Under the guidance of head coach Mike Houston, the 2013 Lenoir-Rhyne Bears were a dominant force in the world of NCAA DII Football. They went 13-2 and advanced to the first NCAA Title game in school history.
Following a loss to Concord in the opening game of the season, LR rattled off 13 straight victories before falling to undefeated Northwest Missouri State 43-28 the NCAA championship game. The start of those 13 victories was a big win over NCAA Division I Davidson (34-18). The schedule wasn't cake for the Bears, as they notched five ranked wins throughout the season. They took down #23 Newberry 35-14 on October 19
th, and #16 Carson-Newman 37-3 on November 2
nd. In a rematch with the Eagles in the second round of the playoffs, the Bears again came away victorious, this time winning by a score of 27-20. LR squeaked out a 42-39 win over #16 North Alabama in the quarterfinals, and finally took down #15 West Chester in the national semifinals.
That season, the Bears set a NCAA Division II rushing record with 5,563 yards gained, a record that stood until just last season. Leading the charge on the ground were Jarrod Spears, Miles Freeman, and Isaiah Whitaker, who each notched at least 900 rushing yards. Isaiah Whitaker (fullback), Michael Green (defensive back), Blake Baker (defensive line), Joe Ray (offensive line), Zach Neumann (placekicker), Tanner Botts (linebacker), and Jimmy Long (defensive line) were all named to an All-American Team. Rodney Singleton was named SAC Freshman of the Year, while Mike Houston picked up his third consecutive SAC Coach of the Year honor. Michael Green was the SAC Defensive Player of the Year and Joe Anderson became just the second football player in school history to be named a CoSIDA Academic All-American.
