2015 Shepherd Rams football
NCAA Division II Championship finalist
MEC champion
ConferenceMountain East Conference
Ranking
AFCANo. 2
Record13–1 (10–0 MEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorErnie McCook (6th season)
Defensive coordinatorJosh Kline (7th season)
Home stadiumRam Stadium
2015 Mountain East Conference football standings
ConfOverall
Team W L  W L 
No. 2 Shepherd $^  10 –0   13 –1  
No. 20 Charleston (WV) ^  9 –1   10 –2  
Glenville State  6 –4   7 –4  
Fairmont State  6 –4   6 –4  
Concord  5 –5   5 –5  
Notre Dame (OH)  5 –5   5 –6  
West Liberty  5 –5   5 –6  
West Virginia State  5 –5   5 –6  
West Virginia Wesleyan  2 –8   2 –8  
Urbana  1 –9   2 –9  
Virginia–Wise  1 –9   1 –10  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant
Rankings from AFCA poll

The 2015 Shepherd Rams football team represented Shepherd University as a member of the Mountain East Conference (MEC) during the 2015 NCAA Division II football season. Led by 29th-year head coach Monte Cater, the Rams compiled an overall record of 13–1 with a mark of 10–0 in conference play, winning the MEC title. Shepherd advanced to the NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs and received a first-round bye. They beat IUP in the second round, Slippery Rock in the quarterfinals, and Grand Valley State in the semifinals, before losing the NCAA Division II Championship Game to Northwest Missouri State. The Rams played their home games at Ram Stadium in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.

Regular season

The 2015 regular season for the Rams consisted of 10 games against Mountain East Conference foes. The Rams went undefeated in the regular season and were given the top seed in Super Region I in the 2015 NCAA Division II football playoffs.[1]

Playoffs

The Rams received a first-round bye in the playoffs, being the top-ranked team in Super Region 1. Their first postseason game was at home against IUP, a 17–13 win.

The Rams then went on to defeat Slippery Rock, 28–16, in a quarterfinal game to continue their playoff run.

In the national semifinals on December 12, 2015, the Rams played Grand Valley State. The Rams won the game 34–32, to reach the 2015 NCAA Division II Football Championship Game.[2]

In the National Championship game, Shepherd lost to NW Missouri State 34–7.[3]

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 512:00 p.m.at West Virginia Wesleyan
W 43–02,681
September 1212:00 p.m.Charleston (WV)No. 25
W 45–253,017
September 191:00 p.m.at Virginia–WiseNo. 20
W 41–101,008[4]
September 2612:00 p.m.Notre Dame (OH)No. 16
  • Ram Stadium
  • Shepherdstown, WV
W 43–144,713[5]
October 101:00 p.m.at Glenville StateNo. 10
W 48–311,094[6]
October 1712:00 p.m.West Virginia StateNo. 9
  • Ram Stadium
  • Shepherdstown, WV
W 46–174,119[7]
October 2412:00 p.m.at ConcordNo. 9
W 35–281,252[8]
October 3112:00 p.m.West LibertyNo. 6
  • Ram Stadium
  • Shepherdstown, WV
W 44–104,789[9]
November 57:10 p.m.at Fairmont StateNo. 6
W 41–14939[10]
November 1412:00 p.m.UrbanaNo. 5
  • Ram Stadium
  • Shepherdstown, WV
W 52–204,489[11]
November 2812:00 p.m.IUP*No. 5
W 17–135,007[12]
December 512:00 p.m.No. 10 Slippery Rock*No. 5
  • Ram Stadium
  • Shepherdstown, WV (NCAA Division II Quarterfinal)
W 28–165,321[13]
December 1212:00 p.m.No. 12 Grand Valley State*No. 5
  • Ram Stadium
  • Shepherdstown, WV (NCAA Division II Semifinal)
ESPN3W 34–326,496[14]
December 193:00 p.m.vs. No. 1 Northwest Missouri State*No. 5
ESPN2L 7–3416,181[15][3]

References

  1. ↑ "2015 Division II Football Official Bracket | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com.
  2. ↑ "Football vs #12 Grand Valley State University on 12/12/2015 - Box Score". Shepherd University Athletics.
  3. 1 2 "Football vs #1 Northwest Missouri State University on 12/19/2015 - Box Score". Shepherd University Athletics.
  4. ↑ "Football vs UVa- Wise on 9/19/2015 - Box Score". Shepherd University Athletics.
  5. ↑ "Football vs Notre Dame (homecoming) on 9/26/2015 - Box Score". Shepherd University Athletics.
  6. ↑ "Football vs Glenville State on 10/10/2015 - Box Score". Shepherd University Athletics.
  7. ↑ "Football vs WV State (Hall of Fame Weekend) on 10/17/2015 - Box Score". Shepherd University Athletics.
  8. ↑ "Football vs Concord on 10/24/2015 - Box Score". Shepherd University Athletics.
  9. ↑ "Football vs West Liberty on 10/31/2015 - Box Score". Shepherd University Athletics.
  10. ↑ "Football vs Fairmont State on 11/5/2015 - Box Score". Shepherd University Athletics.
  11. ↑ "Football vs Urbana (Senior Day/Military Appreciation Day) on 11/14/2015 - Box Score". Shepherd University Athletics.
  12. ↑ "Football vs Indiana University of Pennsylvania on 11/28/2015 - Box Score".
  13. ↑ "Football vs #10 Slippery Rock on 12/5/2015 - Box Score".
  14. ↑ "Football vs #12 Grand Valley State University on 12/12/2015 - Box Score".
  15. ↑ Smale, David (December 20, 2015). "Northwest Missouri wins 5th Division II title". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore, Maryland. Associated Press. p. B6. Retrieved December 6, 2021 – via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
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