:UNC Pembroke Braves football

Pembroke State fielded their first team in 1946.{{cite book |title=The Indianhead |year=1947 |publisher=Digital North Carolina Library |pages=39–40 |url=http://library.digitalnc.org/u?/yearbooks,2860 |access-date=November 8, 2011}} Having played only five games in the inaugural season, James Sampson served as head coach. Sampson served as head coach through the termination of the football program following the 1950 season.

Without sanctioned football since the 1950 season, on December 1, 2004, the UNC Pembroke Board of Trustees voted unanimously to proceed with the development of a football program to begin play by the 2007 season.{{cite news |last =McGhee |first =Khary K. |title =Football returns to UNCP |newspaper=The Fayetteville Observer |date=December 2, 2004}} With stadium expansion complete by summer 2005, Pembroke announced the hiring of Pete Shinnick as the reinstated program's head coach on December 13, 2005.{{cite news |last=Pope |first=Tomas |title=Braves hire Shinnick as coach |newspaper=The Fayetteville Observer |date =December 14, 2005}} With the team in place, the Braves lost their inaugural game on the road to the Davidson Wildcats 31–21 on September 1,{{cite news |last=Friedlander |first =Brett |title=Time to celebrate at UNCP |newspaper=The Fayetteville Observer |date =September 6, 2007}} and notched their first win in their first home game after they defeated Greensboro College 26–20 on September 8 en route to completing the 2007 campaign with a 4–7 record.{{cite news |last=Graff |first=Michael N. |title =Home, sweet home: Braves win |newspaper=The Fayetteville Observer |date =September 9, 2007}}

Pembroke improved upon their 2007 record through and finished the 2008 season with a record of 9–1. The 2008 squad featured a defense that lead all of Division II in scoring defense that only allowed 11.20 points per game; was second in total defense with 226.60 yards per game; and was fourth in rushing defense with 71.60 yards per game.{{Cite web |url=http://web1.ncaa.org/football/exec/rankingSummary?year=2008&org=537 | title=UNC Pembroke Football Ranking Summary |access-date=December 28, 2008 | author=NCAA}}

In 2017, Pembroke entered into a scheduling alliance with the South Atlantic Conference. The agreement was originally set to run through the 2020 season,{{cite press release|url=https://www.uncp.edu/news/south-atlantic-conference-announces-football-schedule-uncp |title=South Atlantic Conference announces football schedule with UNCP |publisher=University of North Carolina at Pembroke |date=May 17, 2017 |access-date=September 19, 2018}} but Pembroke ended the agreement a year early after reaching a larger agreement on associate membership with the Mountain East Conference (MEC). Under the MEC agreement, Pembroke became an associate member in all five of the school's varsity sports that are not sponsored by its full-time home of the Peach Belt Conference, including football.{{cite press release |url=http://www.mountaineast.org/news/2018/8/30/general-mec-membership.aspx |title=Davis & Elkins To Join MEC; UNC Pembroke To Be Associate Member |publisher=Mountain East Conference |date=August 30, 2018 |access-date=September 19, 2018}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Start | type = coach | team = | conf = | bowl = | poll = no}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Subhead

| name = UNC Pembroke Braves

| startyear = 2007

| conf = Independent

| endyear = 2019

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2007

| name = Pete Shinnick

| overall = 4–7

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname =

| bowloutcome =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2008

| name = Pete Shinnick

| overall = 9–1

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname =

| bowloutcome =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2009

| name = Pete Shinnick

| overall = 9–2

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname = (Division II First Round)

| bowloutcome = L 41–13 vs. Arkansas Tech

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2010

| name = Pete Shinnick

| overall = 5–5

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2011

| name = Pete Shinnick

| overall = 8–3

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2012

| name = Pete Shinnick

| overall = 6–4

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2013

| name = Pete Shinnick

| overall = 9–2

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname = (Division II Second Round)

| bowloutcome = L 37–13 vs. North Alabama

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2014

| name = Shane Richardson

| overall = 2–8

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname =

| bowloutcome =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2015

| name = Shane Richardson

| overall = 6–4

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname =

| bowloutcome =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2016

| name = Shane Richardson

| overall = 10–2

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname = (Division II Second Round)

| bowloutcome = L 41–17 vs. North Alabama

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2017

| name = Shane Richardson

| overall = 2–8

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname =

| bowloutcome =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2018

| name = Shane Richardson

| overall = 2–8

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname =

| bowloutcome =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2019

| name = Shane Richardson

| overall = 4-7

| conference =

| confstanding =

| bowlname =

| bowloutcome =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Subhead

| name = UNC Pembroke Braves

| startyear = 2020

| conf = Mountain East Conference

| endyear = 2023

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2020

| name = Shane Richardson

| overall = 2-2

| conference = 2-2

| confstanding = 3 (South)

| bowlname =

| bowloutcome =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2021

| name = Shane Richardson

| overall = 6-5

| conference = 6-4

| confstanding = 4

| bowlname =

| bowloutcome =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2022

| name = Shane Richardson

| overall = 5-6

| conference = 5-5

| confstanding = 8

| bowlname =

| bowloutcome =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record Entry

| championship =

| year = 2023

| name = Mark Hall

| overall = 7-3

| conference = 6-3

| confstanding = 3

| bowlname =

| bowloutcome =

| bcsbowl =

| ranking = no

| ranking2 = no

}}

{{CFB Yearly Record End

| overall = 96–77

| bowls =

| poll =

| polltype =

}}

While Pembroke was not a football member of any conference before 2020, they do share a rivalry with geographically close schools, such as the Fayetteville State University and Wingate University.

Fayetteville State and Pembroke are separated by only {{convert|47|mi}}, with the rivalry named for the Lumber River near Pembroke and the Cape Fear River near Fayetteville, NC. Both schools square off for bragging rights, as many of the players on both teams come from the surrounding Robeson, Cumberland, Richmond, Scotland, Hoke and Moore counties.http://robesonian.com/view/full_story/20063709/article-Braves-gear-up-for-fourth--Classic--against-Broncos {{Dead link|date=February 2022}}

One of Pembroke's first games in 2007 was against Wingate, and they have played every year since. With both schools located just off of US-74, and a little over {{convert|80|mi}} apart, these two schools have experienced a close rivalry over the past years.

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
+ Primary UNCP Football Rivalries: All-Time Records
{{CollegePrimaryHeader|team=UNC Pembroke Braves|Name of rivalry|Rival|Games played|First meeting|Last meeting|UNCP Won|UNCP Lost|Ties|Streak|Latest win}}
align="center" |Two Rivers Classic |Fayetteville State Broncos |4 |2009 |2012 |4 |0 |0 |4 wins |2012, 31-21
align="center" |Battle for 74 |Wingate Bulldogs |6 |2007 |2012 |2 |4 |0 |1 win |2012, 49-35
align="center" {{CollegeSecondaryHeader|team=UNC Pembroke Braves|Totals	10	|6|4|0|

}

|}

{{Notelist}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{Official website|1=http://uncpbraves.com/index.aspx?path=football}}

{{University of North Carolina at Pembroke}}

{{Mountain East Conference navbox}}

Category:American football teams established in 2007

Category:2007 establishments in North Carolina