FROSTBURG — Frostburg State and Shepherd have announced a six-year scheduling agreement in football beginning next season.
The first matchup will be the 2025 season-opener for both teams and is slated for Saturday, Aug. 30, in a night game in Bobcat Stadium. The series will alternate home and away over the following five years.
“We are excited to add someone of the caliber of Shepherd to our schedule,” Frostburg State head coach Eric Wagoner said. “It is always beneficial to have a strong regional schedule. When you add in the proximity of the two universities, it only made sense that we open our season playing each other.”
The two programs are located just over 60 miles from one another, but more than four decades have passed since their last meeting.
They’ve faced off 14 times in their history, with the last game being played in 1981, a 17-7 Shepherd victory in Frostburg.
Shepherd leads the all-time series 12-2 and has won the last five meetings. The teams first met in 1962.
“We are extremely excited to have signed a six-year agreement with Frostburg State University as a non-conference opponent,” Shepherd Athletic Director Carrie Bodkins said. “This allows both teams to have a day trip to reduce costs and it will bring a good gate for the home team since we are so close.
“The Frostburg State matchup brings an exciting and competitive rivalry to our schedule.”
Frostburg, a member of the Mountain East Conference (MEC) since joining NCAA Division II in 2019, replaced Shepherd in the league once the Rams left for the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC).
The Bobcats finished the 2024 season 6-5 under Wagoner, who has a 21-11 record in four years.
Shepherd also finished 6-5 last year under the direction of Ernie McCook, who took over the program in 2018 and currently holds a 58-18 overall mark.
The Rams are one of the region’s premier Division II programs, advancing to the national semifinals five times in the last 15 years. They fell in the 2015 championship game to Northwest Missouri State, 34-7.
Shepherd had a Harlon Hill Trophy winner in 2021, the equivalent of the Heisman Trophy for D2, when quarterback Tyson Bagent took the honor.
Bagent, a Martinsburg graduate, is entering his third year as a backup on the National Football League’s Chicago Bears.
“We are excited to sign a six-year agreement with Frostburg State as our non-conference opponent,” McCook said. “This is an in-region opener against a first class and well-respected football program. This game will bring great enthusiasm and energy for D2 football in the local area.”