November 11th, 2026 5:00am
For the second straight year, the Conference Carolinas championship comes down to UNC Pembroke and North Greenville. The Braves (8-2, 5-1) visit No. 25 North Greenville (8-2, 5-1) in the 2026 Conference Carolinas Bowl on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Younts Stadium in Tigerville, S.C., a rematch of last year’s title game.
The Trailblazers won the 2025 title 34-20 on the same field. North Greenville led 20-13 at halftime after two Dylan Ramirez touchdown runs in the final three minutes of the second quarter. Pembroke tied it early in the third on Malik Brown’s 48-yard touchdown, but Sam Washam answered with a touchdown catch. A 16-play, 64-yard drive ended with Ramirez’s third rushing score and put it away. As the regular-season champion, North Greenville hosts again, and Pembroke returns with a chance at revenge and a playoff spot on the line.
The teams already played a classic on Oct. 3 of this year in Pembroke, which North Greenville won 42-41. The Braves jumped out to a 21-0 lead on a 12-yard Josh Ehrlich run, a 68-yard touchdown pass to Brown and an 8-yard touchdown pass to Osborne. The Trailblazers answered with 21 straight points, the last on a 12-yard Kam Montgomery pass to Washam with 28 seconds left in the half. After trading scores in the third quarter, including a 75-yard Montgomery-to-Washam strike, Ehrlich’s 2-yard run made it 35-35. Montgomery then scored from 23 yards with 1:24 left, and Brown’s 5-yard run with 34 seconds to go cut it to one. Pembroke’s two-point try failed, and Jeremiah Lomax’s interception with two seconds left sealed it. The Braves held the edge in yards (484-404) and time of possession (36:25 to 23:35). But Montgomery threw for 259 yards and four touchdowns and added 113 rushing yards and two more scores.
North Greenville comes in off a 49-33 loss at No. 13 Valdosta State last week, only its second defeat of the season after a 16-13 home loss to Chowan on Oct. 10. The Trailblazers outgained the Blazers 556-419 and Montgomery accounted for all five touchdowns, but two interceptions and a blocked field goal returned 66 yards for a score swung the game. For the season, North Greenville is averaging 34.4 points and 403.6 yards per game, including 203.9 rushing yards and 32 rushing touchdowns, while allowing 21.9 points. Montgomery has thrown for 1,954 yards and 13 touchdowns and added 703 rushing yards and 13 rushing scores. Jackson Parrish has 367 rushing yards, and Jonathan Manley (22 catches, 370 yards) and Washam (20 catches, 342 yards) have three touchdown catches apiece. On defense, Jamie Downing Jr. has 78 tackles, Isaac Hawkins has 3.5 sacks, and Kaliber Hoey and Lomax have three interceptions each. The Trailblazers also own a win over then-No. 18 West Alabama.
UNC Pembroke arrives on a four-game winning streak, outscoring Erskine, Barton, Chowan and Ferrum by a total of 186-38. In the 45-14 win at Ferrum a week ago, the Braves led 31-7 at the half and finished with 558 yards (279 rushing, 279 passing), went 6-for-6 in the red zone, and held the ball for 36:14. Ehrlich threw for 270 yards and two touchdowns and added three rushing touchdowns, while Brown caught a 48-yard score. On the season, Pembroke is averaging 35.4 points and 425.8 yards per game (195.6 rushing, 230.2 passing) while allowing just 17.4 points and 278.8 yards. Ehrlich has 2,210 passing yards, 21 touchdowns and four interceptions, plus 831 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns. Brown has 40 catches for 726 yards, 12 total touchdowns, 72 points, and two kick-return touchdowns, and kicker Jared Navidad has 72 points and is 9-of-10 on field goals. The defense is allowing only 112.8 rushing yards per game and has 27 sacks, led by Fred Giles (9.0 sacks, 14.5 tackles for loss), with Jadin Baptist’s 64 tackles topping the team.
What to Watch For
North Greenville’s strengths are its ground game and its opportunism. Montgomery has accounted for 2,657 yards and 26 touchdowns; the offense is gaining 6.6 yards per play, and the defense has 13 interceptions, a plus-6 turnover margin, and three defensive touchdowns. The Trailblazers also finish games, outscoring opponents 142-46 in the fourth quarter. The concerns are penalties (92 for 865 yards, the most of either team), slow starts (outscored 45-36 in the first quarter), and a red-zone defense that has allowed scores on 25 of 28 trips and touchdowns on 20. The kicking game is also a concern, having converted just 5-of-10 on field goals this year.
UNC Pembroke’s strengths are balance and defense. The Braves score 35.4 points a game, have allowed only 11 sacks, and have scored on 34-of-38 red-zone trips. Their defense allows 17.4 points and 112.8 rushing yards per game. Navidad is nearly automatic, making 9-of-10 attempts this season with a long of 46 and has made his last nine field goals. The concerns are also penalties (88 for 761 yards, 76.1 per game against 50.0 for opponents) and ball security (nine fumbles with eight lost, plus five interceptions, leaving the turnover margin roughly even). The offense also leans on Ehrlich, who accounts for about 71 percent of the yardage and 31 of its 42 touchdowns, while the pass defense gave up four touchdown passes, including a 75-yarder, in the October showdown with NGU.
The biggest swing factor may be the trenches. Giles and Isi Etute give Pembroke a real pass rush against a line that has allowed 15 sacks, but the Braves recorded no sacks in the Oct. 3 meeting. If they get home on Montgomery this time, and keep their own flags and fumbles in check, the one-point margin could swing the other way.
A year ago, North Greenville celebrated a title on its home field. Now Pembroke returns to Tigerville with a lineup that has scored 186 points in its last four games and a one-point loss it can’t stop thinking about. The Trailblazers, meanwhile, are coming off a loss and know a spot in the playoff picture is still within reach. Pembroke’s defense has been among the league’s stingiest, and North Greenville’s offense is one of its most explosive. Whichever team keeps its penalties down, protects the football, and makes the big play late will walk off Younts Stadium as Conference Carolinas champion. After the Oct. 3 thriller, there’s every reason to expect this one will come down to the final possession again.