2025 Western Carolina Catamounts football team

2025 Western Carolina Catamounts football
2025 Western Carolina Catamounts football
Conference	Southern Conference
Ranking
STATS	No. 18
FCS Coaches	No. 19
Record	0–0 (0–0 SoCon)
Head coach	Kerwin Bell (5th season);
Offensive coordinator	Rylan Wells (2nd season)
Defensive coordinator	Jerry Odom (2nd season)
Home stadium	Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium

2025 Southern Conference football standings

Team	W		L	W		L
Chattanooga	0	–	0	0	–	0
East Tennessee State	0	–	0	0	–	0
Furman	0	–	0	0	–	0
No. 11 Mercer	0	–	0	0	–	0
Samford	0	–	0	0	–	0
The Citadel	0	–	0	0	–	0
VMI	0	–	0	0	–	0
No. 18	0	–	0	0	–	0
Wofford	0	–	0	0	–	0

As of August 21, 2025 Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2025 Western Carolina Catamounts football team will represent Western Carolina University as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon) during the 2025 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Catamounts will be coached by fifth-year head coach Kerwin Bell and play at the Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium in Cullowhee, North Carolina.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV
August 30	6:00 p.m.	Gardner–Webb*	No. 18	Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium Cullowhee, NC	ESPN+
September 6	2:00 p.m.	at Wake Forest*		Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium Winston-Salem, NC	ACCNX
September 13	2:30 p.m.	Elon*		Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium Cullowhee, NC	ESPN+
September 20	2:30 p.m.	Samford		Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium Cullowhee, NC	ESPN+
September 27	3:30 p.m.	at Campbell*		Barker–Lane Stadium Buies Creek, NC	FloFootball
October 4	1:30 p.m.	at Wofford		Gibbs Stadium Spartanburg, SC	ESPN+
October 11	2:30 p.m.	Furman		Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium Cullowhee, NC	ESPN+
October 18	2:00 p.m.	at The Citadel		Johnson Hagood Stadium Charleston, SC	ESPN+
November 1	4:00 p.m.	at Chattanooga		Finley Stadium Chattanooga, TN	ESPN+
November 8	2:30 p.m.	Mercer		Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium Cullowhee, NC	ESPN+
November 15	12:00 p.m.	East Tennessee State		Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium Cullowhee, NC	ESPN+
November 22	12:00 p.m.	at VMI		Alumni Memorial Field Lexington, VA	ESPN+
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

^[1]^[2]

Game summaries

Gardner–Webb

Gardner–Webb Runnin' Bulldogs (0-0) vs. No. 18 Western Carolina Catamounts (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Runnin' Bulldogs	-	-	-	-	0
No. 18 Catamounts	-	-	-	-	0

at Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium • Cullowhee, NC

Date: August 30

Statistics	GWEB	WCU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Gardner–Webb	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Western Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Wake Forest (FBS)

Western Carolina Catamounts (0-0) vs. Wake Forest Demon Deacons (FBS) (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Catamounts	-	-	-	-	0
Demon Deacons (FBS)	-	-	-	-	0

at Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium • Winston-Salem, NC

Date: September 6

Statistics	WCU	WAKE
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Wake Forest	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Elon

Elon Phoenix (0-0) vs. Western Carolina Catamounts (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Phoenix	-	-	-	-	0
Catamounts	-	-	-	-	0

at Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium • Cullowhee, NC

Date: September 13

Statistics	ELON	WCU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Elon	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Western Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Samford

Samford Bulldogs (0-0) vs. Western Carolina Catamounts (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	-	-	-	-	0
Catamounts	-	-	-	-	0

at Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium • Cullowhee, NC

Date: September 20
Game time: 2:20 PM EDT

Statistics	SAM	WCU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Samford	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Western Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Campbell

Western Carolina Catamounts (0-0) vs. Campbell Fighting Camels (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Catamounts	-	-	-	-	0
Fighting Camels	-	-	-	-	0

at Barker–Lane Stadium • Buies Creek, NC

Date: September 27
Game time: 3:30 PM EDT

Statistics	WCU	CAM
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Campbell	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Wofford

Western Carolina Catamounts (0-0) vs. Wofford Terriers (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Catamounts	-	-	-	-	0
Terriers	-	-	-	-	0

at Gibbs Stadium • Spartanburg, SC

Date: October 4

Statistics	WCU	WOFF
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Wofford	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Furman

Furman Paladins (0-0) vs. Western Carolina Catamounts (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Paladins	-	-	-	-	0
Catamounts	-	-	-	-	0

at Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium • Cullowhee, NC

Date: October 11

Statistics	FUR	WCU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Furman	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Western Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at The Citadel

