The Lenoir–Rhyne Bears football program is the intercollegiate

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

team for

Lenoir–Rhyne University Lenoir–Rhyne University is a private Lutheran university in Hickory, North Carolina. It was founded in 1891 and is affiliated with the North Carolina Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Academics The university is acc ...

located in the U.S. state of

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

. The team competes in the

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is the intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environment ...

and are members of the

South Atlantic Conference The South Atlantic Conference (SAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, which operates in the southeastern United States. The SAC was founded in 1975 as ...

. Lenoir–Rhyne's first football team was fielded in 1907. The team plays its home games at the 10,000 seat

Moretz Stadium Helen and Leonard Moretz Stadium is an 8,500-seat stadium located in Hickory, North Carolina. It serves as home to the Lenoir-Rhyne University Bears of the South Atlantic Conference The South Atlantic Conference (SAC) is a college athletic c ...

Hickory, North Carolina Hickory is a city in western North Carolina primarily located in Catawba County, North Carolina, Catawba County. The List of municipalities in North Carolina, 25th most populous city in the state, it is located approximately northwest of Charlot ...

History

Conference history

*1954–1969: NAIA *1970–1992: NAIA Division I *1989–present: NCAA Division II

Conference affiliations

*1907–1930: Independent *1931–1960:

North State Conference Conference Carolinas, formerly known as the Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference (CVAC) or the Carolinas Conference, is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) primarily at the Divisio ...

*1961–1974: Carolinas Conference *1975–present:

The Bears had no team from 1912–1920 and 1942–1945.

Postseason appearances

Bowl games

The Bears have participated in five postseason

bowl games In North America, a bowl game, or simply bowl, is one of a number of postseason college football games primarily played by NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams. For most of its history, the FBS did not use a playoff tourname ...

, compiling a 3–2 record.

NCAA Division II playoffs

The Bears have made eight appearances in the NCAA Division II playoffs. Their combined record is 12–8, with one appearance in the NCAA Division II championship game (2013).

Coaches

Clarence Stasavich Clarence Stasavich (February 9, 1913 – October 24, 1975) was an American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Lenoir–Rhyne College—now known as Lenoir–Rhyne University—in H ...

has the most victories as coach of the Bears. * Tom Warlick (1907–1908) * Burton H. Schoeff (1909) * Daniel M. Williams (1910–1911) * Phil Utley (1921) *

Norman Lamotte Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 9th and 10th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norma ...

(1922–1923) * Dick Gurley (1924–1931) * Robert M. Shores (1932–1936) * Albert Spurlock (1937) * Robert M. Shores (1938–1941) * D. M. Williams (1942–1945) *

(1946–1961) * Hanley Painter (1962–1972) * Danny Williams (1973) * Jack Huss (1974–1979) * Henry Vansant (1980–1983) * John Perry (1984–1990) * Charles Forbes (1991–1996) * Bill Hart (1997–2001) * Wayne Hicks (2002–2006) * Fred Goldsmith (2007–2010) * Mike Houston (2011–2013) *

Ian Shields Ian Shields (born ) is an American college football coach and former player. He is the head football coach for Minot State University, a position he has held since 2023. Shields served as the head football coach at Eastern Oregon University in L ...

(2014–2015) * Mike Kellar (2016–2017) * Drew Cronic (2018–2019) * Mike Jacobs (2020–2023) * Doug Socha (2024–present)

Notable former players

* Kyle Dugger, drafted 2nd round (37th overall) in the

2020 NFL draft The 2020 NFL draft was the 85th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2020 NFL season. The first round was held on April 23, followed by the second and third rounds on April 24. The ...

by the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

* Perry Fewell, former NFL coach * Craig Keith, former tight end for the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

and

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

(1993–1995) * John Milem, former defensive end for the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

and

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

(2000–2002) * Terence Steward, former wide receiver for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

(1987) * Dareke Young, drafted 7th round (233rd overall) in the

2022 NFL draft The 2022 NFL draft was the 87th edition of the National Football League's annual NFL draft, draft and was held from April 28–30, 2022, at the Caesars Forum on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, Paradise next to Las Vegas. The first round ...

by the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

Year-by-year results

Year W-L-T 1907 (0-3), 1908 (5-2-1), 1909 (3-5), 1910 (1-2), 1911 (3-3), —-NO TEAM 1912-1920—- 1921 (2-3), 1922 (1-5), 1923 (0-5), 1924 (5-4), 1925 (6-3), 1926 (7-2), 1927 (3-6-1), 1928 (2-6-1), 1929 (4-5-1), 1930 (3-6-1), 1939* (6–1–3), 1951 (10–1), 1952 (8–1), 1955 (9–0–1), 1956 (10–0), 1958 (9–1), 1959 (10–1), 1960 (12–0), 1961 (8–1–1), 1962 (11–1), 1965 (7–3), 1966* (6–3), 1967 (8–1), 1975 (7–3–1), 1988* (7–4), 1994* (8–2), 2005 (5–5), 2006 (3–8), 2007 (2–9), 2008 (3–8), 2009 (5–6), 2010 (7–4), 2011* (7–3), 2012 (9–3), 2013* (13–2), 2014* (11–1), 2015 (5–5), 2016 (3–8), 2017 (3–7), 2018* (12–2), 2019* (13–1), Spring 2020 (3-1)

Championship appearances

The Bears made three appearances in the NAIA championship game during their tenure, winning in 1960, and appeared in the NCAA Division II championship game in 2013.

Conference championships

1939* (6–1–3), 1951 (10–1), 1952 (8–1), 1955 (9–0–1), 1956 (10–0), 1958 (9–1), 1959 (10–1), 1960 (12–0), 1961 (8–1–1), 1962 (11–1), 1965 (7–3), 1966* (6–3), 1967 (8–1), 1975 (7–3–1), 1988* (7–4), 1994* (8–2), 2011* (7–3), 2012 (9–3), 2013 (13–2), 2014 (11–1), 2018 (12–2), 2019 (13–1) *denotes co-championship. The Bears won 8 titles in the

, 5 in the Carolinas Conference, and 9 in the

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lenoir-Rhyne Bears Football American football teams established in 1907 1907 establishments in North Carolina