Hickory, N.C.----The 12th-ranked Wingate University Bulldogs are back on the road Saturday, traveling to Hickory to take on the seventh-ranked Bears of Lenoir-Rhyne University in an NCAA Division II Showcase Game on ESPN3. Both teams enter the contest with a perfect 8-0 overall record as two of the final 14 undefeated teams in NCAA Division II football. Wingate is 5-0 in the SAC, while the Bears are 6-0 in league play.

ABOUT THE GAME

Saturday, Nov. 2 | 2:05 p.m. | D2 Showcase Game
#12 Wingate (8-0; 5-0 SAC) at #7 Lenoir-Rhyne (8-0; 6-0 SAC)
Hickory, N.C. (Moretz Stadium) | ESPN3 | Live Stats

SERIES HISTORY

- This will be the 35th meeting between the Bulldogs and Bears
- Lenoir-Rhyne leads the all-time series 21-13
- The Bears have an 11-6 record in Hickory
- LR won both meetings against Wingate last year
- Lenoir-Rhyne took a 31-7 third quarter lead at WU last year, then held on for a 31-24 win
- The 'Dogs led 17-14 in the final minute at LR in the play-off game before a 32-yard TD pass
- Wingate had won three straight in the series from 2015-2017
- The 'Dogs won six straight from 2005-2010
- The Bears won four in a row from 2011-2014
- LR won the first 11 in the series from 1986-1996
- Wingate's 49-6 victory in 2016 was the biggest margin of victory by either team
- Lenoir-Rhyne's two wins last year were by a combined 11 points
- The last three games and four of the last five have been decided by 10 points or less
- Wingate's 24-14 win at LR in 2015 snapped a 22-game SAC winning streak
 
MOST RECENT GAMES

- Wingate piled up a season-high 295 rushing yards in a 45-13 win over UVA-Wise
- The 'Dogs averaged 6.4 yards per rush and held the Cavs to 1.4 yards per carry
- Nijere Peoples ran for 149 yards and a TD; Dom McNeill had 104 rush yards and a score
- Shaw Crocker threw for 137 yards and three touchdowns
- Jalen Brooks had 121 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns
- Matthew Ellis-White added a 47-yard interception return for a touchdown
- Elijah Gilmore piled up 10 tackles including a tackle for loss
- Romario Johnson added eight tackles and a TFL
- The 'Dogs tied a season high with six sacks
- Lenoir-Rhyne had its closest game of the year, prevailing 28-20 at Limestone
- The Bears did not lead until midway through the third quarter
- LR put up 461 yards of offense with over 210 rush yards and pass yards
- Lenoir-Rhyne piled up six sacks and had an interception
- Grayson Willingham threw for 211 yards and three touchdowns
- Jaquay Mitchell ran for 149 yards on 19 carries, adding a TD
- Dareke Young had seven catches for 120 yards and a score
- Jaquan Artis had 10 tackles, three TFLs, two sacks and a forced fumble
- Amari Houston added a pair of sacks on the day for the Bears
 
COACHES

- WU head coach Joe Reich is in his 19th season at Wingate (127-79)
- One of three SAC coaches to ever win 100 games
- 2017 SAC Coach of the Year (Third time in his career)
- Drew Cronic is in his second season as the Lenoir-Rhyne head coach (20-2)
- Cronic was the SAC, Region and AFCA National Coach of the Year in 2018

WHAT'S ON THE LINE SATURDAY

- Two of the final 14 unbeaten teams in D2 football
- LR is number two in the Super Region 2 poll; Wingate is number four
- The Bears have won 18 straight regular season games and 13 straight SAC games
- LR also has an 11-game home winning streak
- Wingate has won its last 14 regular season games
- The 'Dogs have won seven straight regular season road contests
- The Bulldogs have won 10 straight SAC games
- Wingate is looking for its third straight nine-win season
- LR could clinch a regular season title with a win Saturday
- The 'Dogs would still need one more win to clinch a title with a win Saturday