Western Carolina Catamounts (0-0) vs. The Citadel Bulldogs (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Catamounts	-	-	-	-	0
Bulldogs	-	-	-	-	0

at Johnson Hagood Stadium • Charleston, SC

Date: October 18
Game time: 2:00 PM EDT

Statistics	WCU	CIT
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
The Citadel	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Chattanooga

Western Carolina Catamounts (0-0) vs. Chattanooga Mocs (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Catamounts	-	-	-	-	0
Mocs	-	-	-	-	0

at Finley Stadium • Chattanooga, TN

Date: November 1
Game time: 4:00 PM EDT

Statistics	WCU	UTC
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Chattanooga	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Mercer

Mercer Bears (0-0) vs. Western Carolina Catamounts (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bears	-	-	-	-	0
Catamounts	-	-	-	-	0

at Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium • Cullowhee, NC

Date: November 8

Statistics	MER	WCU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Mercer	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Western Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

East Tennessee State

East Tennessee State Buccaneers (0-0) vs. Western Carolina Catamounts (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Buccaneers	-	-	-	-	0
Catamounts	-	-	-	-	0

at Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium • Cullowhee, NC

Date: November 15

Statistics	ETSU	WCU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
East Tennessee State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Western Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at VMI

Western Carolina Catamounts (0-0) vs. VMI Keydets (0-0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Catamounts	-	-	-	-	0
Keydets	-	-	-	-	0

at Alumni Memorial Field • Lexington, VA

Date: November 22

Statistics	WCU	VMI
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
VMI	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Roster

2025 Western Carolina Catamounts football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
WR	`0`	AJ Colombo	Sr
WR	`1`	Patrick Boyd Jr.	So
RB	`2`	Branson Adams	Sr
WR	`3`	Kha'leal Sterling	Fr
WR	`4`	Dominic Dutton	Sr
QB	`5`	Taron Dickens	So
WR	`6`	Marcus Striggles	So
WR	`7`	Malik Knight	Jr
WR	`5`	Painter Richards-Baker	Sr
WR	`9`	Jaylin Terzado	Jr
WR	`10`	Michael Rossin	Fr
QB	`11`	Isaac Lee	Fr
QB	`12`	Jack Benson	Jr
WR	`13`	Richard Hollis	Fr
TE	`14`	Josiah Thomas	Fr
WR	`15`	Jai Boyd	So
WR	`16`	James Tyre	So
QB	`17`	Bennett Judy	So
QB	`18`	Jordan Martin-Durham	Fr
TE	`19`	Bode Burns	Fr
RB	`20`	Camury Reid	Jr
RB	`21`	Jaiden Bond	Sr
RB	`22`	Josh Perry	Fr
RB	`24`	Anthony Benjamin	So
WR	`25`	Noah Best	Fr
RB	`28`	Markel Townsend	So
TE	`44`	Isaac McLellan	Jr
TE	`48`	Cole Craddock	Fr
OL	`50`	Jarvis Adams Jr.	Fr
OL	`51`	Aaron Sanez	Jr
OL	`52`	Manasseh Ripert	Jr
OL	`53`	Zach Watson	So
OL	`55`	Secrea Algie	Fr
OL	`58`	Brett Gray	Sr
OL	`64`	Konrad Henderson	Fr
OL	`65`	Nicholas Foster	Fr
OL	`66`	John Hammond	Fr
OL	`67`	Steven Hamby	So
OL	`68`	Aidan Cooper	Fr
OL	`69`	Cole Cooke	Fr
OL	`70`	Dale Greene	Fr
OL	`74`	Elijah Collins	So
OL	`75`	Renard Smith	So
OL	`77`	Ilija Krajnovic	Sr
OL	`78`	Evan Carney	So
OL	`79`	Vito Moriana-Sigel	Jr
WR	`80`	Trey Walker	Fr
WR	`81`	Ca'Lique Cunningham	Jr
WR	`82`	Matthew Keener	Fr
WR	`83`	Austin Cunningham	Fr
TE	`85`	David Hulbert	So
TE	`86`	Brayden Blackmon	Sr
WR	`87`	Eli Griffin	Fr
WR	`88`	Jemarious Reaves	Fr
WR	`89`	Ellis Chappell	Fr
RB		Marlin Cochran	So
QB		Ian Grissom	Fr
QB		Tate Rodemaker	Sr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
NB	`0`	Ken Moore Jr.	Jr
DE	`1`	Caleb Fisher	Sr
DE	`2`	Micah Nelson	Sr
S	`3`	Samaurie Dukes	Sr
LB	`4`	Jordan Thompson	So
LB	`5`	Hayward McQueen Jr.	Sr
DB	`6`	Bo Simpson-Nealy	So
S	`7`	Ed Jones IV	Sr
DT	`8`	Jahleel Anderson	Sr
CB	`9`	Darian Anderson Jr.	Jr
DE	`10`	Justin Wallace	Jr
DE	`11`	Kenyon Partridge	So
CB	`12`	Hasaan Sykes	So
CB	`13`	Marseille Taylor	Jr
DT	`14`	Vanier Baptiste III	Fr
DE	`15`	Gavin Rowell	Jr
S	`16`	Jhamari Pierre-Louis	Jr
LB	`17`	Armond Anderson	Sr
LB	`18`	Ryan McKinnis	So
CB	`19`	Cam Smith	So
S	`20`	Na'koma Simpson-Nealy	Fr
CB	`21`	Cam'Ron Dabney	Sr
NB	`22`	Jeno Junius Jr.	So
S	`24`	Zayveon Wells	So
NB	`25`	Nas Ashenafi	Fr
NB	`26`	Devin Brown	Fr
CB	`27`	Jayden Cornelius	Fr
CB	`29`	Christian Robbins	Fr
DE	`30`	Richard Garrett	Jr
CB	`31`	Don Robinson III	Jr
S	`32`	AJ Mintze	Fr
S	`33`	Lee Campbell	Jr
LB	`34`	Joshua Collins	Fr
LB	`35`	Trey Berry III	Fr
NB	`36`	Ja'Morri Downing	Jr
CB	`37`	Chris Hobbs	Fr
CB	`38`	Canden McGill	Fr
S	`39`	Julian Quintero	Fr
DE	`40`	Cain Jefferson	Fr
LB	`41`	Beady Waddell V	Fr
LB	`42`	Hank Bodine	Fr
LB	`43`	Braeden Barger	Fr
DT	`45`	Sean Morris	Sr
LB	`46`	Nolan McClanahan	Fr
LB	`47`	Blue Monroe	Jr
LB	`49`	Bryce Hart	Fr
DT	`57`	Jeremy Johnson	Fr
DT	`59`	J'evon Bush	Fr
DL	`90`	Jamichael Wilson	GS
DT	`91`	Jackson Banks	So
DT	`92`	Brandon Joseph II	Fr
DT	`93`	Adrian Stone	Fr
DT	`94`	Jaden Meeks	Fr
DT	`97`	Caleb Bradford	Sr
DT	`98`	Jackson Hensley	Fr
DE	`99`	Jordan Cardentey	Fr
DB		Trevaughn Martinez	So

