The 2026 football season got underway on Thursday as Lindenwood held off Charleston Southern 20-17 in Conference play. In non-conference action, Eastern Illinois won at Murray State and Western Illinois topped Northwestern College, while Gardner-Webb and UT Martin suffered losses.
 

THURSDAY'S SCORES
@Lindenwood 20, Charleston Southern 17	Box Score
@#17/18 Austin Peay 35, Gardner-Webb 17	Box Score
Central Arkansas 36, #23/22 UT Martin 24	Box Score
Eastern Illinois 28, @Murray State 14	Box Score
Western Illinois 65, Northwestern College 14	Box Score

LINDENWOOD 20, CHARLESTON SOUTHERN 17
ST. CHARLES, Mo. - The Lindenwood football team (1-0, 1-0 OVC defeated Charleston Southern (0-1, 0-1 OVC) by a score of 20-17 on Thursday night from Steward Field at Hunter Stadium.

The opening 15 minutes was a defensive battle as each team had their opening drive stall just inside the opponent 50. Neither CSU or Lindenwood found the endzone in the first with the game knotted at zero.

CSU put together its best drive of the contest to begin the second but the Lions held strong outside the end zone and held the Bucs to a field goal which put them up 3-0 at the 12:16 mark. Lindenwood answered right back with a field goal of its own, going on a 13-play, 64 yard drive to knot the game at three apiece with just over six minutes to go in the half.

On the ensuing offensive drive, the Buccaneers began to march down the field as the half was nearing an end. With 13 seconds left, Isaac Edwards jumped in front of a pass and took it 80 yards to the house, giving the Lions a 10-3 lead just before the break.

The Lions began the third quarter with a stop and kept the momentum going. On the third play of the next possession, Pops Battle found Jalen Smith over the middle for a big 25-yard catch. A few plays later, Battle scrambled out to his left and walked in for six, putting the Black and Gold up 17-3 with just under 10 minutes to go. The Lindenwood defense continued to styme the Buccaneers offense and held a two score lead going into the fourth.

In the fourth, Graham drilled a 28-yard field goal to give the Lions a 20-10 lead with 5:36 to play. CSU kept battling and got it back to a one score game after converting a fourth down with 2:03 to play. However, the Lions were able to seal the win on a first down run by Robert Giaimo and earn the 20-16 victory in the season opener.


#17/18 AUSTIN PEAY 35, GARDNER WEBB 17
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - Gardner-Webb University opened the 2026 football season Thursday evening at Fortera Stadium, falling to Austin Peay, 35-17, in the season opener for both teams.

The Runnin' Bulldogs battled throughout the contest and finished the night with 344 yards of total offense, including 312 yards through the air. Gardner-Webb recorded 22 first downs and converted a pair of fourth downs on the night.

Quarterback Cole Pennington led the Gardner-Webb offense, completing 27-of-49 passes for 312 yards and one touchdown. His 43-yard touchdown connection with Jalile Bost in the second quarter gave the Runnin' Bulldogs a 10-7 advantage.

Gardner-Webb struck first after putting together a 16-play, 73-yard drive that consumed more than six minutes. Tyler Simpson capped the opening possession with a 36-yard field goal, giving the Runnin' Bulldogs a 3-0 lead with 4:17 remaining in the first quarter.

Austin Peay answered with a touchdown late in the opening quarter before Gardner-Webb reclaimed the lead early in the second. Following an interception by Ty Sanders, the Runnin' Bulldogs needed just two plays to find the end zone. Pennington connected with Bost for a 43-yard touchdown, putting Gardner-Webb ahead, 10-7, with 13:29 left in the first half.

The Governors responded with two second-quarter touchdowns to take a 21-10 lead into halftime. Austin Peay added two more touchdowns in the third quarter to extend its advantage to 35-10 entering the final period.

Gardner-Webb continued to fight in the fourth quarter, putting together an 11-play, 75-yard scoring drive. Adrian Cormier finished the possession with a one-yard touchdown run, cutting the deficit to 35-17 with 13:30 remaining.

The Runnin' Bulldogs continued to move the ball late, but Austin Peay's defense stopped Gardner-Webb on downs on its final possession to secure the victory.

Pennington connected nine times with Kory Jones, who led all Gardner-Webb receivers with 102 yards. Giovanni Adopte added six receptions for 60 yards, while Bost finished with two catches for 63 yards and the 43-yard touchdown.

On the ground, Cormier carried seven times for 11 yards and a touchdown, while Christian Vann added 15 rushing yards on four attempts. Randy Young contributed nine yards on two carries and totaled 57 kickoff-return yards.

Defensively, Tre Yanez paced Gardner-Webb with 13 total tackles, while Cahari Haynes added 10 tackles, including a sack and 1.0 tackle for loss. The Runnin' Bulldogs finished with 10 tackles for loss and three sacks as a team.


CENTRAL ARKANSAS 36, #23/22 UT MARTIN 24
MARTIN, Tenn. - The No. 22 ranked University of Tennessee at Martin football squad battled tonight in its season opener but fell by a 36-24 margin to Central Arkansas in front of 5,516 fans at Hardy Graham Stadium.

The Skyhawks led late in the second quarter before 16 unanswered points by Central Arkansas tilted the score in favor of the Bears. UT Martin pulled within five points with 9:49 to go in the contest but the Bears answered with the final touchdown of the contest six-plus minutes later.

Sophomore safety Trey Cotton opened the scoring with the Skyhawks' first pick-six since Oct. 26, 2024, taking Central Arkansas' first pass of its second drive 55 yards to the house in the opening quarter. Cotton also forced a fumble while Jamarcus Smith (11 tackles, team-best 1.5 tackles for loss) and Jamal Mayers (10 solo tackles, three pass breakups) each recorded double-digit stops to pace UT Martin defensively. Chris Wilson additionally blocked a pair of PAT's to tie a school record with Toby Camp (at Lindenwood in 2025) and Dean Wathen (at Murray State in 2010).