LAST YEAR'S MEETINGS

- LR won 31-24 at Wingate in September
- The Bears scored three minutes into the fourth to take a 31-7 lead
- Crocker threw for TD passes of 39 and 87 yards to get WU within seven
- The 'Dogs had a chance to tie it, but were stuffed on a fourth-and-goal from the one
- Crocker threw for 288 yards and ran for 31, combining for three touchdowns
- Willingham had 239 yards and two touchdowns
- The 'Dogs outgained the Bears 378-353 and had five more first downs
- Lenoir-Rhyne lost two fumbles; Wingate threw a pair of interceptions
- Cardell Rawlings had 14 tackles, five TFLs, 3.5 sacks and two forced fumbles
- Rawlings earned National Player of the Week honors for his efforts
- The two teams met up again in the second round of the NCAA D2 play-offs last year
- Crocker hit Brooks for a 35-yard TD in the opening quarter for the lone score of the half
- WU took a 10-0 lead on McLean Robertson's 36-yard field goal in the third
- LR took a 14-10 lead three minutes into the fourth quarter
- Wingate regained the lead with 2:51 left on a 61-yard Crocker-to-Bryan Mitchell TD pass
- LR scored on a double reverse pass from 32 yards out that was deflected in the end zone
- The Bears held on for a 21-17 victory
 
ABOUT THE BULLDOGS

- Wingate has started a season 8-0 for the second time in three years
- WU made back-to-back NCAA play-off trips for the first time in program history
- The 'Dogs won nine games in back-to-back years for the first time ever
- The #12 ranking is tied for the highest in program history
- The Bulldogs are outscoring opponents by 16 points per game
- The Bulldogs are 34-9 since 2016; most wins of any SAC team
- The 'Dogs have won 14 straight regular season games
- WU is outscoring opponents 514-251 in the streak
- WU has won 15 of its last 16 contests overall
- The Bulldogs are a league-best 21-5 in SAC play since 2016
- Wingate was the first NCAA D2 team to win four road games this year
- WU is one of 14 remaining NCAA D2 teams without a loss this season
- Wingate has won seven straight regular season road games
- The Bulldogs are outscoring opponents 87-23 in the third quarter this year
- The 'Dogs have 25 straight wins when scoring at least 30 points
- WU has scored at least 30 points 13 times since beginning of '18
- Wingate has scored over 40 its last two games and three times this season
- The Bulldogs have won 18 of their last 20 regular season home games
- Wingate is 68-33 at Irwin Belk Stadium since 2001
- WU is 12-1 all-time under the lights at Irwin Belk Stadium
 
WINGATE OFFENSE

- The Bulldogs are averaging 34.3 points per game, ranking third in the SAC
- Wingate is fourth in the league with 393.0 total yards per contest
- WU is third in the SAC in rushing (200.1 ypg) and passing (192.9 ypg)
- Wingate is third in the league with 20.8 first downs per contest
- The Bulldogs are fifth in the SAC in third-down conversions (35%)
- WU has scored on 25-31 red zone trips with 19 touchdowns
- The 'Dogs have a league-low seven turnovers this season; ranking seventh nationally
- Wingate ranks second in the conference and 10th in the nation in time of possession (33:09)
- Crocker ranks eighth in the nation in yards per completion (15.9) and 18th in pass efficiency
- Peoples (89.5 ypg) and McNeill (87.6 ypg) rank first and second in the SAC in rushing
- Peoples is third in the league with seven touchdowns; McNeill is fourth with six TDs
- Crocker is third in the SAC with 161 pass yards per game and 12 TDs
- Brooks is fourth in the SAC with 62.6 receiving yards per game
- BJ Muckelvene averages 53.7 receiving yards per game, ranking third in the SAC with six TDs
- RaQuan Simmons leads the 'Dogs and ranks 10th in the SAC with 23 receptions
- Brooks leads the SAC and ranks ninth in the nation with 22.8 yards per reception
- Muckelvene is third in the SAC and 20th in the nation with 21.5 yards per catch  

WINGATE DEFENSE

- The Bulldogs rank second in the SAC, allowing 17.9 points per game
- WU is third in the SAC with 284.3 yards per game allowed
- The 'Dogs are 2nd in rush defense (101.6) / 3rd in pass defense (182.6 ypg)
- Wingate is second in the SAC with 65 tackles for loss
- WU is fourth in third down defense (33 percent) and first in fourth down defense
- The 'Dogs rank second in the conference with 27 sacks
- Robbie Wallace leads Wingate with 55 tackles, adding six TFLs and 2.5 sacks
- Jesiah Carlton is fourth in the SAC with 9.5 TFLs, adding 3.5 sacks and 13 QB hurries
- Elijah Gilmore has 48 tackles, 5.5 TFLs and 3.0 sacks
- Cal Hanford and DJ Horne each have 4.5 sacks on the year; 13 combined hurries
- Romario Johnson has collected 38 tackles with three TFLs and two break-ups
- Davion Washington has seven pass break-ups and two interceptions
- Ellis-White has registered 30 tackles, an interception and seven break-ups
 
