Shaw football has been a thorn in Winston-Salem State’s side several times in recent years. But Saturday’s 20-13 upset win by the Bears in Durham had to feel like death by a thousand cuts for WSSU faithful.
Shaw held the ball for an amazing 43:47 out of the game’s 60 minutes. The Bears ran more than twice as many offensive plays – 78 to WSSU’s 34 – and they converted on seven out of nine fourth-down attempts.
Trailing 13-0 midway through the second period, Shaw tallied 20 unanswered points, including a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns, to snatch what has to be the CIAA’s biggest surprising outcome thus far in 2025.
That’s enough for us to award the Shaw Bears as our latest NC Football News’ North Carolina College Football Team of the Week. Lamar Manigo’s young troops improved to 2-4 overall and 2-2 in conference play. Shaw is now 4-3 in its last seven meetings with Winston-Salem State, dating back to 2018.
Shaw U Bears 20 vs WSSU Rams 13 – Saturday 10/11/25 @ShawBears @CIAAForLife pic.twitter.com/bQSFqRSM4x — BIGSports (@bigsportsTV) October 12, 2025
Winston-Salem State, meanwhile, is looking for answers after a promising season has gone off the rails in recent weeks. The Rams had hoped 2025 to be a year when they got back into the CIAA title conversation. But WSSU has lost the last two games and three of the last four to fall to 3-4 overall and 1-3 in the league.
The Rams have one of the most dynamic quarterbacks in the CIAA in Daylin Lee. The Bears’ version of keep-away on Saturday didn’t allow the Rams signal caller many opportunities to cook after Lee scored on a 1-yard touchdown run following a 90-yard drive in the second quarter.
Shaw’s touchdown marches covered 17, 14 and 10 plays. Time of possession on those drives: 6:57, 8:39 and 4:19.
The clinching score came with just seven seconds on the game clock. Quarterback Alexander Marsh hit Trey Thorpe on a 6-yard TD pass and Jordan Lane converted the PAT to put the Bears in front for the first time, 20-13.
Winston-Salem State returned the kickoff to its 43. But Lee was sacked on the final play by Amarion Mbaye and Nikotis Gordon to seal the victory.
Marsh, a freshman from Greensboro (Southeast Guilford HS), had a solid day in command of the Bears’ offense. He scored on a 9-yard run with 25 seconds left to play in the first half to get the Bears on the board. With 6:05 to play in the game, Marsh found Tyrek Hardison on a 28-yard scoring play. The extra point was missed leaving the game tied at 13.
Marsh finished 12-of-22 passing for 145 yards and the two scores. He also rushed for 77 net yards, though lost 24 due to sacks. Fabian Diggs led the Bears on the ground with 70 yards. Hardison caught five balls for 76 yards and a TD.
Shaw’s Latrell McFadden and Brian Collins both picked off Lee, who otherwise finished 8-of-13 passing for 51 yards. JaQuan Kelly led the WSSU offense with 115 yards on the ground in six attempts. The Rams missed two field goals.
Jamieson Alston had another big game for the Winston-Salem State defense, earning 13 solo tackles, recording 16 total stops, forcing a fumble and earning 2.5 tackles-for-loss.
For the game, WSSU logged 10 TFLs, but Shaw still doggedly found ways to convert on fourth down and keep possessions alive. The Bears converted a pair of fourth-down plays during their first scoring drive of the final period.
Shaw will attempt to foil three more in-state CIAA rivals in the coming weeks. The Bears host Johnson C. Smith this Saturday (Oct. 18) and Fayetteville State the next (Oct. 25). Both the Golden Bulls and Broncos are among the CIAA leaders at this point. The final conference game will send Shaw to Livingstone on Nov. 1.
Winston-Salem State also plays the same three CIAA opponents down the home stretch – hosting Livingstone this weekend and closing with road games at Johnson C. Smith (Oct. 25) and Fayetteville State (Nov. 8).
🏆 2025 NC College Football Team of the Week: Check out past winners of our weekly award
📰 Review our D2 Game Day thread: Scores, recaps and takeaways from Oct. 11 action in North Carolina Division II college football.
