Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldogs
OVCBoiling Springs, NCErnest W. Spangler Stadium
2026: 2–6 (1–2 OVC). Last: lost at UT Martin 17–6. Next: at Southeast Missouri State, Saturday, Oct 31, 2 p.m. ET.
- L 17–35at Austin Peay
- L 13–17at Wofford
- L 23–24at Liberty
- W 44–20North Carolina Central
- L 35–36at Marshall
- W 12–10at Charleston Southern
- L 7–21Eastern Illinois
- L 6–17at UT Martin
- Oct 31at Southeast Missouri State
- Nov 7Lindenwood
- Nov 14at Western Illinois
- Nov 21Tennessee State
Gardner-Webb has played football since 1970 and is officially 281–322–2; 253 of its 605 games are in our file. They have won three Big South Conference titles (the last in 2022), plus two South Atlantic Conference titles, one Big South–OVC Football Association title, counting shared titles. The most-played rival is Charleston Southern: 23 meetings, Gardner-Webb leads 13–10. This season, they’re 2–6.
On this date in 2024Gardner-Webb beat Lindenwood 42–35 at home.
Résumé
- All-time record
- 281–322–2 official; 108–145 on file; how we count
- Postseason
- 0–1 bowls, title games, playoff
- AP No. 1 finishes
- 0
- Weeks at No. 1
- 0 of 0 ranked
- Elo now
- 1254
- Computer rankings
- Massey No. 50 · Composite No. 59 in FCS, Oct 17; down 5 since Oct 11. From Massey Ratings
- Conference titles
- 6 last in 2023
- Seasons
- 24 since 2003, 253 games
2026 season 2–6
RosterFull 2026 season| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 27 | at Austin Peay | L 17–35 | 39% |
| Sep 5 | at Wofford | L 13–17 | 35% |
| Sep 12 | at Liberty | L 23–24 | 22% |
| Sep 19 | vs North Carolina Central | W 44–20 | 47% |
| Sep 26 | at Marshall | L 35–36 | 18% |
| Oct 3 | at Charleston Southern | W 12–10 | 48% |
| Oct 10 | vs Eastern Illinois | L 7–21 | 75% |
| Oct 17 | at UT Martin | L 6–17 | 37% |
| Oct 31 | at Southeast Missouri State | Preview | 35% |
| Nov 7 | vs Lindenwood | Preview | 58% |
| Nov 14 | at Western Illinois | Preview | 44% |
| Nov 21 | vs Tennessee State | Preview | 67% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
This season, game by game
Players
The 2026 rosterThe moneyOn the 2026 team
- Tre Yanez83 tackles, 5 sacks (leads Gardner-Webb in tackles)
- Cole Pennington1,680 passing yards, 8 TD (leads Gardner-Webb in passing yards)
- Kory Jones37 catches, 625 yards, 3 TD (leads Gardner-Webb in receiving yards)
- Cahari Haynes64 tackles, 1 sack
- Christian Vann369 rushing yards (leads Gardner-Webb in rushing yards)
- Giovanni Adopte31 catches, 401 yards, 2 TD
Program strength since 2003
Best seasons everMost-played series
All rivalries- Charleston Southern
13–10 in 23
- 2017 L 9–10
- 2018 L 0–16
- 2019 L 27–30
- 2020 L 7–20
- 2021 L 24–32
- 2022 W 28–14
- 2023 W 34–10
- 2024 W 17–14
- 2025 W 30–27
- 2026 W 12–10
Won the last five.
- Liberty
4–11 in 15
- 2008 L 10–30
- 2010 L 14–40
- 2011 L 3–35
- 2013 L 0–24
- 2014 L 0–34
- 2015 W 34–20
- 2016 L 20–23
- 2017 L 17–33
- 2022 L 20–21
- 2026 L 23–24
Lost the last four.
- Coastal Carolina
2–12 in 14
- 2007 L 14–17
- 2008 L 18–23
- 2009 L 21–26
- 2010 L 27–30
- 2011 W 26–24
- 2013 L 7–42
- 2014 L 14–38
- 2015 L 0–46
- 2016 L 7–17
- 2022 L 27–31
Lost the last five.
| Opponent | Games | GWEB record |
|---|---|---|
| Charleston Southern | 23 | 13–10 |
| Liberty | 15 | 4–11 |
| Coastal Carolina | 14 | 2–12 |
| Wofford | 13 | 2–11 |
| Presbyterian | 12 | 8–3 † |
| VMI | 11 | 9–2 |
| Western Carolina | 10 | 5–5 |
| Monmouth | 8 | 1–7 |
Official records. † Without wins the NCAA vacated. ‡ The rivalry’s own count, where it differs from the games on file. Each series page gives both.
Every opponent (78)
Every program Gardner-Webb has played, A to Z, with Gardner-Webb’s record against it. Each links to the series, game by game.
