PEMBROKE — The University of North Carolina at Pembroke football team has a chance to make history Saturday at Grace P. Johnson Stadium by beating Wingate.

UNCP fans and supporters remember what happened last time the Bulldogs made the trek to Pembroke in 2007 — a 57-14 romp in which the Braves allowed 542 yards and six first-half touchdowns.

Last season, Wingate gave UNCP its only blemish in 10 games with a seven-point win at home, a defeat that turned into a learning experience according to Braves head coach Pete Shinnick.

"We were able to close the gap with Wingate in Year Two," Shinnick said. "Now we have a chance to try and get a win and see where we are as a program."

Wingate is 2-0 and one of 19 teams receiving votes in the American Football Coaches Association Division II Top 25 poll after blowout victories over North Greenville and West Georgia. Wingate is just outside the rankings with 54 votes while UNCP got 15 votes this week.

"Wingate is a complete team and a difficult challenge for us," Shinnick said. "They are a program we have a tremendous amount of respect for."

On offense, Wingate brings a balanced, pro-style set led by Cody Haffly. Haffly stepped in at quarterback following the graduation of two-year starter, J.D. Moore. Haffly has big shoes to fill under center after Moore totaled 55 touchdown passes in 31 career games.

Defense is Wingate's calling card, though, as the Bulldogs return 10 starters from last season's 8-3 squad. Former South View star, Greg Harmon, who scored on a 53-yard interception return last week against North Greenville, headlines a talented group of Bulldogs linebackers. Harmon was named the team's most valuable player last season after tallying 94 tackles.

Joe Reich is in his ninth season as Wingate's head coach and is the Bulldogs' all-time winningest coach with a 52-37 record. He was the South Atlantic Conference's Coach of the Year in 2004.

Reich and his players agree that Saturday's game is just as important to the Bulldogs as it is to the Braves.

"This is our first true test of the season," Wingate senior defensive back Tylan Merkerson said. "UNC Pembroke is a young but talented program that surely has this week highlighted on the calendar. We will go into this game as if we're 0-0."

UNCP's secondary showed a lot of improvement in last weekend's shutout win over St. Paul's. After allowing 235 yards and three touchdowns through the air in the opener at Fayetteville State, the Braves held St. Paul's quarterback Alwan Lee to just 36 yards on 11 attempts, collecting three interceptions while sacking the 6-foot junior three times.

Third-down defense has been the key as the Braves have allowed only three conversions in 21 attempts through two games. Safety Caylon Hann, who intercepted two passes vs. St. Paul's, said his teammates are well-prepared for the matchup with Wingate.

"Our guys are hungry," Hann said. "They gave us our one loss last year and we're ready to give them the same. I expect our team to play hard and come out ready to play. This is what we worked for all summer."

Travis Daniels will remain the starter at running back for UNCP, but Rashon Kennedy will get his share of carries as well. Daniels has 254 yards rushing this season while last season's No. 1 back, Kennedy, has 158.

"We go pretty deep at running back and they're the hardest working group we got," Shinnick said. "Both of those guys (Daniels and Kennedy) are good for us and what they do in practice really shows up in our games."

In other backfield news, Matt Evans of Ventura, Calif., has moved up to second on the Braves' depth chart at quarterback, replacing Garrett Sutphen. Shinnick said all quarterbacks are evaluated on a week-by-week basis.