State played in the D2 national title game last season and has multiple national championships in its trophy case. The Blazers came into the weekend ranked 11th nationally in the coaches poll and 14th in the D2Football.com media poll.
- Lenoir-Rhyne flexed an explosive offense and bounced back from its week one humbling at West Florida. Songa Yates caught two touchdown passes, bringing him within two of the all-time school record.
- Tusculum rushed for 468 yards in its opener against Bluefield State. The Bears held the Pioneers to about half of that on Saturday (229 yards) and kept them out of the end zone.
- The past four UNC Pembroke vs. Fayetteville State games have been decided by one possession. The Braves avenged a narrow loss to the Broncos from last season.
- Mars Hill scored with 2:05 left to take a 25-21 lead, but the Rams answered with a 1-yard touchdown run from JaQuan Kelly with 31 seconds remaining to steal the road victory.
- While five North Carolina FCS teams were playing “up” against FBS foes, Elizabeth City State was our lone D2 to face an FCS opponent. The Vikings acquitted themselves well. EJ Gatling caught a deep throw from Christopher Perkins on the last play and battled to the 1-yard line before being stopped short of the goal line as time expired. A TD and PAT would have forced overtime.
- Chowan fell behind 21-0 to West Alabama but refused to lay down. The Hawks scored 21 points in the second half and showed offense spark. Chowan, which beat ECSU last week, should be much improved this season.
- Quarterback Charles Mutter III found the end zone on runs of 7, 4 and 34 yards, helping Emory & Henry halt Catawba’s early-season momentum. Mutter finished with 99 yards on the day, averaging 9.9 yards per carry. He also completed 10 passes for 163 yards.
- Catawba’s lone touchdown Saturday came on a 36-yard pass from Preston Brown to Dee Mitchell. Bennett Galloway led the Indians in rushing with 85 yards.
FINAL: Rams 28, Lions 25
WSSU will be back in action on September 13 hosting Lincoln (Pa) at 6:00 pm inside Bowman Gray Stadium pic.twitter.com/9T3EvI2pef — WSSU Athletics (@WSSU_Athletics) September 7, 2025
Stat Stuffers
- Johnson C. Smith QB Kelvin Durham rushed for three TDs, helping the Golden Bulls to a notable D2 win over reigning D2 runner-up Valdosta State.
- New Lenoir-Rhyne signal caller Khamoni Robinson completed 13 of 22 passes for 280 yards and four touchdowns. Destun Thomas caught an 80-yard strike. Songa Yates made four catches for 113 yards, including TDs on plays covering 49 and 41 yards.
- Lenoir-Rhyne’s Ben Watson led the Bears with 14 tackles, including 10 solo stops. He made on TFL and recovered a fumble.
- Tre Robinson (UNCP) threw for 234 yards and three touchdowns in the win over Fayetteville State, while teammate Marcus Martin added another TD throw. Que Kennedy caught two touchdown passes, while Malik Brown (3 catches, 111 yards, 1 TD) and Jaquan Albright (7 catches, 105 yards, 1 TD) also had banner nights receiving.
- Chowan QB Maurice Smith threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score. Wide receiver Jakobe Lane had a big day, making 10 catches for 117 yards and a TD.
- JR Martin of Mars Hill threw for 267 yards and two TDs, but was picked off twice and sacked three times. Lions running back Jon Gullette added 122 yards and a fourth-quarter touchdown.
- Keno Jones (Barton) led the Bulldogs with 13 tackles. Teammate Isaiah Jacobs caught four passes for 126 yards and a touchdown.
D2 Live Scoreboard
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Barton | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 14 | Final | |
 | West Virginia St | 7 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 28 | MEC-TV | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Valdosta St | 0 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 16 | Final | |
 | JCSU | 0 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 28 | CIAA-SN | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Catawba | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | Final | |
 | Emory & Henry | 14 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 35 | FloCollege | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | W Alabama | 7 | 14 | 7 | 10 | 38 | Final | |
 | Chowan | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 28 | CCDN | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | ECSU | 7 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 20 | Final | |
 | Hampton | 10 | 0 | 7 | 10 | 27 | FloCollege | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Fayetteville St | 7 | 3 | 14 | 0 | 24 | Final | |
 | UNCP | 14 | 7 | 10 | 0 | 31 | CCDN | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Lenoir-Rhyne | 14 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 28 | Final | |
 | Tusculum | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | FloCollege | |
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | Livingstone | 28 | Final | |||||
 | Allen | 17 | ||||||
| TOTAL | ||||||||
 | WSSU | 7 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 28 | Final | |
 | Mars Hill | 10 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 25 | FloCollege |
👉 To see all Week 2 college football scores, check out our North Carolina College Football Scoreboard.