- Akron 1–0
- App State 0–4
- Austin Peay 2–2
- Belhaven 1–0
- Benedict 1–0
- Brevard 2–0
- Bryant 2–0
- Buffalo 0–1
- Campbell 2–2
- Charleston Southern 13–10
- Charlotte 1–4
- Chattanooga 1–0
- Clark Atlanta 1–0
- Coastal Carolina 2–12
- East Carolina 0–2
- East Tennessee State 1–1
- Eastern Illinois 2–1
- Eastern Kentucky 2–0
- Elon 3–2
- Florida Atlantic 0–1
- Florida International 1–0
- Furman 1–4
- Georgia Southern 0–1
- Georgia Tech 0–2
- Glenville State 1–0
- Hampton 1–3
- Jacksonville 2–0
- James Madison 0–1
- Kennesaw State 0–6
- Liberty 4–11
- Limestone 2–0
- Lincoln (PA) 1–0
- Lindenwood 2–0
- Mars Hill 1–0
- Marshall 0–3
- Mercer 0–2
- Mississippi State 0–1
- Monmouth 1–7
- Montana State 0–1
- Morgan State 1–0
- NC State 0–1
- North Alabama 0–1
- North Carolina A&T 2–2
- North Carolina Central 2–1
- Ohio 0–4
- Old Dominion 0–1
- Pittsburgh 0–1
- Point University 1–0
- Presbyterian 8–3 †
- Richmond 1–0
- Robert Morris 3–0
- Sam Houston 0–2
- Samford 0–2
- Savannah State 2–0
- SE Louisiana 2–0
- Shorter 1–0
- South Alabama 0–1
- Southeast Missouri State 1–1
- Southern Virginia 1–0
- Stony Brook 1–3
- Tennessee State 1–2
- Tennessee Tech 2–4
- The Citadel 1–2
- Tusculum 1–0
- Union College 1–0
- UT Martin 1–5
- Virginia Lynchburg 1–0
- Virginia State 1–0
- Virginia Union 1–0
- VMI 9–2
- Wake Forest 0–2
- Warner 1–0
- Webber International 1–0
- Western Carolina 5–5
- Western Illinois 0–2
- William & Mary 0–1
- Wofford 2–11
- Wyoming 0–1
Official records. † Without wins the NCAA vacated, or with forfeits counted. ‡ The rivalry’s own count, where it differs from the games on file.
Conference titles
6, counting shared titles- Big South–OVC Football Association 1
- 2023 (shared)
- South Atlantic Conference 2
- 1987, 1992
As the program counts them in its Wikipedia article, shared titles included, and listed under each conference’s current name (a Western Conference title of the 1900s counts as a Big Ten title); season pages use the name the conference had that year. A title the article files under a conference the team wasn’t in that season is listed under the one it was. Division titles include years the team tied for its division.
Conferences
- South Atlantic Conference 1993–1999
- Independent 2000–2001
- Big South 2002–2022
- Big South-OVC 2023–2024
- OVC-Big South 2025
- OVC since 2026
- 2026Joined the OVC from the OVC-Big South in football, announced June 18, 2026. Source
Gardner-Webb’s football conferences by season, from CollegeFootballData.com’s memberships (renamed conferences keep the name of the time). The moves and their announcement dates from Wikipedia’s lists of NCAA Division I conference changes; the year is the first season in the new conference. Conference realignment: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
In the NFL Draft
By college- Drafted, rounds 1–7
- 3 since 1994
- First-round picks
- 0
The school
Gardner-Webb University- Enrollment
- 3,104 1,861 undergraduates, fall 2024
- Where
- Boiling Springs, North Carolina
- Public or private
- Private nonprofit
- Founded
- 1905
- Graduates’ median earnings
- $48,039 10 years after starting
Enrollment, place and Carnegie research tier from the National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS, public domain). Earnings from the US Department of Education’s College Scorecard (CC BY 4.0): the median for students who received federal aid and were working, not in school. Founding year from Wikidata. Every school’s in the data.
Season by season
National champions| Season | Record | Conf. | AP pre | AP final | Coach | Elo | SP+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2–6 | 1–2 | 1254 | ||||
| 2025 | 7–5 | 5–3 | 1312 | ||||
| 2024 | 4–8 | 3–5 | 1249 | ||||
| 2023 | 7–5 | 4–1 | 1374 | ||||
| 2022 | 7–6 | 5–0 | 1370 | ||||
| 2021 | 4–7 | 2–5 | 1235 | ||||
| 2020 | 2–2 | 1214 | |||||
| 2019 | 3–9 | 1–6 | 1148 | ||||
| 2018 | 3–8 | 2–3 | 1188 | ||||
| 2017 | 1–10 | 0–5 | 1155 | ||||
| 2016 | 5–6 | 3–2 | 1278 | ||||
| 2015 | 4–7 | 2–4 | 1205 | ||||
| 2014 | 4–8 | 0–5 | 1195 | ||||
| 2013 | 7–5 | 2–3 | 1269 | ||||
| 2012 | 0–3 | 1175 | |||||
| 2011 | 4–6 | 2–3 | 1190 | ||||
| 2010 | 4–7 | 2–4 | 1213 | ||||
| 2009 | 6–4 | 3–2 | 1296 | ||||
| 2008 | 5–6 | 3–3 | 1264 | ||||
| 2007 | 5–6 | 2–2 | 1255 | ||||
| 2006 | 6–5 | 2–2 | 1238 | ||||
| 2005 | 5–6 | 2–2 | 1223 | ||||
| 2004 | 5–6 | 2–2 | 1305 | ||||
| 2003 | 8–4 | 4–0 | 1321 |
Officially 281–322–2 since 1970 (per Wikipedia, rechecked weekly); game by game here, 108–145 (253 of its 605 games are on file). Our file starts in 2003; the program began in 1970. Some games are missing from our source.
Records are computed from every game on file at CollegeFootballData.com, whose coverage of the earliest seasons can be incomplete. Elo is this site’s own rating; see how it works on the records page.