Tommy Ansley found the endzone twice out of the Skyhawk backfield, also topping the team with 61 rushing yards on 10 carries. Julian Calvez made his first UT Martin start under center, completing 13 of his 24 passes for 147 yards while adding 37 rushing yards on nine totes. Kaleb Washington tied for the team lead with three catches and tallied a team-best 53 receiving yards in his Skyhawk debut.

Brandon Sims converted a 25-yard field goal in the second quarter, went 3-for-3 in PAT opportunities and placed four of his five kickoff chances for touchbacks. Max Zuluaga also landed his only punt for 48 yards tonight to guide the UT Martin special teams.


EASTERN ILLINOIS 28, MURRAY STATE 14
MURRAY, Ky. - Running back Charles Kellom was up to the task as Eastern Illinois played its earliest season opener in school history.

The senior rushed for a career-high 171 yards and three touchdowns helping power the Panthers to a 28-14 win at Murray State (0-1) on Thursday night.  It was the second straight season opening win for EIU (1-0).

Murray State took the early lead in the game as Jaxson Potter hauled in a 13-yard pass from Collin Shannon just 30 seconds into the second quarter.  The extra point was missed, one of two kicking miscues for the Racers in the opener.

Premiere Whitley blocked a Murray State field goal in the second quarter that would have put the Racers back in the lead after Kellom scored the first of his touchdowns with 9:56 to play in the first half.
Kellom raced 88-yards for his second score with 58 seconds left in the first half only to see the Racers drive down the field and score as time expired on a Shannon 7-yard touchdown connection to Trey Firestone.  Firestone caught the two-point conversion to make it 14-14 at the half.

Kellom tacked on his third touchdown on the Panthers first drive of the third quarter finishing the day with the 171 yards on 19 carries for 9.0 yards per rush average.

EIU’s defense turned up the pressure in the second half with interceptions by Kaleb Lyons and Ja’Wuan Nickson helping ice the game.

Cole LaCrue hit Landers Green for an insurance touchdown for the Panthers with 8:25 left in the contest with Nickson picking off a Racers pass in the final minutes.  Nickson led the EIU defense with ten tackles including two for loss.

Jacarre Fleming-Page added 81 yards on the ground as EIU churned out 267 yards on 47 carries. 

Shannon passed for 257 yards for the Racers with two touchdowns and the two interceptions.  Klayton Ingram was Murray State’s leading tackler with ten.


WESTERN ILLINOIS 65, NORTHWESTERN COLLEGE 14
MACOMB, Ill. - Western Illinois football opened the 2026 season in impressive fashion Thursday night, defeating Northwestern College, 65-14, at Hanson Field. 

Western Illinois found itself in an early hole after Northwestern College recovered a fumble on the opening kickoff and scored just 16 seconds into the game. The Leathernecks quickly responded, however, as LeBron Morgan recovered a fumble and returned it 35 yards for a touchdown to tie the game at 7-7.

WIU took control in the second quarter, scoring three touchdowns to build a 27-7 halftime advantage.

The Leathernecks continued their offensive attack in the second half, scoring 24 points in the third quarter before adding 14 more in the fourth. Western Illinois finished the night with nine touchdowns and a field goal.

Kennedy McGill led the Leatherneck offense, accounting for three rushing touchdowns and two touchdown passes. McGill connected with Christian Anaya for a 59-yard completion in the third quarter before rushing for a touchdown two plays later.

Northwestern College opened the scoring on its first offensive possession after recovering an Avery Knight fumble on the opening kickoff. Colby Duncan connected with Caleb Moore for a 19-yard touchdown, giving the Red Raiders a 7-0 lead.

Western Illinois answered on defense. Northwestern College quarterback Colby Duncan was sacked by Nick Reinicke and fumbled, with LeBron Morgan recovering and racing 62 yards for the touchdown. Ronan Culkin's extra point tied the game at 7-7 with 8:23 remaining in the first quarter.

McGill gave WIU its first lead of the night on the opening play of the second quarter, rushing 19 yards for a touchdown to make it 13-7.

The Leathernecks quickly added to their lead. After Joel Salien returned a punt 40 yards to the Northwestern 15, Knight found the end zone on a 15-yard touchdown run. WIU led 20-7 with 12:59 remaining in the half.

Western Illinois' defense forced another turnover on downs before the offense put together another scoring drive. McGill connected with David Hargro for a two-yard touchdown pass, giving the Leathernecks a 27-7 advantage with 2:59 remaining in the second quarter.

Kruger intercepted Duncan late in the half, allowing Western Illinois to take its 20-point lead into the locker room.

Northwestern College opened the second half with a touchdown drive, cutting the deficit to 27-14. The Leathernecks responded with another explosive play, as McGill connected with Anaya for 59 yards to the Northwestern 10-yard line. McGill then rushed 10 yards for a touchdown, pushing the lead to 34-14.

Jackson-Anderson added a 29-yard touchdown run later in the third quarter, while Culkin connected on a 36-yard field goal. McGill capped the quarter with his third rushing touchdown, a six-yard score that gave WIU a 51-14 lead entering the fourth.
Western Illinois continued its scoring in the fourth quarter. McGill connected with Aric Johnson for a 35-yard touchdown pass with 11:23 remaining, extending the Leatherneck lead to 58-14.

The Leathernecks then put together a long scoring drive, marching down the field with a combination of runs from Ethan Bryce and Tanner Zolnosky. Gage Sturgill capped the drive with an eight-yard touchdown run with 54 seconds remaining, giving WIU its final 65-14 advantage.