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
LS	`56`	Mabry Bumgarner	So
K	`60`	Marcus Trout	Fr
K	`61`	Bryan McCollum	Fr
LS	`62`	Emmett Rhoades	So
P	`63`	Thomas Guerrero	Fr
P	`95`	Stephen Brantley	Jr
K	`96`	Christian Lowery	Sr

Head coach

Kerwin Bell

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Jerry Odom – Defensive coordinator
Rylan Wells – Offensive coordinator/recruiting coordinator
Kerry Webb – Special teams coordinator
Brian Cochran – Defensive line
Kyle Dickey – Tight ends
Malik Goodman – Safeties
Ethan Harris – Cornerbacks
Corey Headley – Quarterbacks/director of player personnel
Jeremy King – Offensive line
Greg McGruder – Wide receivers
Rudi Small – Running backs

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Roster
Last update: July 29, 2025

References

^ Kelley, Kevin (January 14, 2025). "Western Carolina announces 2025 football schedule". FBSchedules. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
^ Hooker, Daniel (January 13, 2025). "Western Carolina Announces Full 2025 Football Schedule". Western Carolina University, Department of Athletics. Retrieved May 9, 2025.

[1] Kelley, Kevin (January 14, 2025). "Western Carolina announces 2025 football schedule". FBSchedules. Retrieved May 9, 2025.

[2] Hooker, Daniel (January 13, 2025). "Western Carolina Announces Full 2025 Football Schedule". Western Carolina University, Department of Athletics. Retrieved May 9, 2025.

[1]

[2]

Western Carolina Catamounts football
Venues	Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium (1974–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Appalachian State: Battle for the Old Mountain Jug
Culture & lore	Paws "Fight on! You Catamounts" Pride of the Mountains Marching Band
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024