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Shepherd Rams football

The Shepherd Rams football program represents Shepherd University in college football at the NCAA Division II level in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference. Shepherd has played its home games at Ram Stadium since 1959.

History

Monte Cater era

Monte Cater served as the head football coach at Shepherd University from 1987 to 2017, becoming the winningest coach in both Shepherd and West Virginia college football history. Over his 31 seasons at the helm, Cater compiled a record of 245–93–1, leading the Rams to 17 conference championships and 13 postseason appearances.

Before Cater's arrival, Shepherd had made the postseason only a handful of times. In 1983, the Rams reached the playoffs for the first time in school history, losing to Carson–Newman 42–21 in the opening round of the NAIA playoffs. They returned to the postseason in 1986 and again fell to Carson–Newman, 30–10. In 1991, Shepherd advanced to the playoffs and lost to Central State 34–22. The Rams finally earned their first-ever postseason win in 1992, defeating Carson–Newman 6–3 before falling to Gardner–Webb 22–7 in the next round.

Under Cater's leadership, Shepherd became a dominant program in the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC), winning 12 conference titles. When the university transitioned to the newly formed Mountain East Conference (MEC) in 2013, Cater continued the program's success, capturing four MEC championships in five seasons.

One of the hallmark seasons of Cater's tenure came in 2015, when Shepherd went 13–1 and reached the NCAA Division II Football Championship game for the first time in program history, ultimately falling to Northwest Missouri State.

On December 5, 2015, with a win over Slippery Rock in the Super 1 Region Final, Cater achieved his 250th victory as a college football coach.

On January 24, 2018, Cater announced his retirement after 31 seasons at Shepherd. He was replaced by longtime assistant Ernie McCook. Cater had been the active wins leader in all levels of college football with 274 career victories. Cater led Shepherd to 13 post season trips, 2 NAIA and 11 NCAA DII. 3 NCAA DII semifinal appearances (2010, 2015 & 2016) and a national championship game appearance in 2015.

Moving to the PSAC

On May 31, 2018, Shepherd University accepted an invitation to join the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference as a full-time member, with competition beginning in the 2019–20 academic year. The move came after the PSAC Board of Directors approved the university's admission, expanding the conference's membership and strengthening its footprint in the Mid-Atlantic region.

“We are pleased to welcome the Shepherd Rams to the PSAC family of institutions,” said PSAC Commissioner Steve Murray. “Shepherd University brings with it an outstanding athletic and academic tradition, along with a perfect geographic fit for the conference. We’ve made the PSAC even stronger today.”

Shepherd's addition followed the departure of Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, which exited NCAA Division II competition after the 2017–18 season. With Shepherd's arrival, the PSAC maintained its 18-member structure heading into 2019. The Rams joined the PSAC Eastern Division, aligning them with Commonwealth University-Bloomsburg, East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, Commonwealth University-Lock Haven, Commonwealth University-Mansfield, Millersville University of Pennsylvania, Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, and West Chester University.

Ernie McCook era

The current head coach is Ernie McCook, a 1992 graduate of Wesley College. McCook was elevated to head coach after the retirement of longtime coach Monte Cater. McCook previously served as offensive line coach at Shepherd from 1999 to 2008 and was also the offensive coordinator starting in 2000. McCook was elevated to assistant head coach in 2007. He spent the 2009 season as running game coordinator/tight ends coach at Liberty University, before returning to Shepherd the next season, where he served as assistant head coach/offensive coordinator for the next seven years.

After the 2021 football season, Junior QB Tyson Bagent won the Harlon Hill Trophy for most outstanding Division II player, the first Shepherd player to win the award.

Head coaches

Conference affiliations

Championships

Conference championships

Shepherd claims 22 conference championships

† Co-champions

Division championships

† Co-champions

Awards and honors

National awards

Seasons

Postseason results

Note: The NCAA expanded the playoff field from 16 to 24 teams in 2000, from 24 to 28 teams in 2015, and from 28 to 32 teams in 2025..

Rams on the Next Level

Drafted players

Shepherd has had three football players drafted by the NFL:

Currently active in the NFL

Currently active in the IFL

Currently active in the UFL

Other Rams on the Next Level

References

External links