BRIDGEWATER, Va. - The Bridgewater College football team is set for its final road contest of the season as it clashes with Roanoke in Salem on Saturday.

When: Saturday, October 31, 2026
Where: Salem, Va.
Stadium: Salem Stadium
Watch: FloCollege ($)
Kickoff: 2:00 pm 
Gameday Forecast: Increasing clouds, with a high near 66. Calm wind becoming southeast at around 5 mph.
Series Record: Roanoke leads 5-0

THE DARKSIDE: The Bridgewater defense had another strong showing on Saturday against Shenandoah. The BC secondary limited the ODAC's top passing attack to just 84 yards on Saturday and has given up 127 yards or less in four straight games. The Eagles rank 25th nationally against the pass and second in the league. Oscar Whitely ran his double-digit tackle streak to six-straight games with his game-high 12 stops against SU on Saturday. His 10 solo tackles helped extend his ODAC lead and moved him to fourth nationally as he averages 6.6 solo stops a game. Joey Strong ranked second for BC in tackles on Saturday with eight, including seven on his own. The senior returns to his hometown on Saturday, ranking second to Whitely in the ODAC in solo tackles (5.14). Jayden Booth was a force on the defensive front with 2.0 TFL, including a sack against SU.

OFFENSIVE MAKEOVER:  The Bridgewater offense embarks on a new chapter in 2026 as Kevin Saxton II takes over the signal calling in his first season as the Assistant Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator. Saxton comes back to the ODAC after most recently serving as an assistant under Andy Reid in Kansas City. The Eagles offense had another good showing on Saturday, including a career-high 266 yards through the air from Parker Burke. Nick Barahona was Burke's top target as the Woodstock, Va. native caught seven passes for 96 yards. Wyatt Jervis led BC on the ground as he led four different Eagles in double-digit yardage. Burke's 16.0 completions per game rank second in the ODAC. The UVA-Wise transfer completed 22 passes on Saturday for his second straight game with 20+ pass completions and has had a QBR of 100 or better five times this season.

SPECIAL TEAM MATTER:  Bridgewater's special teams unit has been a key factor for the Eagles so far this season. Aiden Grefe ranks second in the ODAC and 45th nationally with 38.6 yards per boot. BC ranks 42nd nationally in net punting and nearly blocked a pair of kicks last week. Tommy Nelson added to the special teams highlights against Susquehanna as he took a kickoff 92 yards to the house for BC's first touchdown of the season. Nelson ranks 17th in Div. III in kickoff returns with an average of 28.0 yards per attempt, but opponents have opted to kick in Jamari Lewis' direction over the last three games. Lewis has also made an impact in the return game, ranking inside the top 100 nationally at 21.1 yards per return.

SCOUTING THE MAROONS:  Roanoke enters Saturday on the back of a blow-out victory over Averett, 45-3, on Saturday in Salem. The Maroons have been solid on all three sides of the football this season, leading the ODAC in first down defense, kickoff returns, completion percentage, rushing defense, redzone offense, scoring offense and sacks. The Maroons' special teams have been a highlight as they lead Div. III at 36.0 yards per kickoff return and the explosive KJ Bratton leads Div. III with 40.2 yards per attempt with a pair of house calls. Quarterback Linwood Johnson leads the league in passing scores, yards per completion and scoring, while his favorite target Khamari Garner ranks second in the ODAC at 53.6 receiving yards per game. Defensively, it's a total unit-wide effort for RC. The ODAC's top group at getting to the QB has 13 different players who have recorded a sack this season.

ROANOKE HEAD COACH: Bryan Stinespring is in his second season as the Maroons' head coach. The James Madison Graduate was tagged to lead the revival of the Roanoke program and has amassed 10 wins up to this point in his tenure. Stinespring is no stranger to the gridiron in southwest Virginia, as he served as Frank Beamer's offensive signal caller at Virginia Tech in his 26-year run as an assistant in Blacksburg. Stinespring's career path has seen him serve as an assistant at JMU, his alma mater, Virginia Military Institute and Delaware. 

THE RAILYARD: Bridgewater plays its first contest in Salem, Va., since taking on Mount Union at Salem Stadium in 2001 in the Stagg Bowl. BC fell in the NCAA Div. III Championship Game 30-27, and still is the only ODAC school to make it to the national championship in league history. BC returns to Salem for the first time in 25 years and will take on Roanoke there for the first time in 95 years. The Eagles are 0-5 in Virginia's Championship City.

DUKE VS DUKE: Saturday's matchup features a pair of former James Madison Dukes. Bridgewater head coach Scott Lemn was a center for the Dukes from 2005-2008 and was named an All-American during his time in Harrisonburg. The other sideline features Bryan Stinespring. Stinespring was a walk-on at JMU in the early 1980s and graduated in 1986. He returned to the Dukes as an offensive assistant before the 2017 season, as he coached the offensive line on the 2017 Div. I-AA National Runner-Up.

TAKING ADVANTAGE: Bridgewater's loss to Shenandoah Saturday saw them come up empty on three trips to the red-zone. Bridgewater is 8-of-18 on trips to the red-zone this season, scoring at a 44.4% clip. Roanoke enters Saturday scoring at a 93.1% clip inside the 20-yard line to lead the ODAC and rank ninth nationally. 

HALLOWEEN: Bridgewater is playing football on Halloween for the 10th time in the program's 127-year history. BC is 2-7 on Oct. 31 with its last spooky contest coming at HSC in 2015. BC's last victory on Halloween came in 2009 in overtime at Washington and Lee, 35-34.