WINGATE SPECIAL TEAMS

- McLean Robertson has hit a league-best 10 field goals
- Five of his field goals have been from at least 40 yards out; long of 45
- Ethan Evans is third in the SAC with 39.9 yards per punt
- 15 of his 35 punts have ended up inside the 20; long of 57 
- Simmons is third in the SAC with 25.9 yards per kick return
- He ranks fifth in the league with 11.2 yards per punt return
- Muckelvene has five punt returns, averaging 15.4 yards per return
 
ABOUT LENOIR-RHYNE

- The Bears went 12-2 overall and 7-0 in the SAC last year
- LR won the SAC title and advanced to the third round of the NCAA D2 play-offs
- Lenoir-Rhyne lost to eventual national champion Valdosta State
- LR was the preseason SAC favorite this year
- The Bears have eight SAC titles including five since 2011
- LR is outscoring opponents by 28 points per game this year
- Lenoir-Rhyne had won 10 straight regular season games by double figures before last week
 
LENOIR-RHYNE OFFENSE

- The Bears lead the SAC with 43.9 points and 447.1 yard per game
- Lenoir-Rhyne ranks 10th nationally in scoring offense
- LR is second in the league and sixth in the nation in rush yards (289.3 ypg)
- Lenoir-Rhyne ranks seventh in the SAC in passing yards (157.9 ypg)
- The Bears have scored on 36-42 red zone trips with 31 TDs
- Lenoir-Rhyne converts 49 percent of third downs and 67 percent of fourth downs
- LR has scored over 50 points three times this season, going over 60 twice
- The Bears have been held under 30 points on just two occasions this year
- Nine different players have a rushing touchdown for LR this season
- Jace Jordan leads the Bears with 477 rush yards, going for 8.8 yards per carry
- Ameen Stevens has 358 rushing yards and a league-best 10 touchdowns
- Mitchell averages 8.4 yards per carry, going for 452 yards on the year
- Willingham averages 149.9 passing yards per game with 15 TDs and six interceptions
- Young has 20 catches for 449 yards and six touchdowns, averaging 22.5 yards per catch
 
LENOIR-RHYNE DEFENSE

- LR leads the SAC in scoring defense (15.8 ppg) and total defense (271.9 ypg)
- The Bears allow a league-low 74.8 rushing yards per game
- Only two teams have rushed for over 100 yards this year (Carson-Newman & Limestone)
- No team has gone for over 160 rush yards against the Bears this year
- Lenoir-Rhyne is sixth in the SAC in pass defense (197.1 ypg)
- The Bears lead the SAC and rank fourth in the nation with 32 sacks
- LR also leads the conference in turnover margin
- The Bears have 11 interceptions and have recovered eight of the 19 forced fumbles
- Artis has 49 tackles, 15.5 TFLs and 10 sacks, adding two forced fumbles
- Quentin Hayes has 40 tackles with 6.0 TFLs and 3.0 sacks
- Dan Louba has piled up 11.5 TFLs and 7.5 sacks, forcing two fumbles
- Eric Jackson has three interceptions to go along with 36 tackles
- Ivan Milliken has seven pass break-ups
 
LENOIR-RHYNE SPECIAL TEAMS

- Chase Allbaugh has hit six field goals with a long of 43 yards
- He has connected on all 47 PATs on the season
- Michael Owen averages 39.3 yards per punt on 26 attempts
- 10 of his 26 punts have ended inside the 20
- Kyle Dugger has 175 yards on 12 punt returns
- He has a pair of punt return TDs, averaging 14.6 yards per return
- Young has four kick returns for the Bears, averaging 16.5 yards per return
- Jordan averages 34.5 yards per kick return on his two attempts
 
UP NEXT

- Wingate returns home for Senior Day next Saturday, hosting Newberry at 6 p.m.
- The 'Dogs wrap up the regular season at Mars Hill Nov. 16 at 1 p.m.
- LR hosts UNC Pembroke Nov. 9 at 2 p.m.
- The Bears are at Catawba Nov. 16 at noon to wrap up the regular season

WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
A comprehensive, independent and growing university, Wingate serves more than 3,600 students in North Carolina. Founded in 1896, the University offers 37 undergraduate majors as well as graduate and professional programs. Wingate is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences, the Levine College of Health Sciences, the Byrum School of Business, the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences. Wingate blends in-class exploration with out-of-class application to deliver an uncommon and life-changing educational experience.
 
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 22 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past 13 years. Wingate is first in the 2000s among NCAA Division II and North Carolina's colleges and universities with 113 CoSIDA Academic All-America® selections. Wingate is tops among all SAC schools with 122 lifetime Academic All-America® honorees. For more information on WU athletics, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com. Current news and videos can be found at www.wingate.edu.